We can help your child or teen work through difficult situations, learn coping skills to manage strong feelings associated with anxiety and depression, and help families communicate effectively and get along better. We are ambitious about not just finding relief for your adolescent, but happiness.
Struggling with mental health as a child or teen is extremely difficult and can impact their developing brains for years to come. We know that adolescent depression and mental health conditions are common, and the global pandemic only highlighted and exacerbated what was already a rising tide of mental health disorders in our youth.
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What is child and adolescent psychiatry?
Child and adolescent psychiatry is mental health care tailored to diagnosing and treating mental health conditions in teens and children. Our expert adolescent psychiatric providers focus not just on the psychological impacts of what your child is struggling with, but also on the important biological and social components of their current stage in life.
Through our adolescent psychiatry program, children and teens are provided with a customized treatment plan that may involve talk therapy or medication management. If their provider thinks it is appropriate, talk therapy or medication management. If their provider thinks it is appropriate, they may recommend transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) therapy as a treatment option.
What causes adolescent depression?
Adolescent depression can be caused by many factors and even a combination of factors. If your child or teen is depressed, it does not mean you are a bad parent or did anything wrong. Some of the causes of adolescent depression are, but certainly not limited to:
Genetics or family history
Hormones
Major events or life changes
Learned patterns of negative thinking
Early childhood trauma
Signs that your child or teen may be depressed
Sadly, depression among children and teens is not uncommon. Adolescent depression is a challenging, and often debilitating, disease that needs to be diagnosed and treated as soon as possible to achieve the best results. However, depression can be hard to recognize.
To begin the process to see if your child or teen needs support, it’s important to talk to them. If they are undergoing stress and/or emotional changes, talk to them about it and observe their methods of coping.
You can also notice if they are showing symptoms of depression, such as:
Persistent sadness or anxiety
Being pessimistic or negative
Quick to anger or agitation
Disinterest in hobbies or activities that used to bring joy
Sleeping too little or too much
Change in appetite or weight
Hurting themselves
Crying more days than not
Often staying in room or avoiding social interaction
Changes in grades, or in peer/family engagement
Risky or dangerous behavior
You can also have them take our free, online depression screen.
Your Path to Treatment
If you believe your adolescent needs support, the first step is to seek professional assistance from a psychologist or psychiatrist to clarify the diagnosis. Depending on the diagnosis, the provider can work with your adolescent to come up with an individualized treatment plan that works for them and their needs. This treatment plan can consist of talk therapy, medication management, and/or TMS therapy.
A strong support system for your adolescent is extremely important during this process, and the sooner they get treatment, the more likely your adolescent will achieve remission in this episode, which decreases the risk for future episodes as well.
It is important to understand that mental health treatment plans are not a one-size-fits-all situation. Treatment plans may take longer or require different treatment option combinations to work best for certain patients. It is important for patients to communicate clearly with their provider about how their treatment plan is working. Collaboration between patient and provider can greatly impact the results of a patient’s wellness journey.
Get started
1
Contact Mindful Health Solutions or get referred to schedule a consultation.
Match with a provider
2
Be matched with a highly trained provider to help with your specific needs.
Determine treatment
3
Your provider will work with you to develop a personalized treatment plan.
Begin treatment
4
Start treatments on your terms with our flexible scheduling
Feel better
5
We'll continue to work closely with you to help you feel like your best self.
Why Mindful Health Solutions for child and adolescent psychiatry?
Our team at Mindful Health Solutions includes a diverse and highly-qualified team of psychiatrists and advanced practice providers who specialize in evaluating, diagnosing, and treating emotional and behavioral disorders in children and adolescents. Our team also includes licensed therapists who specialize in various modalities of child and adolescent therapy as well as family therapy.
Overall, we understand the importance of patient-centered care and understand that one size does not fit all when it comes to mental health treatment. Patients respond well to the dynamic menu of treatments we offer, which includes traditional medication management and psychotherapy as well as cutting-edge alternatives.
Mindful Health Solutions also wants to make treatment comfortable and accessible. If patients are unable to physically come into the office or prefer a virtual appointment, Mindful Health Solutions offers telepsychiatry. This allows patients to get care from wherever they are in the state. We also foster a strong culture of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Our therapists strive to embody a sense of awareness, respect, and humility with regard to cultural differences. And last but not least, we accept most major insurances.
