Moving in Childhood Contributes to Depression

[MsAmerica]

I found this mind-boggling.

Moving in Childhood Contributes to Depression, Study Finds
A study of more than a million Danes found that frequent moves in childhood had a bigger effect than poverty on adult mental health risk.
By Ellen Barry

Researchers who conducted a large study of adults in Denmark, published on Wednesday in the journal JAMA Psychiatry, found something they had not expected: Adults who moved frequently in childhood have significantly more risk of suffering from depression than their counterparts who stayed put in a community.

In fact, the risk of moving frequently in childhood was significantly greater than the risk of living in a poor neighborhood, said Clive Sabel, a professor at the University of Plymouth and the paper’s lead author. “Even if you came from the most income-deprived communities, not moving — being a ‘stayer’ — was protective for your health,” said Dr. Sabel, a geographer who studies the effect of environment on disease.
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/17/health/moving-childhood-depression.html

Frequent house moves put kids at risk of depression as adults
Children who move once between the ages of 10 and 15 are 41% more likely to be diagnosed with depression in adulthood, compared with those whose families don't move, researchers found. And kids who move twice or more at that age are 61% more likely to develop depression, results.
https://www.upi.com/Health_News/2024/07/18/frequent-house-moves-kids-risk-depression-adults/9221721314727/

Frequent Childhood Relocations Linked To 40% Higher Risk Of Depression In Adulthood
https://www.medicaldaily.com/frequent-childhood-relocations-linked-40-higher-risk-depression-adulthood-471986

Frequent Moving in Childhood Linked to Later Depression
https://alert.psychnews.org/2024/07/frequent-moving-in-childhood-linked-to.html

I'm a therapist and I can imagine this is accurate. However I feel it's more about moving schools/far away from friends, family etc rather than simply moving house. Children learn about themselves, others and the world during primary/secondary school age and moving from stability and social support will have a huge impact on the safety a child feels within the world. This then leads to beliefs that the world is uncertain and not a strong support network. Another major difficulty is uncertainty, when life is uncertain, so when the family moves around a lot is an example of this, children often struggle to learn how to cope with this. This then leads to the adult not knowing how to tolerate uncertainty/lack of control and as they life life as an adult encountering different situations and events this can lead to a lot of anxiety and worry. This can often then lead to burnout aka depression.

Like some PP I moved at around age 13 and absolutely hated it. None of the other instability risk factors apply to me. I can see how a move and depression could be connected 100%

I moved twice although slightly out of that age range. I moved as a toddler and remember feeling how lucky my cousins were to still live so near our grandparents. I moved again at 16 for my parents work, it was a critical time for me where I was greatly developing my independence and social life and felt it was all snatched away and I was expected to just "get on with it" I was deeply unhappy for a long time and felt this was my fault that I just couldn't adjust. I remember my mum saying to me "well you didn't have many friends anyway" but my small circle at that time were really important to me. I've struggled at times with anxiety and depression although realise now I am likely neuro diverse so maybe that is why it was so difficult for me.

I moved six times as a child/teen and am depressed as fuck.

I do feel rootless and even now I envy friends who grew up in one house.

Edit to add: seven times not six. I forgot my first house.

I think that the children of these children are also affected. They are in my family.

Yes, this resonates with me. I still find going on holiday 'unsettling' and I get a strange feeling in the pit of my stomach on the first night of being somewhere new - almost a moment of what am I doing here, I would rather be in the comfort and safety of my own home. It sounds ridiculous as I am a grown adult and I do enjoy holidays but I always feel a bit out of sorts.

Well it may contribute but as the two people I know struggling with depression both lived in the same house from birth until university I think it's only a factor, and more likely in my opinion to be correlation rather than causation ... frequently moving can be indicative of a chaotic home life

We moved on average every 4 years throughout my entire childhood.

Every move meant I never saw anybody from the old house again, so each move I made less friends until by the last move I made none.

Back then, using the phone was not something allowed for phoning friends, other than teenagers maybe being allowed so you might as well have moved to another planet.
There was no internet.

I think it causes children to become detached from building or trying to fit into a social circle which could contribute to being more isolated and cause depression.
I have no tie to any area having lived in many but not really felt local to any.
No friendship circle, no history in a place, no shared memories.
Nowhere is really where I feel I am from.

That's actually pretty depressing to read back.

We moved when 11 - no divorce and in fact it was for an’better’ life. Nice area, house etc

the impact it had on me was huge and I remember feeling devastated for months. We have stayed in same area and schools for our kids.

