Monthly Archives: May 2021

Little to no increase in association between adolescents’ mental health problems and digital tech

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With the explosion in digital entertainment options over the past several decades and the more recent restrictions on outdoor and in-person social activities, parents may worry that excessive engagement with digital technology could have long-term effects on their children’s mental health.

A new study published in the journal Clinical Psychological Science, however, found little evidence for an increased association between adolescents’ technology engagement and mental health problems over the past 30 years.

The new study, which included 430,000 U.K. and U.S. adolescents, investigated the links between social media use and depression, emotional problems, and conduct problems. It also examined the associations between television viewing and suicidality, depression, emotional problems, and conduct problems. Finally, the study explored the association between digital device use and suicidality.

Of the eight associations examined in this research, only three showed some change over time. Social media use and television viewing became less strongly associated with depression. In contrast, social media’s association with emotional problems did increase, although only slightly. The study found no consistent changes in technology engagement’s associations with conduct problems or suicidality.

“If we want to understand the relationship between tech and well-being today, we need to first go back and look at historic data — as far back as when parents were concerned too much TV would give their kids square eyes — in order to bring the contemporary concerns we have about newer technologies into focus,” said Matti Vuorre, a postdoctoral researcher at the Oxford Internet Institute and lead author on the paper.

The study also highlighted key factors preventing scientists from conclusively determining how technology use relates to mental health.

“As more data accumulates on adolescents’ use of emerging technologies, our knowledge of them and their effects on mental health will become more precise,” said Andy Przybylski, director of research at Oxford Internet Institute and senior author on the study. “So, it’s too soon to draw firm conclusions about the increasing, or declining, associations between social media and adolescent mental health, and it is certainly way too soon to be making policy or regulation on this basis.

“We need more transparent and credible collaborations between scientists and technology companies to unlock the answers. The data exists within the tech industry; scientists just need to be able to access it for a neutral and independent investigation,” Przybylski said.

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Materials provided by Association for Psychological Science. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.

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The impact of mental illness doesn’t discriminate – Paris Post Intelligencer

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May is National Mental Health Month. Mental Health Month raises awareness of trauma and the impact it can have on the physical, emotional and mental well-being of children, families and communities.

Mental illness does not discriminate; it affects all ages, all races, all cultures and all socioeconomic levels. 

The 2021 theme for Mental Health Month is Tools 2 Thrive. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on the mental health of people of all ages. Now, more than ever, it is critical to reducing the stigma around mental health struggles, because that stigma often prevents individuals from seeking help.

What does it mean to be mentally healthy as a child? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) answers the question perfectly: “Being mentally healthy during childhood means reaching developmental and emotional milestones and learning healthy social skills and how to cope when there are problems. Mentally healthy children have a positive quality of life and can function well at home, in school, and in their communities.” 

Mental health is not simply the absence of a mental disorder. Let me repeat that — mental health is not simply the absence of a mental disorder. Meaning, just because you may not have a clinically diagnosed mental disorder does not mean you are mentally healthy. The opposite is true as well, just because you may have a clinically diagnosed mental disorder does not mean you are not mentally healthy. You most certainly can have a mental disorder and also be mentally healthy. Just as you may be mentally unhealthy and not have a mental health disorder. 

“Mental health is important to overall health. Mental disorders are chronic health conditions — conditions that last a long time and often don’t go away completely — that can continue through the lifespan. Without early diagnosis and treatment, children with mental disorders can have problems at home, in school, and in forming friendships. Mental disorders can also interfere with a child’s healthy development, causing problems that can continue into adulthood,” according to the CDC. 

Taking steps to have your mental health in check is so important to your well-being. It is just as important to make sure the children and youth in your life have their mental health in check for their well-being, too. Mental health is impacted by many factors, such as diet, physical activity, stress, lack of sleep, etc. 

Establishing a healthy diet that incorporates plenty of water, fruits, vegetables and proteins is essential. Physical activity also plays a vital role in mental health. Simply getting outside in the fresh air and soaking up some sun (an excellent source of vitamin D) can make a huge positive impact on your mental health. Taking a quick 5-10 minute stroll outside can have a positive impact on your mental health as well. 

Children can also improve their mental health by getting out from behind the screens (television, video games, computer, tablets, etc.) Limiting the amount of time you allow your child to have on “screen time” is a great start to improving mental health as well. Get outside and enjoy not only the fresh air and sunshine but also some quality family time. I believe we often forget how many things factor into our mental health, as well as the small steps we can take to improve our mental health. Sometimes even after trying to take steps to improve mental health, we need to seek professional help. Life at times can be difficult and treatment, such as employee assistance programs that offer counsel, may help one through this time.

