-
One pandemic positive: Suicides in Florida actually plummeted. Experts worry it won't last
The coronavirus pandemic has clearly stressed out countless Americans. But in Florida at least, one mental health barometer actually improved — fewer people killed themselves in 2020 than in any time in recent years, newly released statistics show. Despite the strains of sheltering at home, economic uncertainty and political turmoil during the pandemic, experts say the drop in suicides was not unexpected. "During national crises, we tend to see large drops in the suicide rates. Wars, natural disasters — we tend to see drops in suicides for the first year or two," said Dr. Bart Andrews, a board...
Miami Herald
-
The pandemic is exacerbating a shortage of child therapists
As the pandemic drags on, children and teenagers endure an unprecedented realignment of daily life. Isolated in apartments and houses, kids contend with unending pressures — lost contact with friends and normal school life, grown-ups' ubiquity and unwanted attentions, as well as the fear that their futures may be compromised by an invisible, deadly menace. To help, concerned parents seek child and adolescent psychiatrists and psychologists, along with other counselors. But there aren't enough such professionals to begin with in America, some experts say. And many of those who are working are b...
The Philadelphia Inquirer
-
Students' mental health deteriorating during pandemic
SAN DIEGO – Since the COVID-19 pandemic struck last March, psychiatric emergency visits at Rady Children's Hospital near San Diego have crept up as youths and teens struggle with virtual learning, social isolation and unstable home lives. "March through May, we had a spike, about a 5 percent to 7 percent increase in the kids coming to our emergency room," said Sandy Mueller, senior director of behavioral health services for Rady Children's Hospital. "That dipped down in May to June, when school let out. And then we saw a 7 percent increase to the present." In similar findings, a report release...
The San Diego Union-Tribune
-
Balancing Act: Why parents shouldn’t tune out the Claudia and Kellyanne Conway story. (Hint: Our kids aren’t.)
I was curious whether the Claudia Conway story was coming up in family therapy sessions, so I called psychologist John Duffy, who specializes in adolescence and anxiety (and is my podcast partner). “Every kid was strictly talking about this,” Duffy told me Tuesday night, still at his office. “Some adults too. Every once in a while the narrative in here shifts entirely to one thing.” This week, that one thing has been the Conway family. I wondered not because the story’s particulars are all that relatable — former White House counselor Kellyanne Conway is accused of sharing a topless photo of h...
Chicago Tribune
-
Living with Children: Food and behavior
A headache does not mean one has a brain tumor, but some brain tumors do cause headaches. Likewise, ADHD behaviors do not mean one has a food allergy, albeit some food allergies cause, in some children, behaviors that are on the official list of ADHD symptoms. (Mind you, I believe ADHD is one of many bogus psychological diagnoses, but that is a subject for another column.) I take requests, the latest of which comes from a parent who wants me to encourage everyone with a child who is impulsive, lacks concentration skills, and exhibits other ADHD symptoms to see an allergist, preferably one who ...
Tribune News Service
-
COVID-19 has more people seeking help for addiction and mental health. But treatment centers struggle with outbreaks
PHILADELPHIA – In July, Erica Rodriguez, 20, checked herself into the Renfrew Center, a residential center for eating-disorder treatment in the Philadelphia area. Rodriguez, who has been struggling with disordered eating since she was 12, had relapsed in quarantine. “It had gotten to the point that I was feeling a bad physical toll,” she said. “The day before I decided to go, it was getting hard to breathe. I would stand up and feel super dizzy and faint. It felt like I was having a panic attack because my heart was beating so fast all the time.” After five days at the Renfrew Center, staff me...
The Philadelphia Inquirer
-
‘A lot of them were really struggling’: How Illinois and Northwestern are tending to their athletes’ mental health during the pandemic
CHICAGO — Abbie Wolf remembers being pulled into the film room with her teammates in mid-March for a meeting. Northwestern was preparing for a deep run into the NCAA women’s basketball tournament. But a few minutes later, the team’s dreams of a national championship were shattered. The NCAA announced on March 12 that the tournament — along with all other winter and spring sports — would be canceled because of coronavirus concerns. For Wolf, the sudden change was jarring. She was just reaching the peak of her basketball career: Against in-state rival Illinois weeks earlier, Wolf had scored 21 p...
Chicago Tribune
-
Thinking about going to therapy in 2021? Here's how to get started
2020 was a difficult year for mental health. Feelings of anxiety, sadness and loss were common for many, as lockdown measures were implemented around the country leading to job loss and social isolation, among other concerns. Mental health symptoms, such as depression or increased use of substances to cope, spiked, according to data from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. Therapy has long been recognized as a highly effective treatment for people experiencing non-emergency mental and behavioral health symptoms, and the pandemic has made it more accessible than ever as nearly all th...
The Philadelphia Inquirer
-
‘COVID-19 Survival Guide’ from hospital psychologist explains how to navigate the virus from diagnosis to recovery, and answers the question, ‘I’ve survived, but what’s next?’
CHICAGO – While the pandemic was turning the world upside down, front line worker Abigail Hardin was writing a survival guide. A Rush University Medical Group rehabilitation psychologist who counsels patients from intensive care to rehab, Hardin drew on her professional experiences to write “The COVID-19 Survival Guide: How to Prepare for, Manage, and Overcome a Coronavirus Infection.” The book offers readers advice on how to navigate the virus from diagnosis to recovery. “Early on in the pandemic, there was a lot of discussion about survival rates. ... And then, what I was seeing in rehab, pe...
Chicago Tribune
-
Balancing Act: Remote learning takes a toll on students’ mental health. But returning to classrooms won’t be easy either
One of the loudest arguments for sending kids back inside their classrooms despite a raging pandemic is the toll that e-learning is taking on their mental health. Remote learning is lonely. It is fraught with technical glitches that leave kids feeling powerless and overwhelmed. It strips the school experience of the spontaneity and laughter and lessons and friendships that spring up in hallways and classrooms and lunchrooms and playgrounds. It removes face-to-face interactions with a whole layer of grown-ups who, if we’re lucky, help our kids feel believed in, invested in, protected, admired, ...
Chicago Tribune
- More