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Teenagers' mental health parents' onus
Parents need to be active participants and active
observers in their child's life, says Stan Kutcher. The medical adviser
for the youth division of the Canadian Psychiatric Research Foundation
says there's an urgent need for “rational, scientifically sound and
clearly presented information” in the area of mental health for young
people.
The CPRF has put together a handbook for parents entitled When
Something's Wrong, a $20 resource available online at cprf.ca.
“Parents often do ask me, 'How do I know if it's a mental health problem
or a bad hair day?'” says Kutcher.
“I also hear, 'I'm certain my child is having a mental health problem
but my family doctor says it's just a phase.'
“Both those things cause concern, It's important for the parent to
become both an informed consumer and advocate on behalf of the child.”
It's usually a child's behaviour that a parent notices
first. “If what they are seeing is a significant change from previous
behaviour, if the kid has always been an A student but in the last three
months has stopped, then that is significant,” Kutcher says.
“It's also important to know in what domain of the kid's life the
problem occurs. Is it in school, at a part-time job, or within the
family?”
Parents also have to define the problem: Is it in behaviour (acting
out), relationships (the loss of several friendships) or in cognitive
function (does the anger stem from a learning disability?)
“If the problem is only manifesting itself in the home situation and
nowhere else, that should give some clue: Maybe it's in the interaction
between parent and child,” Kutcher says. “If the problem seems to be
seen everywhere, then it's unlikely simply a parent-child problem.
“Parents have to continually ask themselves, 'Is my child roughly within
the norm of expectations or is he or she outside the norm.' You can
still apply the same logic tree, even if you are in the middle of a
stressful life change.”
Problems left untreated may gradually spiral out of control.
“If kids develop major mental health problems, their peers will notice
and the child will gradually lose friends. Those friends will be
replaced by kids with more problematic lives. It's like birds of a
feather stick together. If a parent can say, 'I am seeing this in my
kid,' then that should signal that something is wrong.”
When Something's Wrong offers information on mental disorders,
including how to manage problem behaviour in children, bipolar disorder,
borderline personality disorder, suicide, schizophrenia, mood disorders,
impulse control disorders and anxiety and autism. It contains coping
strategies for parents, but it also offers important resources so
parents can take the next step to get the necessary help for their
children.
The book's message, says Kutcher, is that early identification and
intervention in cases of mental disorders is important.
Secondary school mental health screening funded by the CPRF indicated
more than 18 per cent of the 5,500 students screened were at high risk
for psychiatric disorders. A recent study by the Centre for Addiction
and Mental Health in Toronto found one in three school students has
already reported some form of impaired mental health.
A child's risk increases if there's a family history
of mental illness. Identifying the actual problem is essential. In one
case, for example, a family indicated the mother's brother had a drug
problem; when explored further, it was found he really suffered from
schizophrenia.
Parents should know that most of the major mental illnesses come on
between the ages of 13 and 25; these include depression, bipolar
disorder, schizophrenia, obsessive compulsive disorder, social anxiety,
panic and eating disorders.
A family doctor or pediatrician should be the link to a specialist who
can investigate further, Kutcher says. If the help a child is receiving
doesn't seem to be helping, you have to step in and question whether the
diagnosis is the right one and whether the treatment is working.
Marilyn Linton
14 March 2005
http://www.canoe.ca/NewsStand/LondonFreePress/Today/2005/03/14/960242-sun.html
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