Part 2 Behavioral Health | YMHFA Signs, Risks, Treatment, & Resources

Do you know how common mental health disorders are among America’s youth? According to sources in Youth Mental Health First Aid USA, 57% of the 18-54 year old population will experience a diagnosis or diagnosable mental health disorder in their lifetime. In this second part of our Youth Mental Health First Aid series we will focus on the warning signs, risks, and treatment resources.

During the Region 7 Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA) course on March 29, 2017, participants learned that anyone can be at risk for mental illness. Mental health disorders can affect anyone at any point in their lifetime. Youth can be especially vulnerable as they are dealing with factors such as hormonal changes, social pressures, sexual identity, and stressors from their home environment such as homelessness, poverty, juvenile justice, child welfare, etc. Given these factors that contribute to the risk of mental illness in youth, participants were asked to work in groups to identify issues young teens may face while coming into adulthood. Participants mentioned many things such as the social pressures kids face in and out of school, going through puberty, body image issues, relationships, divorce, and family issues. While some of these are typical issues kids will face while growing up, they can lead to larger issues when proper help is not obtained.
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Many mental illness symptoms are similar to normal youth development however, warning signs of mental illness tend to be more extreme. Look for the following warning signs to distinguish between normal development and mental illness:

• Withdrawing from everyone
• Extreme privacy
• Struggling with school
• Avoidance of social situations
• No longer enjoying things they used to enjoy
• Not replacing their interests with anything new

To further understand warning signs of mental illness and risk factors, attendees participated in a table top exercise meant to describe a person with a mental health disorder. The description cards included a brief background scenario and warning signs of a particular mental health disorder. Attendees had to recall information about the various illnesses and their symptoms in order to identify the disorder described on each card. In another exercise students were separated into groups and asked to read a scenario about a fictional school aged child who may be dealing with mental illness. Each group was asked to watch for warning signs and identify what might have put the child in their scenario at risk. Group members were further asked to follow the ALGEE action plan to help the youth in the scenario.

It became clear many signs of mental illness overlap with various disorders which can make it difficult to pinpoint what type of disorder someone is dealing with. Properly trained professionals will be able to diagnose and treat the individual who may be struggling, but there are tools available to the community to assist that individual in obtaining proper help. In the March 29th YMHFA course, participants learned of the ALGEE action plan for talking to someone who may be struggling with mental illness. ALGEE stands for Assess, listen, give reassurance and information, encourage professional help, and encourage self help and support. Attendees were able to utilize the knowledge and skills from the YMHFA course when going through the ALGEE method in the above group exercise. They learned how to recognize when to involve the parent or caregiver, when to report the individual, when to involve professional help, and that diagnosis should be left to the appropriate professional.

As part of the ALGEE action plan, appropriate community resources can be shared with the individual who is struggling. Toward the close of the course, instructors spoke of resources such as community health agencies, hotlines, school counselors, and religious community members. Below, Region 7 has compiled a list of potential resources within the region to assist an individual who may be struggling with a mental health disorder. This is not a comprehensive resource list and the contents within are not strictly limited to the youth population.

Region 7 encourages the general public, medical personnel, and first responders to review the list of resources and sign up for any upcoming Mental Health First Aid courses in the future. Knowledge is power and that power can be best used to help those in our communities who are in need.

Mental Health Community Resources:
Northern Lakes Community Mental Health
General Crisis Intervention Hotlines | Michigan 2-1-1 Online Database
NLCMH Links to Other Helpful Resources (Local and National)