I guess moving within a neighbourhood and not changing school is less impactful than moving to a new school

Additionally, though, @MrsTerryPratchett, kids often move when their parents get promoted to better jobs, move to better locations, even move for better schools.

I lived in several countries between the ages of 10 and 16. Although I made friends and settled in easily, I remember having some pretty dark thoughts at the time. It changed my personality (from bubbly and confident to quiet and withdrawn) and I'm not sure I'll ever fully recover. That said, I think I would have been fine if I'd had more emotionally-available parents. I'm grateful for the experiences that came with it so I'm not against moving entirely, but I think it needs to be handled more sensitively, especially at those ages. I personally won't be moving my own kids.

I know people with depression who moved and those who didn't. During my studies I also read a study that linked having to deal with changes like moving with resilience. It's not straight forward.

Sometimes it's necessary to move for work. I imagine kids would also get pretty depressed if they couldn't eat or had to live in the car, if a parent couldn't get work more locally.

I've lived in the same place my whole life but my parents moved when I was a baby. As a result, I have no extended family and never have. I also don't have those connections for my children either. The location isn't as important as the connections IMO. I remember begging my parents to move when I was 12 and they were talking about it. I think it could have turned my whole life for the better to have regained family and moved away from the school I was at.

This. Seems pretty obvious, surely

Well that would also add to the depression, surely

That makes absolute sense to me. My parents moved me twice (a couple of hundred miles each time) between the ages of 8 and 12. They recently told me they were going to move a third time but changed their minds! I have control issues and anxiety over new places, I’m awful on holiday. And if something gets difficult I feel the urge to move and leave it behind, which I don’t do because I wouldn’t move my kids in a million years. I want stability for them.

"This then leads to beliefs that the world is uncertain and not a strong support network."

That's the truth about the world though. It's uncertain and, in the end, the only person you can count on being with your for life is yourself. Eventually we all have to deal with this existential reality.

I went to three primary schools and two secondary. The study rings true for me and in our case the moves were all because my father had had a promotion so it was a lifestyle upgrade each time.

I think it’s had a massive effect on my personality/ happiness. I’m a real people pleaser and I have low esteem. I always feel tolerated at best in a group and although I’ve had enough therapy to see that’s irrational the feeling is still very much there.

My mum (who I have a great relationship with) would not recognise this at all I’ve often heard her cheerily tell people none of us minded.

Are you younger than your brother? I would consider myself extroverted and adventurous, a fast learner who loves change - and my sister is the opposite. Yet she was far less affected by house moves than me. I did have one extra school move due to my age so she went to 3 primary schools and one secondary. I went to 3 primaries and 2 secondary schools. She moved up to secondary with many of her primary cohort too. One of the primaries, the transition to secondary and then the secondary move were quite traumatic for me and I do suffer with low level depression. We stopped moving schools (although still moved house one more time) when I was 13 and she was 10. I think she played a bit factor in the trauma.

That should say: I think age (more than personality) played a big factor in the trauma.

I could say all that about myself and I never even moved houses once.

Maybe your mother just can't be bothered talking details with people? Sometimes it's none of their business and you just don't want to bother explaining?

Sure, I’m not saying she owes anyone an explanation or that anything is her fault.

I suppose the main thing is whether she acknowledges, to you, that it was difficult for you. That's a lot of school changing, even if it was necessary or by choice.

No she doesn’t - I genuinely don’t think she realises how hard it was. I wouldn’t want to upset her and it wouldn’t change anything.

A couple of years ago she was talking about my brother’s children moving schools (although they didn’t in the end) and saying that we (her 3 kids) all coped brilliantly and it made no difference. That was not my perception at all!

I should say I seem to be unfairly focusing on my mum here when it was my father’s job we were moved for! Its just I’ve never heard my dad express an opinion on it either way!

I'd suggest that may be more likely the causes of your struggles you mention. My mother is also quite invalidating of my experiences and emotions. I think that's been difficult.

I'm not sure acknowledgment from parents removes the struggle.

For me, constantly being out of friendship groups (which were longstanding, children who've grown up together or at least started secondary school together) meant I felt left out. I now have a big 'thing' about feeling left out, people getting together without me or knowing things about each other which I don't know. I'm also excellent at forming relationships quickly but I have very few long term friends. I just stuck at a certain point and if anyone is not visibly in my life I forget about them like they don't exist. I think I just had to cut off so many relationships that it's very normal for me.