Henry County Coordinated School Health wants to challenge you to take the step(s) to improve your mental health. For more information on mental health visit www.mhanational.org/mental-health-month. If you have any questions or comments, please contact your school’s nurse or call 644-3916.

KAYLA GLOVER is a registered nurse, the Henry County School System’s family and community coordinator, and nurse at Lakewood School. Her email address is gloverk@ henryk12.net.

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What Are the Top Tips for Dealing with Anxiety?

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In the past, there was a significant stigma surrounding mental health issues. Now, this stigma is starting to change. Now that people realize that mental health issues need to be taken seriously, there are more treatment options available than there were in the past.

Furthermore, many people are realizing that certain mental health issues are far more common than they once thought. One common example is anxiety. There are countless people who suffer from a variety of anxiety disorders including generalized anxiety, social anxiety, and even panic disorder. Even though it can be difficult to manage anxiety, there are several important tips people should follow.

What are a few tips people need to think about if they are looking for a way to better manage anxiety?

Always Start by Taking a Deep Breath

Anyone who is feeling like their anxiety is beginning to build needs to start by taking a deep breath. Sometimes, people get anxious because they feel like life is moving more quickly than they previously thought. For example, think about stopping everything, taking a deep breath, holding it until the count of five, and then exhaling again. This may be able to help people slow down their heart rate, allowing them to calm down. This is one of the top ways people can collect their thoughts, keep their anxiety under control, and then move forward with a plan of action.

Write Down All Thoughts Related to the Issue

Next, think about opening a journal and writing down everything that comes to mind.

Some people get anxious because they feel like they cannot keep their thoughts organized. Their mind constantly jumps from subject to subject without formulating a plan.

When people take the time to write down what they are thinking about, they force themselves to organize their thoughts and some white. Keep in mind that this does not have to be the final way you decide to organize your thoughts. Once everything is down on paper, you can figure out how you want to rearrange them effectively.

Writing down a journal can be an effective way for people to deal with anxiety.

Take Advantage of Online Resources

Furthermore, keep in mind that there are plenty of resources available online. A simple internet search may be able to help people learn more about the specific type of anxiety they are dealing with.

Furthermore, there are even ways people can deal with their anxiety on the go. For example, there are also plenty of apps for anxiety that are now available.

Anyone who is looking to learn more about anxiety should check out the resources that are available on UnwindingAnxiety.com. There may be new ideas that people might not have previously thought about.

Meet with a Licensed Mental Health Professional

Finally, everyone should also consider meeting with a trained mental health professional.

There is a lot that goes into developing a comprehensive treatment plan for anxiety. For example, one of the main pillars of anxiety treatment is therapy. Therapy comes in many shapes and forms. Everyone’s anxiety is different, so everyone’s treatment plan is going to be different as well.

There are also situations where prescription medications can also be helpful for those who are suffering from anxiety. One of the most common prescription medications that are used is benzodiazepines. As medications like these can be habit-forming, it’s important that you consult with your doctor to make sure that they are right for you.

Even though this is not necessarily right for everyone, it could be right for some people. Meeting with a trained mental health professional is important.

Develop a Comprehensive Plan To Manage Anxiety

These are a few of the top tips people need to keep in mind if they are looking for a way to manage their anxiety. Anxiety is far more common than many people realize.

Fortunately, there are plenty of resources available for those who need a helping hand. By taking a well-rounded, comprehensive approach to the management of anxiety, it is possible for everyone to better manage their symptoms. Do not hesitate to reach out and ask trained professionals for a helping hand.

Mental health experts have a tremendous amount of experience dealing with anxiety. Therefore, they may be able to help you as well.

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Through an app, a group of Latin American nuns tracks mental illness across the US – Religion News Service

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(RNS) — It took some getting used to, but sister Maria Minerva Morales is now a faithful user of a cell phone app where she documents her interactions with people she ministers to.

Through the app, Morales — who is part of the Catholic congregation Missionaries of Charity of Mary Immaculate — documents the name, gender, and age of the people she interacts with or those who seek her help. She notes whether it’s the first time she’s spoken to the person and whether they met up in person, over the phone, or through Zoom. She also documents the nature of their meetings.

The app, which her fellow sisters began using around early March 2020, was developed by Catholic Extension — a nonprofit that invests in churches and ministries in working-class communities — to track nuns’ interactions and the kinds of resources they needed to do their ministry. As COVID-19 struck the nation, the nuns’ recordings may have been scarcer at first because they were no longer publicly meeting people, but as they logged their virtual and phone interactions, certain trends began to emerge.

Depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts — especially among the Latino immigrant community — were common themes the nuns were documenting and encountering in their ministry.

