{"id":378,"date":"2022-06-23T18:35:16","date_gmt":"2022-06-23T18:35:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/?p=378"},"modified":"2022-12-26T15:05:21","modified_gmt":"2022-12-26T15:05:21","slug":"could-we-end-mental-health-stigma-in-our-childrens-generation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jaguarviber.com\/index.php\/2022\/06\/23\/could-we-end-mental-health-stigma-in-our-childrens-generation\/","title":{"rendered":"Could we end mental health stigma in our children\u2019s generation?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Kids and teens need access to mental health services. Providing those services and starting conversations early could dismantle the stigma around mental illness.<\/em><\/p>\n

The term \u201cstigma\u201d comes from the Latin word for branding or tattooing the skin. Its origins reveal how stigma functions: external forces (stereotypes, social pressure, discrimination<\/a>) penetrate the individual psyche, leaving a wound that is difficult to heal.<\/p>\n

When it comes to behavioral health, stigma might not literally scar the flesh, but it can have a devastating physical effect over time.\u00a0Stigma can discourage people from seeking mental health care<\/a>, undermine recovery efforts, provoke social isolation and contribute to feelings of hopelessness. These feelings can reveal themselves in a variety of ways, including chronic disease, self-harm, substance use and domestic violence.<\/p>\n

Attitudes toward mental health are shaped early in life. Dismantling the nearly universal stigma associated with behavioral health care could depend on how we work with children and adolescents.<\/p>\n

Imagine the impact if young Americans never fall into the habit of singling out \u201cthose with behavioral health needs,\u201d and instead recognized that\u00a0every<\/em>\u00a0person has mental health needs at some level. What if children collectively understood that we all need to take steps to strengthen, preserve and, in some cases, heal our mental health? Could we reframe the narrative at an early age, so that we collectively stop thinking in terms of \u201cmental health\u201d versus \u201cphysical health,\u201d and instead just think about \u201chealth\u201d?<\/p>\n

Working carefully with children and adolescents to normalize behavioral health support could do more than heal the wounds caused by the stigma \u2013 it might prevent them from being inflicted in the first place. Moving toward this ideal will require a more robust behavioral health workforce, specifically trained to serve and educate children and adolescents.<\/p>\n

Why Every Community Needs a Robust Network of Experts Trained to Work with Children and Adolescents<\/strong><\/h2>\n

As in many parts of the country, many North Carolina communities do not have the workforce capacity to keep up with rising behavioral health needs among children and adolescents. North Carolina has 100 counties.\u00a094 of them are considered mental health professional shortage areas<\/a>, and\u00a061 have no child or adolescent psychiatrist<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Complicating matters further is the lack of experts trained to serve students where\u00a0they are most likely to access behavioral health services: their schools<\/a>. According to\u00a0Hopeful Futures America’s School Mental Health Report Card<\/a>, North Carolina’s schools have:<\/p>\n