Experience Journal: Pediatric Depression

The Depression Experience Journal is a collection of stories, pictures, and personal experiences from families about what it has been like to live with depression in a child or an adolescent. It represents the "collective wisdom" of these families as well as their health care providers.

We welcome family members to enter and explore the Depression Experience Journal. The journal has the following chapters:

Sharing Our Stories. Parents tell about their experience facing Depression in their children.

The Children Speak. Children and teenagers as well as young adults tell their stories about Depression.

One Family's Dialogue. The voices and pictures of one family's journey.

One Expert’s Dialogue. Insight and advice from Dr. William R. Beardslee, national expert on child and adolescent depression.

Words of Wisdom. Advice and coping strategies.

The Clinicians. Thoughts and ideas from Children's Hospital Boston doctors and therapists.

We know that there may be some emotional discomfort associated with reading the stories of children and parents describing their experience dealing with depression. Nonetheless, we know that families learn from the stories of others facing similar experiences. The hope and goal of the Depression Experience Journal lies in facilitating the strength and resiliency that lies in every child and family that faces adversity.