You Deserve To Feel Supported

Over the past two years, therapists have seen heightened mental health challenges. According to the CDC, the percentage of adults with recent symptoms of anxiety or a depressive disorderincreased from 36.4% to 41.5%. Many report feeling “off”, “overwhelmed” or “stressed” and aren’t sure of what to do. If you are noticing any of the following changes you may want to consider reaching out for additional support from a therapist.

Changes in sleep

Maybe you’re having trouble falling asleep or waking up in the middle of the night as a result of constant worry. A therapist can further assess what is contributing to symptoms and how to implement strategies to address the underlying cause.

Loss of motivation or isolation

If you feel an overwhelming sense of drain or tiredness and can’t seem to motivate yourself to leave the house, some extra support may be needed. Although many people have a sense of recharge, spending time alone and doing things they enjoy, isolating yourself can do the opposite and fuel symptoms of depression. If you’re finding it difficult to be around people you once enjoyed, therapeutic support could be helpful.

Loss of interest in activities

If you find that you no longer enjoy engaging in the activities you once looked forward to, it could be a red flag that additional support is needed. An assessment with a provider can determine the best way to address symptoms.

Loss or increase in appetite

If you are noticing a significant change in your appetite coupled with any of the changes mentioned above, it could possibly be a warning sign that you may be experiencing an increase in depression or anxiety symptoms.

If any of these signs resonated with you, you are not alone and there is support to help you understand what is going on and to formulate a plan to help you feel better.

Parent Support: An alternative to individual therapy

According to Pew Research Center, Mental health tops the list of worries that U.S. parents express about their kids’ well-being. "In that survey, four-in-ten U.S. parents said they’re extremely worried about their children struggling with anxiety or depression". As mental health concerns in children continue to rise parents look for answers.

There are many types of therapies which offer support. In addition to individual and family therapy, parent based treatments give parents the education and skills needed to influence meaningful change in their child's behavior. Parenting support often results in better mental health outcomes and a stronger connection between parents and their child.

Additionally, interventions such as SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions) are evidence based, and effective at treating a child's anxiety symptoms through targeted behavioral changes of the parents. Both children and parents learn to work through barriers to reduce anxiety symptoms.

SPACE is an effective treatment option for:

Separation anxiety

Social anxiety

Generalized anxiety

Fears and phobias

Panic disorder and Agoraphobia

Selective mutism

Obsessive-compulsive disorder

Watch the Tedx Talk here to find out more about SPACE:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExVvAn9hcjY

Therapies providing parent support are an effective and supportive way to implement positive changes and reduce the stress and worry of mental health concerns for both parents and their child.

Find more about Pew Research Center here:

https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2023/03/02/mental-health-and-the-pandemic-what-u-s-surveys-have-found/

The Challenges with Social Media

What to know if your child seems glued to their phone. According to Child Mind institute, helping your teen to manage their social media use has positive implications.

Child mind institute reported, "Teenagers and young adults — ages 16 to 24 — are the most intense users of social media. Benefits of social media use include enhancing friendships and decreasing loneliness. But there is also evidence that overuse has a negative impact on self-esteem and satisfaction with their lives. And this social media use is also linked to an increase in mental health problems, including anxiety, depression and suicidality.

Social media’s popularity among adolescents isn’t surprising, since it has been shown to affect the reward centers that are so active in teen brains.

Increased time on social media has had dramatic effects on teen behavior, including fewer risky social activities and more mental health symptoms. “Displacement” may account for these effects. If social media replaces negative activities or isolation, it can be positive. If it replaces face-to-face interaction or exercise, it can be negative.

The good:

-Drinking, illicit drug use, and car accidents are down.

-Ninth-graders now are 40% less sexually active and the teen birth rate is down 67 percent since 1991.

-Less than an hour of gaming a day may have positive mental health effects.

The bad:

-Eighth-graders who spend 10 or more hours a week on social media are 56% more likely to report being unhappy than those who spend less time.

-Heavy users of social media increase their risk of depression by 27 percent.

-YouTube is widely viewed by teens as a positive force, but teens report Snapchat, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram increase feelings of anxiety.

Girls are disproportionately affected by the negative aspects of social media.

-More than twice as many girls as boys said they had been cyberbullied in the last year (22% vs. 10%).⁷ -More than twice as many girls as boys report being cyberbullied

-Girls' depression increased by 50% between 2012 and 2015.

You can read the article in its entirety here:

https://childmind.org/awareness-campaigns/childrens-mental-health-report/2017-childrens-mental-health-report/smartphones-social-media/