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Tag Archives: Depression
A different way of thinking about kids with mental illness
Let’s think about church for a minute and consider the reality that folks with mental illnesses have disabilities that cause them difficulty in some environments but not others. There are lots of things about the environments in which we “do church” that pose major barriers for a parent or child struggling with common mental health disorders.
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Posted in ADHD, Advocacy, Anxiety Disorders, Families, Hidden Disabilities, Key Ministry, Mental Health, Strategies
Tagged ADHD, aggression, anxiety, Asperger's Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, church, Depression, Family Ministry, Inclusion, Joe McGinnis, Key Ministry, mental health, mental illness, ministry environments, Stephen Grcevich MD
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Joe Padilla…The Church Response to Families Impacted by Depression
The church can consider having biblically based mental health support groups for these families. We (Mental Health Grace Alliance) have designed Family Grace Groups for family members who have a loved one affected by mental health difficulties and disorders. The groups are led by non-professionals and work in any church. The groups follow a faith-structured curriculum of topics to help understand and navigate challenges and even learning their own self-care. Continue reading
Posted in Advocacy, Depression, Families, Mental Health, Strategies
Tagged church, Depression, families, Joe Padilla, Key Ministry, Mental Health Grace Alliance
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Understanding depression in kids and teens…an epilogue
We’ve put together a resource page for pastors, church staff, volunteers and parents with interest in the subject of depression and teens. Continue reading
Does depression result from a lack of faith?
Isn’t it possible, perhaps likely that God might use our suffering to strengthen our faith and to draw us into closer relationship with Him? Continue reading
Families impacted by depression…How can the church help?
How can churches help families impacted by depression to experience the love of Christ? Here are some thoughts…
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Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for kids with depression…pros and cons
The kids I treat are prone to what one of our therapists refers to as “stinking thinking”…automatic, irrational thoughts pop into their heads in the course of day-to- day living that trigger negative emotions and lead to patterns of self-defeating behavior. These patterns of self-defeating behaviors often reinforce their cognitive misperceptions and lead to a downward spiral resulting in symptoms of anxiety, depression, and sometimes, suicidal thoughts or plans. Continue reading
Where do I go for help if I think my kid might be depressed?
It’s been my experience that many churches offer reasonably good short-term counseling and support for adults, but very few will have staff with adequate training or supervision in counseling children or teens. So…where does a parent go to find the right help when they suspect their child needs help for depression? Continue reading
What if Mom is depressed?
But for the sake of this discussion, it appears that in examining depression as a specific disability, regular involvement of either the child or the parent with depression at church not only produces spiritual benefits, but actually helps reduce the risk for the condition itself. Continue reading
Posted in Depression, Families, Hidden Disabilities, Inclusion, Key Ministry, Mental Health, Resources, Strategies
Tagged children's ministry, church, Depression, Faith Net, families, Family Ministry, Grace Groups, Inclusion, Key Ministry, Mental Health Grace Alliance, mothers, NAMI, youth ministry
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Depression…Challenges in serving kids with an episodic disability
The first people in a church likely to suspect a problem will be the youth pastor or a small group leader when they notice an often abrupt change in the pattern of involvement of a teen suffering from depression. Unlike the other conditions we’ve discussed since launching the blog, in the absence of another mental health condition or a parent with a disability, I’d hypothesize kids with depression wouldn’t be any less likely to start attending church…they’ll have difficulty staying involved with church once symptomatic. Continue reading
Are they really depressed, or do they have something else?
One of the challenges I face as a clinician when a family comes to our practice because they suspect their child is depressed is teasing out all of the other possible explanations for why their child might appear depressed. Continue reading
Posted in ADHD, Anxiety Disorders, Bipolar Disorder, Depression, Hidden Disabilities, Key Ministry, Mental Health
Tagged ADHD, anxiety, Bipolar Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder, children, children's ministry, Depression, diagnosis, Family Ministry, Inclusion, Key Ministry, learning disabilities, medication, OCD, Stephen Grcevich MD, substance abuse, teens, youth ministry
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