Some measures described in your reading on maternal depression are formal assessments or self-report. It helps if the people around the parent knows signs of depression such as “mood swings, overwhelming feelings, forgetting a lot, having sleep issues meaning too much sleep or not being able to sleep, disturbed eating patterns that lead to rapid weight gain or loss. Other signs would include risk taking behaviors such as substance abuse and criminal activity, withdrawing or becoming isolated.” ("Parenting, Depression, and Hope: Reaching out to Families Facing Adversity," 2008) This will have a profound effect on the parent’s children. In my Head Start program the Family advocate does a depression screening with the parent. Sometimes that
