Youth Mental Health Awareness Month

Teen Dating Violence 

Unfortunately, approx. 1 in every 12 teens may experience abusive behavior (this includes stalking, psychological aggression, physical or sexual violence) as part of dating.  Females are at higher risk as are teens who are LGBTQ+.  Prevention and resources are key so that teens don’t feel isolated if they experience these acts of abuse. 

Supporting healthy relationships and getting connected to support services in your community is important.  One good place to begin is the CDC’s website for information.

SAD 

Seasonal Affective Disorder or SAD is a subtype of Major Depression where the onset of depressive symptoms occurs fairly reliably usually with the onset of Fall/Winter when the days become shorter and there is less full spectrum daylight that individuals are exposed to.  There is also a rarer variant of SAD which for some individuals means their depressive symptoms occur during the summer with the increase of temperatures and light. 

It’s important to track either kind to make sure that what the person is experiencing is due to actual seasonal changes and not something related (i.e. being laid off from seasonal work for example).  Other symptoms besides those of major depression include feeing tired, sleeping more than usual, and eating more than usual (especially carbs and sweets).     

Eating Disorders

These usually fall into two main categories:  individuals who restrict their food intake and/or avoid certain foods due to sensory characteristics, and those who binge and then try to counteract their bingeing behavior either via induced vomiting, use of laxatives, and/or extreme exercise.  Accompanying issues are distorted body image and intense fear of getting fat or gaining weight.  There are often issues of control, perfectionism, performance, and self-esteem involved when someone develops an eating disorder.  Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, eating disorders have increased to the point where some reports now indicate that as many as 5M Americans will develop an eating disorder this year.  Because of the toll that eating disordered behaviors take on bodies of those who have them, eating disorders are now considered to have the second highest rate of mortality among mental health illnesses. 

Treatment often involves a team approach including psychotherapy, medication, physician, dietician/nutrition, and sometimes peer and/or family mentoring and coaching.