Helping Our Children Be Balanced and Successful

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

The Wall Street Journal published an article recently on helping your young adult get good mental health treatment in high school and college http://www.wsj.com/articles/good-mental-health-away-from-home-starts-before-college-1428944477. This is an important article for two reasons: First, rarely does a newspaper print a consumer driven article that has great information from both a consumer and a top notch clinician. Second: Successfully sending our children out into the world of college or the work force has increasingly become a difficult task both for parents and kids. There are many aspects to this new challenge. The expectations we place on our children to be competitive can create burn out before they even get to college. The shear number of advanced placement classes, number of volunteer hours,  and the in school and out of school activities they are expected to participate in all contribute to these kids having increased mental health issues including anxiety and depression. This article shows that there is help. Helping our children be balanced means teaching them to notice when they have taken on too much, teaching them to speak up to teachers and coaches about their needs and struggles and honoring them when they do speak. Creating spaces for them where they can quiet their bodies and minds helps to create life long habits that promote well being. Making sure they have enough time to help around the house and participate in family activities.  If your child does develop mental health symptoms, provide them support. This may mean that you need to seek professional help. This article shows that evidenced based therapies, like cognitive behavioral therapy, can make a big difference in a short period of time when everyone is invested. Our children are our future. Let's help them learn early, how to care for their mind, body, and spirit so they can go forward to use their gifts and talents in a way that lights them up and lights up the world!