OUR teens and children are struggling with mental health but finding it too hard to ask for help.
On World Mental Health Day, shocking statistics paint a picture of the struggles under 18s are facing.
Over 65 per cent of young people suffering mental health issues, such as anxiety or depression, haven’t reached out for support, according to a new survey of 2,000 16 to 24-year-olds.
Some 33 per cent admitted they feel too embarrassed.
And to add another blow, when young people do seek support they are then left with long waiting times – the results of which are only making the current crisis even worse.
The shocking stats come as a result of YoungMinds new collaboration with M&S who have launched a campaign to try and help combat the state of young people’s mental health in the UK.
Read more on mental health
BE AWARE
I’m a psychotherapist – how to spot an eating disorder in your child as cases soar
TAKE NOTE
The 'silent' symptom of depression you might spot at mealtimes and 3 other signs
“The launch of this new research could not be more timely,” Laura Bunt, Chief Executive of YoungMinds, tells Sun Health.
“More young people than ever are reaching out for support with their mental health, and the systems and people around them are struggling to keep up with demand.”
More than one in four (25.7 per cent) of people aged 17 to 19 years had a probable mental disorder in 2022, according to NHS England stats.
It's a staggering jump from one in 10 (10.1 per cent) in 2017.
Most read in Health
OUTBREAK
Stark warning as cases of infectious disease surge putting 1 in 10 kids in danger
OUR AGONY
My daughter, 22, died suddenly after her partner found her unconscious in doorway
HARD TO SWALLOW
From heartburn to cancer – the truth about tickly throats & when to worry
WHAT’S SUPP
The immune-boosting supplements to take to keep bugs & silent killers at bay
One of the biggest reasons young people are suffering with their mental health is due to loneliness, YoungMinds found. Bullying, social media and traumatic experiences are also huge contributors.
But many young people are too afraid to ask for help from school or their GP, and the ones that do can be left waiting for months or even years for a referral to CAMHS (child and adolescent mental health services).
In fact, according to NHS England data, 24 per cent of children and young people referred to mental health services in 2021-2022 were waiting six months or more to be seen.
The study from YoungMinds revealed that as a result of these long waiting times, young people are feeling more isolated which only impacts their mental health more.
It comes as Childline has warned te top reason kids call them are for issues with anxiety, stress and loneliness.
Childline delivered 105,000 counselling sessions in 2022/23 where the child’s main concern was mental and emotional health and wellbeing – accounting for more than half of all sessions.
Doctors are only too aware of the issue.
“Working as a GP it is apparent that more and more young patients are coming for help,” Doctor Caroline Hall, a GP who works in an Oxfordshire surgery says.
“It is a huge concern that so many young people waiting to see a mental health specialist are on very long waiting lists.
“Even then, mental health services are woefully overstretched, understaffed and underfunded.
"Also due to some issues with capacity referrals are sometimes rejected by child and adolescent mental health teams before a young person is finally admitted in crisis.”
“My long wait for support completely erased my identity”
Nicole, 19, from the South West, has struggled with her mental health from the age of nine after excessive bullying at school.
She says the delays in care ‘erased her identity’ and she only received the right care when she was admitted to hospital.
“My mum went to the GP and I got a referral for CAMHS,” she recalls. “I was seen quickly then but this was before the current crisis.
“I received Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) but CAMHS withdrew their care when I went to secondary school.”
Nicole was told she would get better now she was older, but this only made things worse.
“My mental health started to spiral but it wasn’t until I was 15 that I was referred to the National Deaf CAMHS who diagnosed me with autism.
“In January 2020 I moved to a specialist deaf school but again was told I no longer needed support.”
Lockdown hit Nicole hard and the services were unable to offer anything other than telephone support.
Nicole's condition spiralled and suicide ideation and self-harm resulted in a hospital admission.
“It was only then that CAHMS finally offered suitable support,” Nicole says.
