Chandigarh News- Child & Adolescent Development Clinic launched at Max Hospital

Chandigarh, September 20, 2013:  A special Child & Adolescent Development Clinic has launched at Max Super Specialty Hospital, Mohali today. The clinic is especially designed to look after the mental health needs of children, adolescents and their families and will provide a continuum of comprehensive behavioural health services.  
Speaking during occasions, Dr Ashutosh Sood, General Manager- Operations, Max Super Speciality Hospital, Mohali said that through clinic we aimed to educate the parents about the common mental health disorders amongst children and gave them tips on dealing with their growing teenagers. This clinic was dedicated to children and adolescent psychiatry and we hoped that maximum numbers of families would benefit from this new and unique clinic.”
While expressing concern over the rising cases of child depression, Dr Sachin Kaushik, Consultant-Psychiatry at Max Hospital said that the children with over controlling parents were more likely to be depressed or anxious. The child’s ability to get on with others and deal with peer group was grossly affected by overbearing parenting style, where parents hovered over their children and dictated their terms. Involvement to an extent of being caring and facilitating needs of child could produce positive results, pointed out Dr Kaushik.  
“While most parents might be considered 'helicopter parenting' to be supportive, rather than detrimental, research has shown that children of over controlling parents felt less competent, less confident and less able to manage life and its stressors. The children's need for autonomy increased over time as they strived to become independent young adults. The parents needed to adjust their level of involvement and a set foundation for a healthy and productive life.”
Dr Kaushik stated that observations showed that children were made to see the world through their parent's eyes. Deep in their minds, this would create conflicts with child's own take on life, his or her own dreams and thus developed a sense of frustration and alienation. Soon such children started showing signs of anxiety and other health disorders. Over the time this internal split of not being able to live up to either their parents' or their own expectations culminated into depression and even suicidal ideation, maintained Dr Kaushik.
Highlighting the recent trends in depressive psychology amongst growing children, Dr Kaushik said that we have seen many people who admitted pursuing an activity that they had no interest for but were simply being told to do so by their parents. The parents should understand that child was not a business venture, which would become profitable only when it matured according to them and acquires traits and success which they considered valuable. True success would stem from passion and it was when children follow their true passion that they were able to excel easily in it. The parents often made mistake an overbearing attitude as being a concerned parent. "Helicopter parents” who remote controlled their children’s lives were creating a generation incapable of standing on their own feet.”
The key was balanced level of parental control, Dr Kaushik reiterated. The parents should keep in mind that their task was to offer the child an unbiased view of life and its issues based on their own experience and knowledge and let the child himself find the answers. They should act as facilitators rather than dictators, remarked Dr Kaushik.
It was also important for parents to understand that children came to the world 'through' them rather 'from' them. Let the child navigate his own ship of through ups and downs of life and then even a failure would make them stronger and they would learn from them. Let them breathe in free air and gave them the space they needed, asserted Dr Kaushik.