4 Troubled Teens Blog

The authors of new book about teenagers who were able to overcome severe psychiatric problems have found that such teens share certain traits, such as resilience and optimism, that help them overcome their difficulties.

• Stuart Hauser, Joseph Allan and Eve Golden studied 67 people who had been patients as adolescents in locked wards of residential psychiatric hospitals.
  
• Twelve years later, only nine had recovered and gone on to become "successful, optimistic and trusting adults."
  
• The authors wanted to look beyond factors such as education and social economic status, and focus on the personality traits that helped the teenagers get through their adolescent crisis.
  
• They conducted extensive interviews with all 67 former patients.

The ones who recovered were better able to tell their life stories in a complicated and nuanced way. They could organize and integrate material that was extremely difficult into cogent narratives, and they were more resilient and more likely to learn from their mistakes.

The ones who remained stuck in their problems told stories that were simple and flat, and demonstrated less emotional awareness than those who recovered.

The new book is entitled Out Of the Woods: Tales of Resilient Teens.

Labels: psychiatric_illness, optimism

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Fewer psychiatrists are offering patients psychotherapy, according to a study from Johns Hopkins University. Instead, they are more likely to prescribe drugs. Patient visits that used to be 45-minute psychotherapy sessions are now more likely to last only 15 minutes.

Dr. Ramin Mojtabai analyzed data from psychiatrists' offices from 1996 to 2005, and found that psychotherapy visits dropped from 44 percent in 1996 to 29 percent in 2005. Other studies have shown that certain patients, including teenagers with depression, have the best chance of recovery if they receive both medication and psychotherapy.

Dr. Eric Plakun, a member of the American Psychiatric Association's Committee on Psychotherapy, said doctors have entered into "the age of the brain," and now focus on the biology of mental illness. He noted that some patients receive therapy from social workers or mental health professionals.

"Either way I'm worried about our patients," he said, because patients should be offered "a range of services," not just medication.

"If all you have is a hammer," he said, "everything looks like a nail."

This study appears in the Archives of General Psychiatry.

Labels: mental_health, psychiatric_illness, therapy

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Researchers have developed a set of criteria that are proving effective in predicting the onset of psychosis in adolescents. The criteria are proving to be effective in 80 percent of the cases where psychosis is eventually diagnosed.

"If the findings are confirmed, the predication model could help doctors identify those at risk for psychotic illness much sooner so that these people can be monitored closely for signs of active psychosis."

The study's authors recruited 291 teens considered 'high-risk' for the development of psychosis. Several factors were taken into consideration when predicting the onset of psychotic illness, including; paranoid thoughts, hearing buzzing sounds, or seeing images that quickly disappeared. The study's authors are hoping to conduct a follow-up study that will research biological indicators as well.

An adolescent residential treatment center, like NorthStar Center, offers treatment for drug addiction to teens and young adults who are ready to get on with their lives in a healthy, positive lifestyle.

Labels: emotional_issues, psychiatric_illness, teens

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About one million British children are taking "psychometric" tests to allow their teachers to create psychological profiles for each child.

The tests measure self-worth, work ethic, regard for teachers, and the child's likelihood of truancy. Children answer true or false to statements like "I am lonely at school," "I would rather be somewhere else than school," etc.

Dr. Glen Williams and his colleagues developed the tests as a way to predict behaviors such as academic success or conduct disorders. Proper use of test results may help boost attendance, achievement, attitudes and aspirations.

Critics of psychometric testing say they may replace personal relationships between children and their teachers. They also point out that they label children at early ages, and that not enough safeguards are in place to protect children's privacy.

Teens struggling with emotional and behavioral issues can find help at private schools that offer therapy and counseling. Visit TherapeuticBoardingSchool.com to find a therapeutic boarding school for your teenager today.

Labels: schools, psychiatric_illness, testing

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About 50% of all mental illnesses develop by the time a person is 14 year old. The National Institute of Mental Health reports that nearly 21% of teenagers will develop treatable psychiatric illnesses. If left untreated, the illnesses are more likely to continue into adulthood.

"One advocate for primary care teen mental health screening is Kathleen Delaney, RN, DNSc,... 'Screening alerts you to risk and the need to send a patient for more in-depth [evaluation],' she says."

She suggests that a general screen can and should be included with a high school physical exam. Read more at News.Nurse.com.

The programs for troubled teens offered at Island View help young people identify their issues and then work on them in a caring, nurturing environment.

Labels: mental_health, psychiatric_illness, treatment_programs

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Young teens with chronic headaches are more likely to have psychiatric disorders, according to a survey of 8,000 teenagers in Taiwan.

Teens whose headaches lasted two hours and occurred more than 15 days a month were more likely to suffer from depression, panic disorders and suicide attempts.

"Teens with chronic daily headache should be screened for psychiatric disorders so they can get the treatment and help they need," according to author Dr. Shuu-Jiun Wang of the Taipei Veterans General Hospital and National Yang-Ming University School of Medicine in Taipei, Taiwan.

Labels: mental_health, psychiatric_illness, disorders

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Very premature babies are at risk for psychiatric conditions such as Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), emotional problems, and autism, according to a new study from Great Britain.

The British researchers evaluated data  on 219 babies who had been born after 26 weeks or less of gestation. Almost one in four had a psychiatric problem at age 11.

"Clinically, the findings suggest that much greater emphasis should be placed on early cognitive and psychological monitoring of extremely preterm children for emerging neuropsychiatric and emotional disorders," the authors wrote in their report, which appeared in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

 

Labels: psychiatric_illness

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