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IN THIS ISSUE
We hope you are enjoying the summer months! For students, this can be a time for family vacations, sleeping in, going to camp, working part-time jobs, and relishing more time with the newest Xbox and video games. Here at CRG, we are excited about new members joining our team and new offerings being developed for this fall. We're also revising the look of our website to make it as user-friendly as possible. Please join us in welcoming (over the next few weeks) the following team members:
- Karla Gonzalez - Karla is our newest Front Office coordinator who takes your calls and helps you with scheduling requests.
- Anna Merrill, Ph.D., HSPP - Dr. Anna Merrill is a psychologist who specializes in evaluation and treatment of children and adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders and other developmental and learning concerns. Dr. Merrill will be joining the CRG team in early September. Dr. Merrill will be running some new CRG groups this fall for adolescents and young adults.
- Elise Montoya, APRN, PMHNP - Many of you worked with Elise as your psychiatric nurse practitioner in recent years at CRG. She stepped down to provide full-time care to a family member. We are delighted that Elise is now here temporarily to follow Megan Skelding's patients while Megan is on maternity leave.
- Kimberly Dreison, M.S. - Kimberly Dreison is joining CRG in early September as a post-doctoral fellow. She is expected to complete the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program at IUPUI in August 2018. During her two-year fellowship at CRG, she will conduct psycho-educational evaluations for children and adolescents.
- Jillian Wise, Ph.D., HSPP - Dr. Jillian Wise is a pediatric neuropsychologist who specializes in the evaluation and treatment of children, adolescents, and young adults with complex and chronic medical conditions. Dr. Wise plans to begin at CRG in early October.
- Carolyn Krueger, R.N. - Carolyn Krueger will be joining CRG upon completion of her requirements in the Master of Science in Nursing program at IUPUI. As a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner, Carolyn will be providing medication management to children, adolescents, and adults.
Our Spring 2018 issue focused on externalized behavior disorders such as Disruptive Behavior Disorders. This issue flips that coin by focusing on internalized behavior disorders: anxiety and depression. While externalized behavior disorders can lead to frequent anger outbursts and other behaviors that are clearly recognized, internalized disorders often play out before our eyes without being identified or treated. Too many children, adolescents and adults, consequently, suffer in silence with these conditions, wondering why they have so little energy/motivation or constantly worry about catastrophic "what if's" that rarely come true. The good news is, depression, anxiety and other internalized disorders can be easily diagnosed by qualified professionals. Research and clinical practice remind us that effective treatment is available, too - usually through a combination of medication and therapy.
This issue opens with an article for parents.
Dr. Tramaine Presley wrote "Recognizing Anxiety and Depression in Children" to help caregivers distinguish between personality quirks and more significant mood patterns that should be taken seriously.
Dr. Julie Steck has revised an earlier article entitled "What Do Children Have to Worry About?" to provide more information about anxiety disorders in children. Readers who are interested in this topic may also want to watch Dr. Steck's
webinar by the same name.
Dr. Valerie Long has contributed a thought-provoking article about the impact of the media on our collective mood. Read "Managing Anxiety Related to Current Events in the News" to learn useful tips for managing our access to information that can - if left unchecked - stress us out. Dr. Steck has also written an article that discusses the relationship between mood issues and our physical well-being. Often times, "somatic" symptoms are the first sign of emerging anxiety or depression so it is helpful to understand their relationship to each other. Finally,
Dr. David Parker discusses the rapidly growing numbers of college students who struggle with internalized disorders. Read "Anxiety and Depression in College Students: A Generational Shift" to learn more about societal factors that can impact undergraduates' emotional well-being and self-determination.
We hope this issue provides helpful information to those who may be struggling with depression and/or anxiety and offer tools to caregivers who want to help them.
CRG Newsletter Editor
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Recognizing Anxiety & Depression in Children
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Most people think of depression and anxiety as an adult disorder; however, children and teens can develop depression and suffer from anxiety as well. It becomes problematic when children are left untreated due to the lack of recognition, by caregivers, of the symptoms that accompany these disorders. This article will discuss depression and anxiety in children to better help caregivers recognize the symptoms.
Childhood Depression
When one hears the word "depression," they often think of someone who is sad.
However, depression in children and adolescents often appears as an angry and irritable moo
d. Children may appear defiant, noncompliant, and having a "snappy" attitude.
Click
here to read the rest of this story.
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What Do Children Have to Worry About?
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In today's world of anxiety and stress, adults are often oblivious to the high rate of
anxiety in children and adolescents. Based on a study published in 2010 (Merikangas, et al.), the lifetime prevalence of anxiety in adolescents is 31.9%. This is similar to the rate of anxiety in adults, but anxiety in children is often under-recognized. Adult anxiety disorders often have their roots in childhood. While the form the anxiety takes may change over time, the tendency to have anxiety disorders often begins in early childhood.
Click
here to read the rest of this story.
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Managing Anxiety Related to Current Events
in the News
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Many people experience some stress related to news and current events such as international relations, politics, school shootings and terror attacks. Media coverage of such events is readily accessible and can leave individuals feeling anxious, angry, sad and helpless. According to a recent American Psychological Association Stress in America Survey (2017), "Adults... indicated that they feel conflicted between their desire to stay informed about the news and their view of the media as a source of stress. While most adults (95%) say they follow the news regularly, 56% say that doing so causes them stress, and 72% believe the media blows things out of proportion." It is normal to worry and be fearful when something terrible happens; however, there are many ways to manage anxiety in the face of these events. It is important to teach children how to do so, too.
Click
here
to read the rest of this story.
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Physical Symptoms of Internalized Disorders:
The Mind-Body Connection
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Children and adolescents who are experiencing internalized conditions, including anxiety and depression, often present with physical symptoms of headaches, stomach aches or other vague physical complaints. When there is no identifiable medical cause, or when the medical cause should not be causing the level of physical distress, the root of the symptoms may be due more to emotional distress. These symptoms are referred
to as "somatic" symptoms. Somatization is the term used when physical symptoms are
caused or exacerbated by an underlying emotional issue.
Click
here
to read the rest of this story.
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Anxiety and Depression in College Students:
A Generational Shift
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Internalized disorders such as anxiety and depression can affect children, adolescents, and adults. While these mental health conditions are caused in part by
neurochemical differences in the brain's
limbic system
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where emotions are generated and regulated
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the environment can exacerbate these genetic vulnerabilities. Many of us only recall fond memories of our college years or mistakenly believe that college students enjoy a stress-free extended adolescence filled with endless parties and carefree days that begin at noon. In truth, troubling statistics are shifting our understanding of just how challenging postsecondary education
can be to one's mental health.
According to
TIME Magazine,
colleges are reporting an unprecedented rise in the number of undergraduates seeking help for depression and anxiety.
Click
here
to read the rest of this story.
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