“I now have therapeutic help from adult services because I’m 19, but that’s all that can be offered. That’s a very isolating and scary place to be.
“Some of the best mental health treatment I have received is DBT (dialectical behaviour therapy) which was offered by a crisis team who intervened after hospital visits.
“It gave me a lot of skills and I still use them now to try and tolerate the emotions and distress of self-harm and suicidal ideation.
“But the long wait for suitable support was really detrimental to my recovery, and completely erased my identity.”
“I was too scared to go to CAHMS”
Koda Le Put, 17, from Lincoln started struggling with his mental health when he was 11 after a chronic illness took over his life.
He was then diagnosed with type 1 diabetes just months before lockdown hit the country.
“The combination of the two just sent me into a black space, there were a lot of tears,” he says.
Just last year Koda came out as transgender which also affected his mental health badly.
“I was struggling with depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts,” he says.
“I withdrew from my family and friends and last year there was a time when I was on the phone to suicide helplines every day.”
Koda reached out to his GP but didn’t feel like the help they could offer was what he needed.
“They tried to refer me to CAMHS but I’d heard such bad things from other people I was scared to go.
“That was the only thing they could do. I was also told I couldn’t have antidepressants because I needed a referral from CAMHS.”
Koda has only just started receiving help through his college where he’s now undergoing counselling. He’s also found help using Wysa.
He says: “It talks to you like a person, it has really helped me to organise my thoughts or calm me through meditation.”
Options moving forward
The NHS is now working with the Department for Education to establish Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) in schools and colleges up and down the country and hopes by 2024 to have over 500 MHST teams in place.
Claire Murdoch, National Mental Health Director, NHS England, tells The Sun: “Record numbers of people are seeking mental health care and so the NHS has fast-tracked support into schools and colleges across the country, which will help millions of young people.
“NHS teams have supported an additional 200,000 young people with their mental health since 2019, with a renewed focus on boosting community services.”
Emma Taylor, CAMHS Lead at Wysa – a new AI app for mental health – also told us how they’re working to try new methods to combat the crisis.
“Digital offers a way to reach young people in a way that works for them,” she says.
“Round-the-clock opportunities to speak in a way that is free from embarrassment and without judgment. Support that meets our young people in their time of need, in a way that they want.
“It’s not about replacing in-person clinical interventions but providing tools that help manage symptoms and reduce risk and severity escalation.”
How to help your child
There are also many ways adults and influential people in young people’s lives can help.
“Talking to your child about their mental health can be hard,” Stevie Goulding, Senior Manager, Parent and Carer Services at YoungMinds says.
“Starting with an activity that you both enjoy can help create a relaxed environment and there are lots of tips on our website on how to start a conversation.
“When they do open up, listen in a non-judgmental way about how they are feeling. Remind them that it’s okay for them to feel scared or unsure, and try to reassure them in an age-appropriate manner.
“Remember, you do not need to know all the answers, but talking things through can help them feel calmer.
Read More on The Sun
TIME OUT
How to take 55 days' holiday in 2024 by booking just 25 days of annual leave
MARKED DOWN
Mark Wright and Michelle Keegan home-shamed as they reveal decor at mansion
“If you think your child needs professional support speak to their GP and school and consider whether counselling or therapy might help.”
If you or anyone you know is struggling with their mental health visit https://www.youngminds.org.uk/ or call your GP. If you are worried about a mental health crisis call 999.
How to tell if your child has depression
Dr Nihara Krause, a consultant clinical psychologist and founder of youth mental health charity stem4, previously told The Sun to look out for:
- Persistent tearfulness or sadness
- Hopelessness
- Sleep routine changes
- Eating changes
- Fatigue
- Complain of pain
- Withdrawal from activities they enjoyed and socialising
- Showing negative attitudes towards schoolwork
- Difficulty concentrating
- Poor motivation
- An increase in risk behaviours, self-harm and have thoughts of death or suicide
- Self-soothing behaviours, like gaming
Source: Read Full Article