Book an Appointment
Please fill out the form below and you will be contacted by a member of our team via text and phone.
You may also call or text 844-867-8444 to speak with one of our Intake Specialists.
Child & Adolescent Psychiatry FAQs
How can I tell if my teen is depressed?
Adolescent Depression is a challenging, and often debilitating, disease that needs to be diagnosed and treated as soon as possible to achieve the best results.
To begin the process, it’s important to talk to your adolescent. If they are undergoing stress and/or emotional changes, talk to them about it and observe their methods of coping. Ask your child and yourself these important questions:
- How are they coping with the stress? What coping skills do they have?
- Is their daily routine (sleep, appetite, energy, motivation) being affected in any way?
- Are there changes in grades, peer interactions, or engagement in family activities?
If they choose not to communicate with you about these questions, then ask yourself:
- Are they staying in their room all/most of the day and/or avoiding social interactions?
- Do they cry more days than not?
- Do they have a change in their appetite or weight?
- Are they no longer interested in hobbies or activities that used to bring them joy?
- Are they quick to anger or agitation?
- Do they hurt themselves?
- Are they not taking care of their physical appearance?
- Are they participating in risky behavior?
You could also ask them to complete this Depression Screen.
If the answers to the above questions or if their results from the Depression Screen are concerning, then your radar for depression should be high.
The next step is to seek professional assistance from a psychologist or psychiatrist to clarify the diagnosis. Depending on the diagnosis, the doctor can work with your adolescent to come up with an individualized treatment plan that works for them and their needs. This treatment plan can consist of psychotherapy, medication management, and/or TMS therapy.
A strong support system for your adolescent is extremely important during this process, and the sooner they get treatment, the more likely your adolescent will achieve remission in this episode, which decreases the risk for future episodes as well.
What is TMS and can adolescents benefit from it?
TMS stands for Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation. It is a safe, non-invasive, non-medication treatment for clinical depression and other mental health conditions that uses magnetic fields to stimulate the specific part of the brain known to control mood.
TMS is used on people with mental health conditions that have not seen success with medications and/or antidepressants. TMS has extremely limited side effects, especially when compared to traditional medications and antidepressants, so it is also a treatment option for people who may be suffering from side effects while trying to experience relief from their condition.
Many patients find that TMS is an amazingly effective treatment option. The FDA labeled TMS therapy to be marketed as a treatment for clinical depression in 2008. Since then, further studies have shown that it has the potential to treat a wide range of conditions, many of which can be debilitating. Although the Mindful Health Solutions team focuses primarily on alleviating the symptoms of treatment-resistant depression, our clinics also provide treatment for other conditions like anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), body dysmorphia, memory disorders, and mild cognitive impairment, PTSD, and disorders that result in chronic pain.
TMS therapy is often administered in conjunction with other types of treatment, such as psychotherapy or (possibly continuing) medication management. At Mindful Health Solutions, our expert providers will work with you to create the best treatment plan for your specific needs.
TMS therapy can be a great option to consider for adolescents—generally over 15—if medications or antidepressants have not been working for them. It can also be a treatment option for adolescents if there is concern about them experiencing the side effects of medications or antidepressants.
Is TMS better than antidepressants for adolescent depression?
There are numerous therapies and medications for depression, but very few have received FDA approval for use in adolescents. Only two medications are FDA-approved for use in adolescents. In the realities of clinical practice, multiple medications are used “off-label” (not FDA-approved) for Adolescent Depression, including numerous antidepressants, mood stabilizers, and antipsychotic medications.
Unfortunately, the use of such medications is often limited by either side effects or lack of response. Adolescents typically have a higher risk of medication side effects compared to adults, and can include:
- Increased suicidal ideation
- Long-term weight gain
- Insomnia
Also, adolescents’ response to antidepressants is inconsistent.
Because of side effects and/or inconsistent responses, adolescents can experience prolonged symptoms without relief. Consequently, adolescents may have to go through multiple treatment options before finding one that might alleviate their symptoms.
To avoid situations such as these and to get adolescents relief sooner, there has been a search for new treatments, and Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) is at the forefront of this movement.
Compared to antidepressants, TMS has very few side effects while also offering highly effective results. One in two patients treated with TMS had a 50% reduction in their symptoms, and after six weeks of treatment, one-third (33%) of patients had no symptoms of their depression or were in remission.
