In
light of the tragic events in Newtown, Connecticut at Sandy Hook Elementary School the
topics of gun control and appropriate mental health care for our nation’s young
people is again at the forefront. As the
debate continues following the events in Newtown there will be many
discussions about gun control legislation as well as the current mental health
system in the United States. This blog
entry is not a commentary on how to prevent other tragedies through various
political and social actions. My
intention is to shed some light on who to connect with and how to access
resources around mental health issues for parents who have questions. Addressing one's mental health should be as
important as addressing physical ailments, but because of the stigma connected
with mental health conditions this aspect of overall wellness is often
overlooked.
MENTAL
HEALTH CONDITIONS:
Children
and adolescents can suffer from a variety of mental health issues, just as
adults. The list of mental health
concerns includes depression, anxiety disorders, personality disorders, autism,
eating disorders, ADHD, and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), among
others. Discussing each of these
disorders is beyond the scope of this post, but I will provide a few recent
statistics made available by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).
Further description of each condition can be found by searching the
condition name on the American Psychiatric Association or American
Psychological Association websites.
- The lifetime prevalence for depression in 13 – 18 year old children is 11.2%, with 3.3% of this same group having a severe depressive disorder.
- Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) has a lifetime prevalence of 9% in 13 – 18 year old children.
- Anxiety disorder is the general description that includes the specific diagnosis of general anxiety disorder (GAD), obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, PTSD, and phobias. GAD has a lifetime prevalence of 1% in 13 – 18 year old children according to the NIMH.
MENTAL
HEALTH PROVIDERS:
When
seeking mental health care one of the first questions often asked is, who should I see?. Speaking with your family physician or
pediatrician is often a great place to start when looking for recommendations
in your local community. It is also
helpful to understand the major types of professionals available. You will find a brief summary of
psychiatrists, psychologists and clinical social workers. You may also have the option of counselors
and marriage and family therapists depending on your specific need.
Psychiatrists
Psychiatrists
are medical doctors (MD, DO) who graduated from a medical school and further
specialized in the area of psychiatry.
This means that following medical school they complete a four-year
residency in the area of psychiatry.
Some choose to specialize even further and obtain additional training. Some specialization areas include child and
adolescent, geriatric, and addition psychiatry among others.
They
specialize in the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of mental illnesses. Psychiatrists treat both the physical and
mental aspects of mental illness. Their
treatment options can range from psychotherapy (talk therapy), medications, and
other treatment options. For further
information visit the American
Psychiatric Association website.
Psychologists
Psychologists
with a doctoral degree (PhD, PsyD, EdD), have at least seven years of education
and training beyond their undergraduate education. Psychologists have dozens of career options
in research, teaching or clinical practice.
Specialties can include educational, industrial or clinical psychology
among others.
The
psychologists we most often think of who provide talk therapy treatment are
clinical psychologists. These
psychologists have a doctoral degree and must me licensed in the state in which
they work. They typically provide treatment
for people who need help coping with life issues and mental issues using a
variety of theories and techniques based on the patient’s values. Many of them are also qualified to administer
and interpret a variety of tests and assessments. Unlike psychiatrists, psychologists cannot
prescribe medications. For further
information visit the American
Psychological Association (APA) website. Other associations you may wish to
investigate include the Society of Clinical
Psychology, Division 12 and Society
of Counseling Psychology, Division 17.
Social
Workers
Social
workers can earn degrees at bachelors (BSW), masters (MSW) and doctorate (DSW,
PhD) level, each with their own particular knowledge and competencies. A licensed clinical social worker (LCSW)
typically has two years of graduate school and internship (supervised field
instruction) in the area of psychotherapy.
Other specialty areas where you will find social workers include
adolescent health, aging, violence, and children, youth and family among others.
Clinical
social workers provide psychotherapy (talk therapy) to patients who need help
coping with life issues and mental health issues. This is much in the same way as a
psychologist. For more information about
clinical social workers and the other specialties in social work visit the National Association of Social Workers (NASW).
MENTAL
HEALTH RESOURCES:
Specific
to Sandy Hook
General
Resources
National
Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Internet resource list
Submitted by Heather L. Clemons, MS, MBA, ATC
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