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Tag Archives: teens
How long will my child need medication?
We’d like to think that medication can be a temporary tool to help kids through a rough patch of development. Sometimes that’s true. Sometimes it’s not. Continue reading
Posted in ADHD, Anxiety Disorders, Bipolar Disorder, Depression, Families, Mental Health
Tagged ADHD, anxiety, Bipolar Disorder, Depression, Disability Ministry, Inclusion, Key Ministry, kids, medication, teens
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How well should medication work for my child’s condition?
Medication typically isn’t a panacea for kids and teens experiencing mental illness, and in general, the more serious the symptoms of mental illness experienced by children and teens, the lower the likelihood is that medication will lead to an ongoing remission of the child’s symptoms. Continue reading
When should parents consider non-medical treatment first?
Many mental health conditions are commonly seen in kids for which medication generally isn’t the first step in a well-developed treatment plan. Today, we’ll look at some situations when parents and clinicians might consider non-medical treatment alternatives first. Continue reading
Posted in ADHD, Anxiety Disorders, Controversies, Depression, Families, Hidden Disabilities, Key Ministry, Mental Health
Tagged ADHD, anxiety, children, Depression, families, mental health, non-medical treatment, OCD, Parents, PTSD, teens
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Who’s qualified to prescribe medication for my child?
If you’re open to considering psychotropic medication for your child or teen, you want an experienced clinician who will take the time to fully understand the nature of your child’s difficulties prior to whipping out the prescription pad. You want a clinician who appreciates the benefits and limitations of medication and is capable of recognizing situations when medication makes problems worse. You want a clinician with the time and availability to answer difficult questions when they arise. Continue reading
Posted in Advocacy, Families, Key Ministry, Mental Health
Tagged American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, children, Developmental Pediatrics, medication, mental health, Pediatric Neurology, pediatrics, physician extenders, primary care, psychiatry, teens
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How would I know if my child would benefit from medication?
Given all the controversy generated by the topic of psychiatric medication for kids and teens, I’m frequently asked for guidance and direction from parents and caregivers as to when medication is necessary and appropriate. Here are some clarifying questions I share with parents to help them in their decision making process…
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Posted in ADHD, Controversies, Hidden Disabilities, Mental Health
Tagged children, medication, mental health, Parents, teens
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Ten Questions About Kids and Medication Lecture CANCELED. Here’s the alternate plan…
Since there was lots of interest in the topic of frequently asked questions about kids and medication , I’ll cover each of the questions I’d planned to address during the lecture in a blog series we’ll run through July, following our current series on the changes in diagnostic criteria included in the DSM-5. Continue reading
Posted in Controversies, Families, Key Ministry, Mental Health, Resources
Tagged kids, lecture, medications, Parents, psychiatry, teens
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ADHD…DSM-5 criteria validate what’s being done in practice
The most important revisions in the diagnostic criteria take into account the reality that symptoms of ADHD persist into adulthood for many with the disorder, and that the functional impairment associated with ADHD may not be readily apparent for many kids prior to the teen years. Continue reading
Posted in ADHD, Key Ministry, Mental Health
Tagged ADHD, children, diagnostic criteria, dsm-5, medication, mental health, prevalence, teens
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First impressions of the DSM-5
The weakness is its lack of validity. Unlike our definitions of ischemic heart disease, lymphoma, or AIDS, the DSM diagnoses are based on a consensus about clusters of clinical symptoms, not any objective laboratory measure. In the rest of medicine, this would be equivalent to creating diagnostic systems based on the nature of chest pain or the quality of fever. Indeed, symptom-based diagnosis, once common in other areas of medicine, has been largely replaced in the past half century as we have understood that symptoms alone rarely indicate the best choice of treatment. Continue reading
Posted in Controversies, Mental Health
Tagged children, Dr. Thomas Insel, dsm-5, families, first impressions, mental health, NIMH, psychiatry, teens
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Today’s Presentation…Supporting Kids and Teens Who Struggle With Anxiety
Here’s my Power Point presentation for the talk I’ll be presenting later today at the 2013 Accessibility Summit at McLean Bible Church in McLean, VA Continue reading
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