Does depression run in families?

My son is feeling very depressed and I just found out he is seeing a therapist which is good but I feel so guilty that I didn't know he was so down.  He has a lot going on in his life and a lot of stress with work and other things.  His girlfriend is going away to school in another state  for 2 years so he won't see her often.  I know this bothers him.  He also knows I suffer from depression and has been very supportive of me.  I wish I knew what I could do for him to help.  Maybe I am too close to the situation but I didn't know it was so bad.  I think he didn't want to tell me so he put up a good front.  My other son suffered from depression also but he is OK now.  Maybe the best thing is to let him work it out with the therapist.  If anyone has suggestions on what I might do to help I would appreciate it.  Does anyone know if this runs in families?  I think my sister was depressed for years and she had very little help because my mother wouldn't allow it.  My sister ended up dying young from a heart attack.

 Aurora~

Yes it does run in families.  Depression is an area of mental illness that has been found to be genetically predispositioned in families with depression or similiar areas such as alzheimers.  Depression can also be caused by many other things such as environmental issues and oddly enough can be caused by experiences in life in which were developed in childhood.

 

I have major depression with an Axis II personality disorder.  I was predisposed for depression as my maternal side of the family suffers from different forms of psychological disorders.  I developed the personality disorders from childhood.

 

Unfortunately, we as depressed adults are more likely to have depressed children.  Speaking for myself, my children have not only been predisposed to depression but they witness it on a daily basis.  Although I try to hide my depression, I know that it is evident that I am sad.

Many thanks to all who anwered my post.  It really means  lot to me.  I will do my best to keep supporting my son and help him progress to healing.  I went to my depression support group tonight and that did help.  People did have some good suggestions.  I am amazed though at some of the terrible problems others have.  I am grateful for my ability to go on and have some happy times.  It reminds me of the fable of the man walking along the beach with God and seeing 2 sets of footprints in the sand.  One day the man only saw one set of prints and thought that God had forsaken him.  He was having a particularly hard time.  God responded " I did not abandon you - when you only saw one set of prints, those were the times I carried you."  This has always stuck in my mind and is a helpful thing to remember. I think having faith in whatever one believes in is good.

Aurora
You have been given some excellent insight on this.
I too agree with Darren...it seems that families that have alot of major stress in their lives seem to all spiral downhill with depression.
I know that my divorce caused my son's bipolar to become worse.
And I know that my mom's major depression also sent my brother and I on a roller coaster.


Shy

Hi Aurora, 

I totally agree with everyone here...mental health issues do and can run down the family line.  Both of my parents have depression and there have been other mental health issues further back in my family.

What I did want to input here was that since your son confided in you regarding this perhaps you can share your experience with depression to him.  Often times when someone starts seeing a therapist and is told they have depression it is very confusing.  Not knowing what to expect, or feeling like they are crazy or something.  Which as we all know is not the case at all.  Leaving it up to his therapist to deal with is exactly what many families have done for many years and why so many people are not correctly educated on this disorder.  You can be a huge sense of support for him and you never know but it may be for you also.

Something interesting....Researchers have been able to isolate the gene(s) that cause depression at least for most people.  They have specific blood work that can be done to determine if someone has this gene and also what medications may be of help to them.  I will look for the link I have on this but I believe it is the Mayo Clinic who does this.

Yes, that sounds like a great idea...letting him come to you.

My mom divorced my dad when I was 3 so I dont have any memories of him from when I was a child.  In my case I have always looked and regarded my mother as both mom and dad.  It is funny how we dont miss something/someone that we never knew was there to start with.  I hope your son feels the same way about you...it sounds like your a wonderful mother and friend to him. 

Angel~

As i stated in my post, you can develop depression from things other than predisposition to it.  Other factors such as environmental and societal issues play a great role in it as well.  The good news to that is your chances of your depression being treatable is more likely as opposed to someone that is predispositioned with more of a "chemical dependency" for depression.

 

Not to take away from your depression at all.  My depression which is chemical related is extremely difficult to treat do to the chemical imbalance that I have.    I know that all depressions are horrible and that noone can imagine a depression being worse than they are experiencing but to depend on chemical treatment (ie, anti-d's) is awful.

 

Take care girl, I hope you are doing ok.