If you have an addiction, it may not just be your wellbeing, but your child’s that you’re putting at risk. This is according to a new study by University of Toronto researchers, who found that the instability of a parent’s addiction can contribute to depression in their children – which follows them into adulthood.
Published online in the journal Psychiatry Research, the study detailed a vicious cycle in which those same kids, who watched their mother or father get high or drunk, could also become addicts or suffer clinical depression later in life. This is based on a representative sampling of 6,268 adults, drawn from the 2005 Canadian Community Health Survey, 312 of whom admitted to having a major depressive episode within the year prior to the survey. Another 877 had frequently witnessed at least one parent drink or use drugs to the point where it damaged family wellness – and this was witnessed during their childhood.
The researchers discerned that those 877 people were more likely to become clinically depressed than their peers, and were twice as likely to be depressed as adults. Lead author, Professor Esme Fuller-Thomson, explained, ‘Even after adjusting for factors ranging from childhood maltreatment and parental unemployment to adult health behaviours including smoking and alcohol consumption, we found that parental addictions were associated with 69% higher odds of depression in adulthood.’
Four graduate students at the University of Toronto co-authored the study, including Robyn Katz who suggested that adulthood depression in the children of addicts possibly occurs because the ‘prolonged and inescapable strain’ permanently alters the child’s reaction to stress. Your home environment can almost become unbearable when a parent has an addiction, and a child can feel helpless and encumbered with the sense of being responsible for their irresponsible parent. Unfortunately, the selfishness of addiction means that some parents take advantage of the loved ones around them, including their own children.
However, it’s not just the taking advatage that takes its toll on child wellness; addict parents can also inflict emotional, physical, and psychological abuse on their children. Children need consistency, structure, and love, and so kids who endure constant toxic stress at home can be greatly aided by a network of stable, caring adults, such as grandparents, teachers, neighbours, coaches, and social workers.
Is Your Parent’s Addiction Responsible for Your Depression?
