If you are the mother of a child with attention deficit
hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), you may be at increased risk for
depression, according to a study conducted by a Louisiana-based
family physician. Dr. Louis McCormick conducted a year-long
study of mothers of children with ADHD who were patients in his
Franklin, La., medical practice. Of the 39 mothers who took the
study’s Self-Test for Depression, 21 had scores that suggested
depression. Eleven women scored in the “minimal to mild” range;
five in the “moderate to marked” range; and five in the “severe
to extreme” range. The mothers were then interviewed, diagnosed
and, where appropriate, treated. So, what does this study really
mean? McCormick theorizes that the stress of parenting an ADHD
child can create situational depression, that is, depression
caused by a specific stressful life event: divorce, death of a
loved one, losing one’s job, an unwilling move to another
location, ill parents and, of course, in this case, a child with
an extremely demanding