CDC: More American Young People Dying by Suicide, Homicide
From CBS News: Suicide deaths among 10- to 24-year-olds increased 7% annually from 2013 to 2017, while homicide deaths in this age group rose 18% from 2014 to 2017.
A Strange New Culprit Behind Eating Disorders
From The Atlantic: Recent evidence suggests a relationship between upper-respiratory-tract infections and the development of eating disorders in some children.
Hereditary Madness? The Genain Sisters’ Tragic Story
The story of the Genain quadruplets has long been cited as evidence proving something about the supposed hereditary nature of schizophrenia. But who wouldnāt fall apart after surviving a childhood like theirs? The doctors attributed their problems to menstrual difficulties or excessive masturbation ā anything except abuse.
Smartphones, Loneliness, and Depression in Teens
New study finds that smartphone use may precede experiences of loneliness and depressive symptoms among older teens according to longitudinal analysis.
Overdose Epidemic Sending More and More Children to Foster Care
From Mother Jones: The total number of foster care entries has slowly dwindled, but entries due to parental drug use jumped from roughly 40,000 in 2000 to nearly 100,000 in 2017.
Reforming Schools to Prevent Mental Health Issues
New research explores the use of broad-based school-integrated resiliency and mindfulness interventions to prevent mental health concerns before they occur.
Dog Assisted Psychotherapy Most Effective With Children
Dog assisted psychotherapy is mostly used within the psychodynamic theory. It's especially useful in treatment with children and adolescents, where dogs seems to pass "under the radar" of children's logical defense.
Jury Says J&J Must Pay $8B in Risperdal Male Breast Growth Case
From ABC News: "Johnson & Johnson and Janssen chose billions over children... [This] is a company which has lost its way," attorneys for the plaintiff said.
Non-Gender Affirmative Treatment Detrimental to Mental Health
Gender identity conversion efforts impact psychological distress and lifetime suicidality in transgender people.
Infancy and Early Childhood Matter So Much Because of Attachment
From The Conversation: What we learn throughout infancy and childhood are aĀ set of behaviours and ways of thinking and feeling about ourselves and others, or what psychologists call aĀ working model of the world.
Mental Health Services Turned My Daughter’s Crisis into a Way of Life
My world turned upside down when my daughter nearly died from a serious suicide attempt. After several years as her caretaker I began to wonder: What can we do to change the way our mental health services are organized so they won't turn a crisis into a way of life for already distressed and vulnerable people?
Countervailing Forces Against Ritalin Use in France
A new study in the journal Social Science and Medicine explores why French children take stimulants far less than children in the United States. The study looks at how particular forces in society, in concert with government agencies, became an effective check on stimulant marketing for kids in France.
Study: Antidepressants Linked to Higher Gestational Diabetes Risk
From CNN: āTaking antidepressants while pregnant may be associated with an increased risk of gestational diabetes, a new study suggests.
It turned out that the...
Memories of a Childhood in a Mental Hospital
My stay at the hospital had no impact on the problem that led to my admission. But it did exacerbate other problems and change me in fundamental ways. I am a deformed product of that ācutting-edge facilityā and the ātreatmentsā I received there ā social isolation, pills and shots, ice bath and ECT.
How a Parentās Affection Shapes a Childās Happiness for Life
From Motherly: A number of recent studies highlight the relationship between parental affection and childrenās happiness and success.
How Social Dynamics at School Impact Teen Suicide
Teen suicide risk is influenced by relationships with adults and teachers, perceived popularity, close friendships, and school connectedness.
“Please Be Normal!” My Experience Working for NAMI
At my job with a NAMI affiliate, I heard daily from people who looked at family members with āmental illnessā as non-people, non-human, the āother.ā In the office, it was no different. If NAMI had a tagline, it would be āPlease be normal like us.ā
How to Involve Youth in Their Own Mental Health Care
Clinicians play a key role in empowering adolescents and their parents to make decisions about their mental health treatment.
Ben Furman – Understanding and Dealing With Adolescent Rage
A podcast interview with Finnish psychiatrist Ben Furman in which he discusses adolescent rage and how parents can come to understand and deal with teenagers and young adults who are angry and explosive.
Connectedness at School Related to Studentsā Emotional Health
New research highlights differences in levels of school connectedness among students diagnosed with emotional and behavioral disorders,
William Jamesās Letter to His Depressed Daughter
If you discover that your child has been experiencing a bout with depression, what wise words might you share? Brilliant psychologist William James was forced to address this issue himself when his 13-year-old daughter, Peg, began to struggle with melancholy. I present his long, thoughtful reply for your consideration.
We Have Ruined Childhood
From The New York Times: Children today are more depressed than they were during the Great Depression and more anxious than they were at the height of the Cold War.
School-Based Mindfulness Leads to Stress Reduction, Study Finds
Researchers find improvements in stress-related outcomes among middle school students exposed to a school-based mindfulness training program.
Q&A: My Child Is Self-Harming. How Can I Help?
I walked in on my teenaged daughter cutting her upper leg with a razor. I have also noticed multiple cuts and what look like cigarette burns on her wrists and torso. Sheās always made excuses about them, but now I realize she has been self-harming for a while. She swears she isnāt suicidal. Whatās this all about, and what can I do?
Monarch eTNS Inspires “Stop the Psychiatric Abuse of Children!” (SPAC!)
The FDA approval of the Monarch eTNS device is the latest form of psychiatric-inspired child abuse. If not stopped, it will afflict millions of children in unimaginably damaging ways. It has inspired us to formĀ Stop the Psychiatric Abuse of Children (SPAC!) a new international advocacy organization.
