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Tag Archives: mental illness
Thinking differently about kids and mental illness…
One of the challenges in understanding the epidemic of mental illness in kids is that conditions such as anxiety disorders and ADHD may be disabling in some environments, but not others. Continue reading
Common mental health conditions can be MAJOR barriers to church involvement
It’s particularly difficult to understand why parents who might be able to maintain a job and a household or kids who are able to school without one-on-one aides or lots of support services aren’t able to attend church. I’ll try to explain why in today’s post…and give churches a conceptual framework for anticipating the obstacles kids and adults might experience in attending church and addressing them so they no longer remain obstacles.
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Posted in Anxiety Disorders, Autism, Families, Hidden Disabilities, Inclusion, Key Ministry, Mental Health, Ministry Environments, Strategies
Tagged Asperger's Disorder, children's ministry, church, Disability Ministry, Family Ministry, Inclusion, Key Ministry, Mental Health Month, mental illness, youth ministry
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Amy Simpson Interview
The church is the first place many people go when they’re looking for help of all kinds, including treatment for mental illness. Among people who have sought treatment, 25 percent have gone first to a member of the clergy. This is a higher percentage than those who have gone to psychiatrists, general medical doctors, or anyone else. Unfortunately, many church leaders are ill-equipped to help people get the care they need. Continue reading
Components of a ministry strategy for including kids with mental illness at church
We look at the components of an effective ministry strategy for outreach and inclusion of children and teens with mental health concerns at church. Continue reading
What if a parent ALSO has mental health issues?
When we’re talking about kids experiencing mental health concerns that keep them from church, there’s a reasonable possibility that their mother or father experienced or continue to experience similar difficulties that kept them from attending church. Continue reading
Kids don’t want to be seen as “different”
The best possible solutions for including kids with mental illness at church would include those offering potential benefits to all children and families without drawing attention to any particular child, those that help kids to prepare privately for participation in church activities outside the scrutiny of peers and solutions that offer necessary supports without requiring children or families to self-identify in order to receive help. Continue reading
Including kids and teens with mental illness at church…Grasping the relationship barrier
The kids and families we serve in our child and adolescent psychiatry practice are extremely vulnerable to a vicious cycle of escalating social isolation, perpetuated by the nature of the conditions they experience, their propensity to misinterpret the thoughts and reactions of other people and the stigma associated with mental illness. Continue reading
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