As a parent you can always figure out if there is something wrong with your child. With the tremendous amount of difficulty and anxiety that a special needs child goes through, there is no harm in being extra cautious in making sure that your child is doing well emotionally.

The following signs can act as clues in telling you that your child might need help.

1. Abnormal eating habits and sleeping patterns: If your child suddenly starts eating too less or too much and is sleeping way more than usual, then something might probably be bothering him.
2. Introversion: If your child is shying away from all of his/her friends and family members and wants to be left alone at all times, then this is an indication of something being wrong.
3. Deteriorating school performance: All of a sudden, the teachers in school start complaining about your kid not paying attention in class and having a hostile and aggressive behaviour when in school. This calls for your immediate involvement in figuring out what is going on with your child.
4. Health problems: If your child is getting a fever or is having stomach pains and headaches on a regular basis, and his/her paediatrician is unable to pinpoint the cause then your next step should be approaching a psychologist.
5. Trouble socializing: All children make friends at different rates, but if you notice your child having trouble mingling with his peers or holding onto his friends, then you should sit him down and talk him through whatever that is on his mind.
6. Suicidal thoughts: If your kid has suddenly started talking to you about death and the different ways of dying and is looking up shows on such things, then an immediate action is absolutely necessary on your part. In such cases, seeking professional help is usually the best choice as this usually indicates that things have gotten very serious and out of hand.

Even though, we more often than not tend to overlook these small symptoms, they are usually the ones that come back haunting after having taken a bigger shape. Mental health issues need the utmost care and support as otherwise there is always a chance of them never really going away. We, parents, mostly want to stay in denial of our kids suffering from depression because of the social taboos attached with it. Also, after having spent all our attention on the physical aspects of our special needs child, the emotional needs often tend to get overlooked. In such cases, it is extremely crucial to understand depression and to seek treatment for both the mental and physical development of your child.