Children's Mental Health Resources

Recognizing that your child is experiencing a mental health crisis can be difficult. You may not be sure what constitutes a crisis situation versus a “bad day” or “phase.” You may feel scared — perhaps you feel unsure of how to protect your child. Combine this with navigating a complicated school and health care system and a lack of resources for people struggling with a mental health crisis, and it’s easy to feel discouraged.

Talking with your child about emotional topics, such as their mental health, can feel uncomfortable. This can be due to the stigma involved, lack of information or even fears of possible blame.

It may seem much easier to talk about other medical problems, such as food allergies, asthma or diabetes. There is typically more information available about those conditions, they are easy to diagnosis with medical tests and people seldom think they are anyone’s fault.

While each mental health condition is unique, they all impact emotions, thoughts and behavior. Here are some things to consider in deciding to intervene.

As a parent or caregiver, it can be frustrating to watch your child struggle at school with behavioral, emotional, learning or attention issues and not know how to help them. Often, when children are grappling with emotional and behavioral challenges, these difficulties interfere with their school performance and functioning. As a result, they may need help — not just with their academics, but also to address their emotional needs.