Is your child struggling mentally? NorCal child therapist explains signs to look out for
What are the signs someone should look for if their loved one may be suicidal? These are the signs a child and family therapist said to look for. NorCal child therapist Dr Ben Seigler has noted an alarming trend of more students with mental health needs, as well as the severity of mental health issues seen within younger children. He believes that the back-to-back trauma caused by recent school tragedies is spurring some to find ways to help the youth. Seiglers suggests looking for a shift in behavior, mood, attitude or in their routine. If you or someone you know needs help, you can call or send a text message to 988.
Opublikowany : rok temu za pomocą w
School tragedies have been top of mind in recent days.Nationally, there was a Nashville shooting that left three students and three teachers dead. In California on Thursday, a student died at Lindhurst High School in Yuba County. The back-to-back trauma caused in recent days is spurring some to find ways to help the youth. Dr. Ben Seigler, a licensed child and family therapist, noted an alarming trend of more students with mental health needs. On top of that, the severity of mental health needs is not only higher but also happening to younger children. Seigler currently has a practice in Yuba City: New Day Family Counseling Center, and he worked in the Marysville Joint Unified School District — the district that Lindhurst is a part of — for nearly 12 years. He believes schools are doing quite a bit to support the community, but he also believes that "it can't be all on the schools because kids go home in the afternoon."He also attributes some of the mental health issues we’re seeing within children as a result of the pandemic."COVID caused a shift in the way we interact and especially for our youth. Our kids are spending more and more time in front of a screen, and less and less time with their friends, and that is only going to create more issues with mental health," Seigler said. As technology advances, the reliance on it for communication has also cemented its necessity for many. Seigler said that reliance is only going to cause more mental health problems and we need to find a way to get kids back outside playing with each other."Our nervous systems weren't designed to sit and to hold something all day long. We're social and we get regulation from being around other people who are calm and friendly to us and who enjoys spending time with us. It's different to have that experience through a screen; it changes something," Seigler said. What are the signs someone should look for if their loved one may be suicidal?"The biggest thing I would suggest is looking for a significant shift in behavior, mood, attitude or in their routine. If you notice some sort of shift that's for sure one of the biggest things to recognize," Seigler said. It's important to then have the difficult conversations while also offering support."Not being afraid to say, 'Hey what's really going on with you? How are you doing really?' We know that most of the time when somebody says, 'I'm fine,' they're really not and so that particular response is a good opportunity to say, 'What's really fine?' and not just because it's an uncomfortable conversation, avoid it. I think that's the big thing, really being open to pushing a little bit and really opening up the conversation a bit more," Seigler said. If you or someone you know needs help, you can talk with the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by calling or sending a text message to 988, or you can chat online here.