The prevalence of depression in young children and adolescents today is astonishing; one child in thirty-three suffers from depression. Incredibly, until recently, depression in young children was not considered a real disorder. As a result, over the past twenty years, scientific research has emerged that is needed to understand how children experience depression, the causes of their depression, and treatment options. (the psychiatry depressed source book) &( Dubuque, S.(1998). Depression is defined as a serious medical condition in which a person is in a constant state of sadness, feels hopeless and unimportant, and is often unable able to live in a normal way (merriam-webster.com) children who suffer from depression experience constant feelings of sadness and at the same time experience concentration problems, have very little motivation, are often irritable, suffer from separation anxiety and may even experience unrelenting physical pain such as headaches and stomach pain that does not improve with treatment Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry The specific causes of depression in children may develop as a result of combined factors associated with physical health, experiences life history, family history, environment, genetic predisposition, and biochemical factors (webmd) Because childhood depression can be comorbid with anxiety disorders or ADD, recognizing and diagnosing it can be difficult. (dubuque, 1998) Studies have shown that children who experience a lot of stress, have attention problems, have learning difficulties, or have conduct disorders are at increased risk for depression. (proquest childhood depression) Depression is a recurrent disorder, where especially in children, through...... middle of paper ......of the causes of children's excessively internalized behaviors it will be recognized which children are more likely to become depressed . Including maternal depression among the possible causes of childhood depression allows children who may be affected to be treated and supported. Furthermore, understanding the root causes of depression, shame and guilt will allow us to treat it better. The findings clearly show the importance of developing a treatment protocol for this population. As a special educator, this knowledge will be useful to me in several ways. It will allow me to understand which children are most likely to suffer from depression and will make me aware of possible symptoms. Having this knowledge will change how I relate to children with this disability. They need special care and to be treated with greater sensitivity.