Honoring Veterans and Supporting Their Children: A Tribute on Veteran’s Day
Veteran’s Day is a time to honor the brave men and women who have served our country, sacrificing so much for the greater good (1). But it’s also a moment to shed light on the often unsung heroes—their children. The impact of military service on the mental health of veterans is profound, and the effects […]
Why We Still Need To Talk About Teen Mental Health
Why We Still Need To Talk About Teen Mental Health We created our series 13 Reasons Why We MUST Talk About Teen Mental Health because when the Netflix original series, 13 Reasons Why, aired there was tremendous controversy surrounding it. The show shares the fictional story of a high school student named Hannah Baker, who […]
Hope for Teens Struggling with Depression
Hope for Teens Struggling with Depression Depression in adolescents is more than sadness or moodiness. It is a complex mental health condition that requires compassionate medical care. At Western Youth Services, we support teens and families through the complexities of living with a mental illness. What is depression? Everyone feels sad at some point in […]
How Teachers Can Improve Youth Mental Health and Well-Being
How Teachers Can Improve Youth Mental Health and Well-Being Teachers and school administration are well positioned to identify students that exhibit early warning signs of an emerging mental health condition. Educators make a significant and lasting difference in the lives of these children. Empathy, active listening, and kindness are all important for maintaining a mentally healthy […]
9 Ways to Strengthen Resiliency and Prevent Instances of Mental Illness in Youth
9 Ways to Strengthen Resiliency and Prevent Instances of Mental Illness There are certain factors, including Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) like abuse, neglect and family dysfunction that increase the likelihood of mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). As we have witnessed and experienced, these childhood adversities can have a […]
How to Overcome Emotional Neglect in Childhood
How to Overcome Emotional Neglect in Childhood Family relationships are complex and there are a wide range of issues that fall under the label of family dysfunction. Most people associate it with big events, such as witnessing domestic violence, living through divorce or separation of a parent/caregiver, addictive behaviors, domestic abuse, and/or mental health concerns […]
How Resiliency Transforms the Impact of Peer Pressure
How Resiliency Transforms the Impact of Peer Pressure Friends and peers are an important part of growing up and can bring positive influence and important and supportive relationships into a child’s life. On the flip-side there is peer pressure which can open the door to bullying, cyber-bullying, shame, self-doubt, negative body image, self-harm and even […]
How to Empower Children by Building Their Resiliency Muscle
How to Empower Children by Building Their Resiliency Muscle January is National Mentoring month and this month’s article makes the connection between Mentoring and Resiliency. Did you know that childhood trauma is an epidemic? That one in five children has a diagnosable mental health condition? That childhood trauma is associated, in many cases, with lifelong health and mental health outcomes? […]
Teachers are Mental Health Champions
Teachers are Mental Health Champions Mental health is perhaps one of the most important yet severely overlooked obstacles to children’s ability to learn. For children and teens, signs of mental illness often manifest first in their performance and behavior at school. Teachers may observe a student’s difficulty concentrating, chronic absence, low achievement, disruptive behavior, mood […]
9 Ways to Build Resiliency this Summer
9 Ways to Build Resiliency this Summer Summer is in full swing and many children, teens, and families enjoy leaving the structure of the school year behind them and leaping right into the fun and carefree days of Summer. For some, the change presents a challenge. Structure Feels Safe The wide-open space of Summer can […]