Psychosis During Adolescence: Diagnosis and Treatment
New Evidence on Importance of Early Detection and Intervention for Disorders with Psychotic Features Psychosis is one of the most loaded words in all of mental health. It’s also one of the most misunderstood. That’s why most parents get scared when they hear the word psychosis or psychotic associated with their child or teen. Parents […]
Summer is an Ideal Time for Residential Treatment for Teen Mental Health Issues
When we think of summer, we don’t usually think of residential treatment for teens. We think of going on family vacations, spending days at the pool, outdoor barbecues, and lounging around watching fireflies during evenings that last forever. And how can we leave out that iconic summer event, 4th of July fireworks celebrations. A couple […]
Teen Mental Health Treatment in California: High School Programs for Mental Health Support
It’s been two years since officials issued the first shelter-in-place orders in California. Schools went virtual, businesses adapted to the new circumstances, and everyone wondered how long the pandemic would last and what the consequences would be. Adolescent development experts and mental health professionals warned the public health safety and COVID-19 mitigation measures would have […]
New Directions: The Lived Experience of Self-Harm in Teenage Girls
Understanding the Intricacies of Self-Harm in Teen Girls For people who have never engaged in self-harm, the behavior is difficult to understand. When a parent learns their teenage child engages in self-harm, their first response is most often shock. Quickly followed by fear and worry. Anger may be part of the mix, too. A parent […]
Hope In Recovery: Good News for Teens in Depression Treatment
We have some good news for teens in depression treatment. It works. Three New Studies Show Treatment is Headed in the Right Direction When we read about mental health issues in the news these days, almost everything we encounter is negative. Headline and stories are filled with dire warnings about the precarious state of teen […]
Do Psychiatric Medications Prescribed During Adolescence Increase Risk of Substance Abuse Later in Life?
Psychopharmacological Treatment and Substance Use: New Evidence from Long Range Studies Parents of teenagers diagnosed with mental health disorders know that the contemporary, 21st century approach to mental health treatment for adolescents – with some variation, of course – has three primary components: Talk therapy, a.k.a. psychotherapy. Depending on the disorder, this includes: Cognitive behavioral […]
Long-Term Effects of Adolescent Substance Use Disorder (SUD)
Do Teens Grow Out of Adolescent Substance Use Disorder? On June 9th, 2020, the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTS) released a Recommendation Statement in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) directed toward primary care providers about screening patients for unhealthy drug use. For those who haven’t heard of the USPSTS, don’t […]
Fatal Adolescent Drug Overdose: New Report Shows Alarming Trend
Fentanyl-Involved Deaths Drive Increase If you read or follow national news at all, you know that for the past decade, the nation has been in the grip of what’s called the opioid crisis. The opioid crisis – or the opioid epidemic, as it is also called – actually began over twenty years ago, around 1999, […]
Effectiveness of Outpatient Treatment for Suicidal Adolescents
Are Outpatient Treatment Programs for Suicidal Teens Safe and Effective? Suicide has become a serious problem among adolescents and young adults in the United States. Suicide is one of a cluster of behaviors that have increased over the past twenty years. When mental health professionals talk about suicide as a teen health crisis, they include […]
Gaps in Options for Outpatient Treatment for Adolescent Depression
Expanded Access Needed in Rural Areas and for Low-Income Families In the post-pandemic 21st century, most parents of teenagers know the state of mental health among adolescents in the U.S. is at a crossroads. Some experts say our teens are in crisis or call our current situation a bona-fide emergency. Crisis, emergency, or longstanding problem […]