Customer Reviews

The Suicide of My Son: The Story of Childhood Depression

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The first half of this book dealt with the story itself including the suicide and the life of the author's son `Ben'. The second half covered the different mood disorders that afflicted Ben and methods of treatment.

There is one basic reason I gave this book four of five stars. This book did not talk about childhood depression. In brief areas throughout the text the author hinted to depression and a manic depressive (bi-polar) illness. However the majority of the text and history provided of Ben's life was about his ADHD, dyslexia, and other learning disorders. The author ranted for many chapters about how she tried to help him with his studies and how school was a problem for him and how she wanted Ben to do better in school, but he was not getting the assistance he needed. Long story short, she focused the primary emphasis of her text on his learning disabilities and not on his chronic depression or manic-depressive disorders, which in the end were the causes of his suicide. Based on these facts I would rate this book lower, however it did do a much better job in the second half of the book with thorough descriptions of the various mental disorders for diagnosis purposes and treatment methods as well as a section for suicide awareness and avoidance.

If you want a book which describes the trials and tribulations of a child with various mental health issues, buy this book.

If you want a book about suicide prevention, or a book with an in-depth look at adolescent depression or manic depressive (bi-polar) mood disorders than look else where because this book falls short in these areas.

As the mother of a teen suicide myself, I highly recommend this book. For those of you who are grieving from the same tragedy, it will answer many of your "Why" questions. And for those who have loved ones suffering from depression or bipolar disorder, you will learn how you may prevent their suicide. All depressed and bipolar people are at high risk for suicide. Trudy eloquently describes how triggers may prompt a suicide but mental illness causes it. She also describes quite accurately many of the confusing behaviors these individuals display: anger from limit-setting, logical leaps that are hard to follow, and a jovial attitude when experiencing deep pain. She did a marvelous job in her discussion of the relationship between loss and depression. This book also includes a detailed section on medications that I've seen in no other book like it. A must read!

When the teachers can't figure out what's wrong and it keeps on and on in a downward spiral, maybe they are overlooking something. Carlson's book keys in on what can be considered as a "perfect recipe" for suicide. Teachers need to be aware that there is more out there that bad grades or bad behavior. Trudy Carlson compels one to dig deeper and to gain a clear understanding of what children with multiple disabilities suffer on a daily basis, clearly bringing to light that "at risk students" are a special population that needs to be taken seriously and respected before they are lost, lost forever.

If you've ever experienced the loss of a loved one by suicide, you probably have wondered. Carlson's book is helpful in so many ways, but especially in helping life get back on track. Having lost her son to suicide, Trudy Carlson picks up the pieces of her family life and moves ahead in the best way she can, and becomes an inspiration to others along the way. Though every family is unique and each story different, the death of a child is perhaps one situation with common threads: grief, pain, guilt, hopelessness. Carlson shows us how to deal with these, suggests options that could help (and which the reader may not have been prepared to consider) and shows by example that while life after a suicide is not the same, the difference it brings about is not necessarily bad. I've read this book a few times and now have given copies to friends. It amazes me that you can mention "suicide" in a group of people, and suddenly everyone has a story about it. I found this book comforting, uplifting, and helpful. You know Ben Carlson. You know Trudy Carlson. They are us.

The book is good, but Carlson kept losing me when the story of her son turns into a textbook for teachers. It does, however, have some strong points for anyone who has ever lost someone to suicide. A "Good" Book.....

This is a touching story, but suicide isn't the only aspect of Childhood-Onset Bipolar Disorder. This gives some good information, but isn't that well written. There's a new book that has a lot of practical information in a very usable format that addresses the daily challenges of Bipolar Disorder, not just the suicidal tendencies, much better. It's called "If Your Child is Bipolar."

Through the moving story of one victim's life, the author illustrates how caring adults can recognize the symptoms that threaten a child's life.