Sharing – Hot Take: The Teens Are the Sanest of Us All

Sharing – Hot Take: The Teens Are the Sanest of Us All

ByMikeM Reading Time: 2 minutes

The real question is, how do you “treat” this level of anxiety when feeling anxious is a perfectly normal reaction to what you see in front of you every day? Should we even be treating it versus accepting it and teaching young people coping skills instead?

I don’t know the answer to that, but I do know that my own anxiety isn’t going anywhere. I’m learning to live with it, some days better than others, but I don’t see why I should think of my anxiety as an abnormal reaction. It makes perfect sense to me.

Shared Links (weekly) May 29, 2022

Shared Links (weekly) May 29, 2022

ByMikeM Reading Time: 1 minute

Sharing – Mental Health: When People Tell You How They Feel, Believe Them.

Sharing – Mental Health: When People Tell You How They Feel, Believe Them.

ByMikeM Reading Time: 1 minute

It’s not just saying I believe you when someone tells you they are struggling with depression or anxiety. It’s all of the subtle ways we show them that we don’t believe them. The “But you don’t look”, the “you’ll be fine”, the toxic positivity, the refusal to change your own behavior in supportive ways, etc., do just as much damage. They send the message that we don’t believe what you just said is serious enough to warrant doing anything differently.

Is that the message you want to send someone who trusted you enough to admit they are struggling with you? That their struggles aren’t valid enough for you to do anything differently?

Shared Links (weekly) April 17, 2022

Shared Links (weekly) April 17, 2022

ByMikeM Reading Time: 1 minute
Sharing – Depression in Kids: All You Need to Know

Sharing – Depression in Kids: All You Need to Know

ByMikeM Reading Time: 2 minutes

Getting kids help as early as possible gives them a much better chance to have less depression and fewer effects as adults. Imagine how many people might have been able to develop mentally healthy strategies instead of devolving into worse conditions if it was common for kids to have access to mental health resources?

Please, don’t ignore signs of depression and mental health struggles in kids. Yes, they can be resilient, but the research clearly shows that they aren’t as resilient as we think they are, and waiting to get access to help is doing more damage.

In this case, it is better to be safe. The worst thing that happens is a kid gets some time to talk to a therapist who determines that it’s not depression but something else. This is not a bad thing, even if the stigma surrounding it says it is.