November 5th, 2020
By Catherine Robertson Souter
According to a study published in August by the Centers for Disease Control, U.S. adults have reported three times the prevalence of symptoms of anxiety disorder and four times the prevalence of symptoms of depressive disorder compared with the same time period in 2019. Even if the figures cannot be compared directly, as the CDC report points out that the methodology was not identical, the numbers are alarming. One quarter of respondents reported symptoms of anxiety and depression, 13 percent reported an increase in substance use and 11 percent reported an increase in suicidal ideation. Luckily, Americans are also reaching [More]
Tags: suicidal ideation, substance abuse, teletherapy, pandemic, depressive disorder, anxiety disorder, crisis hotline
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June 4th, 2020
By Janine Weisman
Mental health infrastructure has come a long way since 1918-1919 influenza pandemic. Social isolation, a key strategy to minimize the risk of spreading COVID-19 , is considered a significant risk factor for suicidality. So school closures, mandated face masks, and bans on large gatherings along with the most rapid change in the employment sector ever recorded in the U.S. have led to growing dread that suicide rates might rise. But is an increase in the suicide rate inevitable? Not according to Jerry Reed, Ph.D., MSW, a nationally recognized leader in the field of suicide prevention. “I think it’s really important [More]
Tags: Mental health, suicide prevention, suicidal ideation, coronavirus, COVID-19, pandemic, Crisis Text Line, 211, social isolation
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April 19th, 2020
By Janine Weisman
In 2012, Rhode Island’s youth mental health care system ranked 29th in the nation in a major survey of mental health data indicators. But in six years, the smallest state rocketed to fourth place because of a dramatic performance in getting adolescents and teens into treatment. Rhode Island reduced the rate of untreated youth with depression aged 12 to 17 from 67.1 percent in 2012 to 39.5 percent in 2017. It also increased the rate of youth with severe major depressive episode (MDE) who received consistent treatment from 23.7 percent to 47.6 percent during this period. