Know the Warning Signs: National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day

by Ryan Kline, Extension Educator, Ross County, 4-H and Family & Consumer Sciences

As school bells ring, summer camps begin, and warmer days are here again, children across the nation head home to enjoy the summer. However, with the change in schedule, parents, camp counselors, and community leaders may see more warning signs or symptoms of mental health issues or challenges in children. Research published in the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics found that diagnoses of anxiety and depression have increased in children ages 6 to 17. As adults prepare to support youth with mental and emotional health issues, awareness is key to helping people feel comfortable in these challenging situations.a group of children

In honor of the youth struggling and managing mental health challenges, we celebrate National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day. I will be honoring the day by promoting that my fellow educators, teachers, and volunteers know the warning signs of mental health issues in children.

Youth Mental Health by the Numbers:

  • 20% of teens aged 13 to 18 live with a mental health condition.
  • 18.8% of high school students had contemplated attempting suicide.
  • 7 in 100,000 children aged 10 to 19 died by suicide in 2018.
  • A 10-year gap is common between symptoms and taking action to improve mental health.

Youth across the country struggle with mental health challenges. Mental health affects children of all ages, from toddlers to teens, and different types of mental health challenges can become more prevalent throughout the developmental process, especially as young people approach their teen years. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, children ages 12 to 17 are more commonly diagnosed with anxiety and depression, while 6- to 11-year-olds are more commonly diagnosed with behavior disorders. Many times, the challenge for parents is knowing whether the behaviors are symptoms of mental health issues versus the normative challenges experienced in adolescent development.

Identifying the Warning Signs in Youth

Change is not always a bad thing. As youth develop, personalities may adapt and behaviors may shift slightly; however, when these changes are sudden and drastic, there may be an underlying mental health issue.

  •  Withdrawing from Friends, Family, or Activities

Social interaction is healthy for youth. When children suddenly start isolating themselves from friends and family and losing interest in activities, that can be a clear sign that something may be happening with their mental, social, or emotional health. Isolation can be detrimental to the development of youth and can be a sign of a mental health challenge.

  • Mood Swings/Out of Character Behavior

Noticing a change in behavior is an important first step to taking action to better a child’s mental health. Whether it is an action that is extreme or a slight change in behavior, checking in about feelings after an outburst can help youth better identify and manage emotions.

  • New, Overwhelming Fear

Commonly seen in a distinct change of behavior from fearless to fearful, children can develop fear or fear-driven behavior after trauma. When the fear is something that the child used to do like attending school or walking to the park, it can be a sign that something bigger is going on in the child’s life.

Despite their prevalence, mental health disorders are under treated, a situation exacerbated by the increased demand created during the coronavirus pandemic and a shortage of mental health providers. Analysis from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey found that 25% of youth aged 12 to 17 had received some sort of mental health treatment within the past year. As parents, educators, and society learn more about the impact of mental health on youth across the country, treatment rates may continue to grow.

What Can You Do as an Adult?picture of hands

Ask Direct Questions

May times it can be difficult to ask questions about mental health. However, one of the best ways to check on our youth is to create open spaces for them to share and communicate about how they feel. Also, if a child is exhibiting behaviors associated with suicide, ask them directly about their feelings and intentions. A conversation can save a life.

 Share Emergency Numbers

Encourage teens to save several emergency numbers to their cell phones so if the need arises they are prepared to assist someone in crisis.

 Connect with a Professional

Whether it is a pediatrician, mental health specialist, or counselor, involving a professional is the best way to ensure that the child is receiving assistance. Teachers, volunteers, or community members can only do so much – there is a time and place for intervention.

National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day shines a national spotlight on the importance of caring for every child’s mental health and reinforces that positive mental health is essential to a child’s healthy development. Understanding the impact of mental health on children is a crucial part of creating a bigger change. By identifying some of the symptoms or behaviors associated with mental health challenges, educators and community volunteers can better serve and develop healthier youth. Creating clear actions for better mental health can help to shape the future of children’s mental health.

Check out Ohio 4-H Mental Health Month resources and our grab-and-go resources.

*The Lifeline and 988: 988 has been designated as the new three-digit dialing code that will route callers to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. While some areas may be currently able to connect to the Lifeline by dialing 988, this dialing code will be available to everyone across the United States starting on July 16, 2022.

References

America’s Health Rankings. (2022). Mental health providers. https://www.americashealthrankings.org/explore/annual/measure/MHP

Bitsko, R. H., Holbrook, J. R., Ghandour, R. M., Blumberg, S. J., Visser, S. N., Perou, R., & Walkup, J. T. (2018). Epidemiology and impact of health care provider-diagnosed anxiety and depression among US children. Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, 39(5), 395‒403. https://doi.org/10.1097/DBP.0000000000000571

Bitsko, R. H., Claussen, A. H., Lichstein, J., Black. L. I., Jones, S. E., Danielson, M. L., Hoenig, J. M., Davis Jack, S. P., Brody, D. J., Gyawali, S., Maenner, M. J., Warner, M., Holland, K. M., Perou, R. M., Crosby, A. E., Blumberg, S. J., Avenevoli, S., Kaminski. J. W., & Ghandour. R. M. (2022). Mental health surveillance among children — United States, 2013–2019. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 71(Suppl-2),1–42. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.su7102a1

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022, March 4). Data and statistics on children’s mental health. https://www.cdc.gov/childrensmentalhealth/data.html

Ivey-Stephenson, A. Z., Demissie, Z., Crosby, A. E., Stone, D. M., Gaylor, E., Wilkins, N., Lowry, R., & Brown, M. (2020). Suicidal ideation and behaviors among high school students – Youth Risk Behavior Survey, United States, 2019. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 69(Suppl-1), 47‒55. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.su6901a6

National Alliance on Mental Illness. (n.d.). Mental health facts: Children and teens. https://www.nami.org/nami/media/nami-media/infographics/children-mh-facts-nami.pdf

National Institute of Mental Health. (2021). Child and adolescent mental health. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/child-and-adolescent-mental-health

Pombo, E. (2021, May 7). Warning signs of mental illness in children. National  Alliance on Mental Illness. https://www.nami.org/Blogs/NAMI-Blog/May-2021/Warning-Signs-of-Mental-Illness-in-Children

U.S. Department of Education. (2021). Supporting child and student social, emotional, behavioral, and mental health needs. https://www2.ed.gov/documents/students/supporting-child-student-social-emotional-behavioral-mental-health.pdf

U.S. Surgeon General. (2021). Protecting youth mental health: The U.S. Surgeon General’s advisory. https://www.hhs.gov/surgeongeneral/reports-and-publications/youth-mental-health/index.html

Zolopa, C., Burack, J. A., O’Connor, R. M., Corran, C., Lai, J., Bomfim, E., DeGrae, S. Dumont, J., Larney, S., & Wendt, D. C. (2022). Changes in youth mental health, psychological wellbeing, and substance use during the COVID-19 pandemic: A rapid review. Adolescent Research Review, 7, 161‒177. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40894-022-00185-6

Actions You Can Take: 4-H’ers in Times of National Crisis

All the recent events and how people have responded have me thinking about a lot of things. I wondered what 4-H’ers had done during other times of national crisis, and how what happened in the past might help us learn how young people can take control in our present time of pandemic. First let’s take a look at what 4-H’ers did during World War II.

A Look at the Past

The 4-H History Preservation webpage documents how 4-H’ers supported the war effort during World War II.

Girl with corn plant

4-H member with corn plant in her Victory Garden

They sold war bonds and grew victory gardens. To raise money to buy war equipment, planes, ships, and ambulances, they collected and sold scrap metal, rubber, and phonograph records. They even collected milkweed pods, collecting enough to stuff 1 million life jackets – no small effort!

There’s even a reference to efforts of Ohio 4-H members on the 4-H history page:

“Winding up 1943 outstanding war services, Ohio 4-H members and leaders purchased $510,041 in War Bonds for which a four-motored flying fortress heavy bomber aircraft was purchased and christened “Buckeye 4-H” at Lockbourne Air Base [now Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base near Columbus] in a special ceremony at which Ohio Director of Extension H. C. Ramsower presided. Junior Stuckey, Circleville, and Betty Brandt, Rushville, spoke for 4-H members. Lt. Dick Brandt, brother of Betty and a former 4-H’er, also participated. He was on furlough after having completed 50 bombing missions over Africa, Sicily, and the Continent.”

From these examples, we see that 4-H’ers were asked to do things, things that involved something outside themselves. They felt like they we doing their part to contribute to the war effort. They could see the tangible results of their efforts. These efforts could be measured – in pounds of scrap metal collected, number of planes sponsored, or amount of vegetables grown. I am sure that if asked, today’s 4-H’ers would do the same.

The Present Pandemic

Enter the coronavirus pandemic. What’s the difference compared with other times of national crisis? It seems like we’re being asked to stop doing things – stay home; no group activities like club meetings, graduations, or birthday parties; stop seeing friends. If we’re going to help, we think we should be doing something more active. We are being asked to do things, but they are more self-focused, at least on the surface. But if you look deeper, we’re being asked to do these things to protect not just ourselves, but to protect others. It’s harder to measure these things. But it’s part of our collective responsibility to our community, country, and world.

What can YOU do?

At times like this, it’s easy to feel out of control. But you have control over your behavior. Here are actions you can take:

  • Wash your hands with soap and water, for at least 20 seconds. (See Callia’s hand washing video here.)
  • If soap and water are not readily available, use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol.
  • Cover sneezes and coughs.
  • Wear a mask or face covering over your nose, mouth, and chin when out in public. (Go to the Ohio Department of Health for a mask checklist.)
  • Keep a physical distance of 6 feet from others when out in public, even if you’re wearing a face covering.
  • Stay at home when you are sick.
  • Avoid contact with people who are sick.
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands or after touching surfaces.
  • Keep high-touch surfaces clean (e.g., doorknobs, light switches).
  • Stay connected to others virtually.
  • Spend time in outdoor recreation.
  • Keep a positive attitude and practice self-care (see our recent post on this topic).

There are other things 4-H’ers can do. In one of our previous posts, we featured 4-H’ers using their sewing skills to make masks to donate. Others are making signs or videos to thank essential workers in their community or writing cards to residents living in senior centers. Camp counselors are working on ways to do virtual camps this summer. These things are important too.

many children holding letters to spell thank you

4-H’er’s from Morgan County did a photo collage to thank essential workers

Handmade cards

Cards made by 4-H’ers from Columbiana County

4-H'ers with signs to thank essential workers

Brown County 4-H’ers displaying their signs thanking essential workers

3 4-H'ers with beef cattle and signs thanking essential workers

4-H’ers and friends from Wood County thank essential workers

Some day in the future the coronavirus pandemic will be behind us, part of history, a story to tell your grandchildren. As with other times of national crisis, what will be the story others will read about what 4-H’ers did during this time of pandemic? YOU can be part of writing that story. You can commit to using your head, heart, hands, and health to keep yourself and others safe.

Today’s 4-H Journal page helps you think about actions you are already doing and action you can take.

Yours in health,

Signature

 

Actions I Can Take Activity Page Social Media post

Daily Dose- Let’s Go on a Hunt…for the Good Stuff

When things are changing and out of our control, it is easy to focus on the negative. But even when things are unpredictable and not going the way we planned like with the COVID-19 pandemic, there are still a lot of good things going on. Being resilient, or having the capacity or ability to recover from difficulties, is a life skill that we can work on all the time. One way to develop this skill is to challenge ourselves every day to “Hunt the Good Stuff.”

Hunting the good stuff is seeking out the positives in every situation. It might be difficult to find them sometimes, but they are there! Often our first reaction is to focus on all the negative things. That just means we have to look harder to find the good stuff. Hunting the good stuff is easy when life is going our way. But it’s just as important when we find ourselves in situations that where we don’t have control. We may not be able to change the situation, but we can change how we think of it.

Have you heard the saying “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade?” That’s hunt the good stuff!

Focusing on the positives and analyzing them helps you see the light in each situation. In turn, it helps build your resiliency and trains your mind to look for the positives even in stressful situations.

Hunting the good stuff requires us to stop and think about what’s going on. It’s another way to practice mindfulness, which we wrote about in an earlier post that you can find here.

Hunting the good stuff helps you to be more positive, leads to gratitude, and helps you mentally and physically. So even though life is a bit unpredictable right now, and we are facing change and disappointment, focus on the good! To help you with that, we created a Hunt the Good Stuff 4-H Bingo! Use this card to seek out the positives that are going on right now. If you haven’t done something yet, use it as a way to seek out positive activities to expend your energy or use it to help you come up with some other fun ideas!

Download PDF Version Here

Today’s Guest Post and BINGO game was brought to you by Christy Clary, Educator in 4-H Youth Developed located in Brown County, Ohio.

 

Daily Dose – The Loss of What Might Have Been

4-H clover emblem

Sometimes we experience a loss like no other, a loss that means that something near and dear to our life is put on hold, or may not happen the way it was supposed to. We certainly have a lot of that going on right now with the current Coronavirus pandemic. It’s changed the way we learn, work, live, laugh, and love one another. One loss after another stacks up until finally one day you realize, this is too much. This is too much burden to carry.

I’m telling you it’s okay to cry. It’s okay to grieve the loss of what you thought would happen or was supposed to be. You can be angry, be sad, or just be. Whatever you do, you must express and manage your emotions in a healthy way. We will all handle changes differently. When one person is expressing sadness, another may simply be quiet. We process all things, all trauma, differently.

Yes, I said trauma. Trauma is defined by Merriam-Webster as “…c: an emotional upset.” Mental health experts remind us that any situation that leaves us feeling overwhelmed and isolated can result in trauma. The changes, challenges, and things happening to us right now are causing trauma. It’s upsetting because there are so many unknowns and the changes keep coming. It’s okay to feel these emotions. With time, you will realize that you have what it takes to get through these feelings. It’s okay to reach out to others to help you get through tough times. You will learn that we humans are given the great power of choice and ability to do the best with what we have, when we have it.

For today’s 4-H journal entry I want you to identity a change of plans that has happened due to the Coronavirus pandemic. In this journal page you can explore feelings related to it, your ability to change it, and who you can talk to. Writing a letter to this pandemic to express what it has done to you is another way to share how you feel.

It’s upsetting because there are so many unknowns and the changes keep coming. It’s okay to feel these emotions. With time, you will realize that you have what it takes to get through these feelings. It’s okay to reach out to others to help you get through tough times. You will learn that we humans are given the great power of choice and ability to do the best with what we have, when we have it. We are 4-H’ers after all. There is much work to be done and you all are up for the challenge. The choice is within you and deciding what that challenge will be and how you can make an impact on the world given the change that has happened to you.

The Loss of What Might Have Been (PDF Download)

 

In great love,

 

 

IN A CRISIS?
Text HOME to 741741 to connect with a Crisis Counselor

 

 

Daily Dose – Mental Health

National Public Health Week and COVID-19

Public Health Week - Mental Health MondayMONDAY: MENTAL HEALTH — advocate for and promote emotional well-being

Dealing with COVID-19 is causing heightened levels of stress. In particular, isolation and quarantine can be highly stressful. Because it means separation from loved ones, especially those detained off-shore or in other countries. Many in the public health and health care sectors, as well as those working in affected industries, are shouldering a significant mental health burden.

Reach out and check on your loved ones and community members. Read and share such resources as the World Health Organization’s Mental Health Considerations During COVID-19 Outbreak and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s tips on managing anxiety and stress.

 

Journal Entry of the Day


page with lines and numbers

Benefits of Staying Home Journal Page

Today’s 4-H Journal is focused around Mental Health and how we have changed our lives since the onset of Stay-at-Home orders, working from home, and dealing with COVID-19. Staying home is definitely a change, but today we are going to consider the benefits of staying home right now! What are five (5) benefits of staying home? What things have you enjoyed being home with your family? Have you tried any new activities?

Heather’s List of 5 Benefits of Staying Home

  1. Regular walks in the neighborhood!
  2. Spending more time with my dogs.
  3. Working on hobbies at night and learning new skills.
  4. Exploring ways to share information from home to 4-H’ers like you all!
  5. More time to sit, relax, and enjoy the sunshine.

To download the full PDF of this, click the following link: https://osu.box.com/s/wskthmlsezylub0scskc9zhc5yz917jw

In great love,