A nun utilizes a Catholic Extension app in her ministry. Photo courtesy of Catholic Extension

 

 

This kind of documentation has helped Morales, who is based in the Diocese of Little Rock in Arkansas, quantify the mental health needs of the people they were assisting.

“This has helped me see the number of people who have suffered from depression through the pandemic,” Morales said.

The sheer trauma the sisters have encountered is palpable, said Joe Boland, vice president of Mission at Catholic Extension.

“You can see in the numbers how much mental health was just a real concern,” Boland said. “That’s what the sisters were encountering. Our sisters are not psychologists and we’re not going to make them psychologists overnight.”

The sisters are part of Catholic Extension’s U.S.-Latin American Sisters Exchange Program that assists parishes in the U.S. lacking Spanish-speaking leaders in their churches. The sisters help congregations address the spiritual needs of Latino immigrants in their neighborhoods.

Since using the app, 30 sisters across the country, from Arkansas to California, have logged 18,000 interactions.

Through her interactions, sister Zuly Cardenas has encountered issues dealing with unemployment and people who are depressed and have expressed suicidal thoughts. Issues have emerged with more people being indoors during lockdown measures.

“We can really see all the need that people require in this moment,” said Cardenas, who is based in the Diocese of Sacramento.

As a result of these trends, many of those sisters will undergo specific training to address the types of trauma they are encountering in their communities.

A group of nuns pose with their phones during a 2020 training session for the app developed by Catholic Extension. Photo courtesy of Catholic Extension

A group of nuns poses with their phones during a 2020 training session for the app developed by Catholic Extension. Photo courtesy of Catholic Extension

Through the Trauma Recovery Associates, a nonprofit created by the Rev. Kenneth Schmidt and psychologist Sharon Froom, the sisters will undergo training that can help those they minister to “identify conflicts, unlearn specific distortions, develop self-awareness, and regulate feelings related to trauma.”

The program emerged from a parish in Kalamazoo, Michigan, as leaders sought to address trauma in the wake of the clergy sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church. More than 600 people in the Diocese of Kalamazoo have completed the program, according to Catholic Extension. This program has evolved to address different kinds of trauma, Boland said.

With added training, the sisters will also learn when to refer others to seek professional help, Boland added.

On top of that, the sisters have taken courses on psychology as they work to earn degrees from St. Mary’s University of Minnesota, Boland added.

Boland said the app was created to help measure the sisters’ impact, but, in addition to that, it wound up being a “diagnostic tool about how can we support the sisters’ work in their communities.”

To Boland, it’s all about “how we as a church could be responding to the very human and real needs our people are facing.”

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Santa Clara’s REACH Program Responds To Surge In Youth Mental Health Needs – PRNewswire

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The REACH program which stands for Raising Early Awareness & Creating Hope serves youth ages 10 to 25 who are at risk for developing mental illness. It is an innovative, free program for underserved youth and families designed to detect early warning signs and prevent onset of mental illness. The REACH team works with youth who are currently uninsured, those with Medi-Cal or Healthy Families, and those not currently receiving ongoing treatment.

One in four Americans will suffer from a mental illness at some point in their lives, and 50 percent of all lifetime mental illness develops by age 14, and 75% by age 24, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. The pandemic has been a trigger for kids due to the social isolation brought on by online learning or anxiety about family members’ health. For older youth, the pandemic has brought depression, anxiety, addiction and psychosis to the forefront.

“We have seen an increase in stress and anxiety which may lead to early warning signs of psychosis,” says Angela Maldonado Nunes, Administrator for Starlight Community Services which manages the REACH program in partnership with Momentum for Health. “We recognize that mental health symptoms can be scary and confusing. However, we also believe mental illness can be diagnosed in the same manner as asthma, diabetes, and cancer, and it can be successfully treated. Early detection is key. With early, effective treatment, young people can strengthen coping skills, reduce stress, and succeed in school and life.”

Early symptoms of mental illness are often subtle but can be disabling. They might include becoming easily confused or lost, extreme fear for no apparent reason, impulsive and reckless behavior, extreme social withdrawal, and dramatic changes in sleep or eating. Untreated mental illness can lead to issues in school and with friends, learning disabilities, substance abuse, risky behavior and suicide. With psychosis in particular, early detection and treatment is important for avoiding a psychiatric break. Early intervention preserves brain function, social skills and decreases the need for intense treatment later in life.

Anyone (including family members and friends) who would like to learn more about the early warning signs of mental illness and psychosis may call 1-855-273-2248 or www.REACH4SCC.org

Contact:
Jill Shannon
(949) 330-3316
[email protected]

SOURCE Starlight Community Services

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