About mental illness in children

What is mental illness in children?

Mental illness in children facts

  • Mental disorders in children are quite common, occurring in about one-quarter of this age group in any given year.
  • The most common childhood mental disorders are anxiety disorders, depression, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
  • Although less common, developmental disorders and psychotic disorders in children can have a lifelong impact on the child and his or her family.
  • As in any age group, there tends to be no single cause for mental illness in children.
  • In addition to the specific symptoms of each mental disorder, children with a psychiatric illness can exhibit signs that are specific to their age and developmental status.
  • Establishing the diagnosis of a mental illness in children usually involves the combination of comprehensive medical, developmental, and mental-health assessments.
  • There are a variety of treatments available for managing mental illness in children, including several effective medications, educational or occupational interventions, as well as specific forms of psychotherapy.
  • Children with mental-health problems can have lower educational achievement, greater involvement with the criminal justice system, and fewer stable placements in the child welfare system than their peers.
  • Attempts at prevention of childhood mental illness tend to address both specific and nonspecific risk factors, strengthen protective factors, and use an approach that is appropriate for the child's developmental level.
  • Research on mental illness in children is focused on a number of issues, including increasing the understanding of how often these illnesses occur, the risk factors, most effective treatments, and how to improve the access that children have to those treatments.

What are the most common mental illnesses in children?

Mental disorders in children are quite common and sometimes severe. About one-fourth of children and teens experience some type of mental disorder in any given year, one-third at some time in their lives. The most common kind of mental disorders are anxiety disorders, like overanxious disorder of childhood or separation anxiety disorder. Other common types of mental illnesses in childhood include behavior disorders like attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), mood disorders like depression, and substance-use disorders like alcohol use disorders. Statistics indicate how relatively common these disorders occur. ADHD affects 8%-10% of school-aged children. Depression occurs at a rate of about 2% during childhood and from 4%-7% during adolescence, affecting up to about 20% of adolescents by the time they reach adulthood. In teens more frequently than in younger children, addictions, bipolar disorder, and less often early onset schizophrenia may manifest.

Although not as commonly occurring, developmental disabilities like autism spectrum disorders can have a significant lifelong impact on the life of the child and his or her family. Autism spectrum disorder is a developmental disorder that is characterized by impaired development in communication, social interaction, and behavior. Statistics about autism include that it afflicts one out of every 88 children, a 78% increase in the past 10 years.

What are the symptoms for mental illness in children?

Warning signs that your child may have a mental health disorder include:

  • Persistent Sadness that lasts two weeks or more
  • Withdrawing from or avoiding social interactions
  • Hurting oneself or talking about hurting oneself
  • Talking about death or suicide
  • Outbursts or extreme irritability
  • Out-of-control behavior that can be harmful
  • Drastic changes in mood, behavior or personality
  • Changes in eating habits
  • Loss of weight
  • Difficulty sleeping
  • Frequent Headaches or stomachaches
  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Changes in academic performance
  • Avoiding or missing school

What are the causes for mental illness in children?

As is the case with most mental health disorders at any age, such disorders in children do not have one single definitive cause. Rather, people with these illnesses tend to have a number of biological, psychological, and environmental risk factors that contribute to their development. Biologically, mental illnesses tend to be associated with abnormal levels of neurotransmitters, like serotonin or dopamine in the brain, a decrease in the size of some areas of the brain, as well as increased activity in other areas of the brain. Physicians are more likely to diagnose girls with mood disorders like depression and anxiety compared to boys, while disorders like attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and autism spectrum disorders are more often assigned to boys. Gender differences in mental illness are the result of, among other things, a combination of biological differences based on gender, as well as the differences in how girls are encouraged to interpret their environment and respond to it compared to boys. There is thought to be at least a partially genetic contribution to the fact that children and adolescents with a mentally ill parent are up to four times more likely to develop such an illness themselves. Teens who develop a mental disorder are also more prone to having had other biological challenges, like low birth weight, trouble sleeping, and having a mother younger than 18 years old at the time of their birth.

Psychological risk factors for mental illness in children include low self-esteem, poor body image, a tendency to be highly self-critical, and feeling helpless when dealing with negative events. Teen mental disorders are somewhat associated with the stress of body changes, including the fluctuating hormones of puberty, as well as teen ambivalence toward increased independence, and with changes in their relationships with parents, peers, and others. Teenagers who suffer from conduct disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), clinical anxiety, or who have cognitive and learning problems, as well as trouble relating to others are at higher risk of also developing a mental disorder.

Childhood mental illness may be a reaction to environmental stresses, including trauma like being the victim of verbal, physical, or sexual abuse, the death of a loved one, school problems, or being the victim of bullying or peer pressure. Gay teens are at higher risk for developing mental disorders like depression, thought to be because of the bullying by peers and potential rejection by family members. Children in military families are at risk for experiencing depression as well.

The aforementioned environmental risk factors tend to predispose individuals to childhood mental illness. Other risk factors tend to predispose people to developing a mental disorder at any age. Such nonspecific risk factors include a history of poverty, exposure to violence, having an antisocial peer group, or being socially isolated, abuse victimization, parental conflict, and family dissolution. Children who have low physical activity, poor academic performance, or lose a relationship are at higher risk for mental illness as well.

What are the treatments for mental illness in children?

There are a variety of treatments available for managing mental illnesses in children, including several effective medications, educational or occupational interventions, as well as specific forms of psychotherapy. In terms of medications, medications from specific drug classes are used to treat childhood mental illness. Examples include the stimulant class for treating ADHD, serotonergic medications for treating depression and anxiety, and neuroleptic medications for management of severe mood swings, anxiety, aggression, or in the treatment of childhood schizophrenia.

For individuals who may be wondering how to manage the symptoms of a childhood mental illness using treatment without prescribed medications, psychotherapies are often used. While interventions like limiting exposure to food additives, preservatives, and processed sugars have been found to be helpful for some people with an illness like ADHD, the research evidence is still considered to be too limited for many physicians to recommend nutritional interventions. Also, placing such restrictions on the eating habits of a child or teenager can prove to be difficult at best, nearly impossible at worst.

What are the risk factors for mental illness in children?

  • Children with mental health problems can have lower educational achievement, greater involvement with the criminal justice system, and fewer stable placements in the child welfare system than their peers.
  • Attempts at prevention of childhood mental illness tend to address both specific and nonspecific risk factors, strengthen protective factors, and use an approach that is appropriate for the child's developmental level.
  • Research on mental illness in children focuses on a number of issues, including increasing the understanding of how often these illnesses occur, the risk factors, most effective treatments, and how to improve the access that children have to those treatments.

Is there a cure/medications for mental illness in children?

You will play an important role in supporting your child's treatment plan. To care for yourself and your child:

  • Learn about the illness.
  • Consider family counseling that treats all members as partners in the treatment plan.
  • Ask your child's mental health professional for advice on how to respond to your child and handle difficult behavior.
  • Enroll in parent training programs, particularly those designed for parents of children with a mental illness.
  • Explore stress management techniques to help you respond calmly.
  • Seek ways to relax and have fun with your child.
  • Praise your child's strengths and abilities.
  • Work with your child's school to secure necessary support.
  • Medication. Your child's health care provider or mental health professional may recommend a medication — such as a stimulant, antidepressant, anti-anxiety medication, antipsychotic or mood stabilizer — as part of the treatment plan. Your child's provider will explain risks, side effects and benefits of drug treatments.

Video related to mental illness in children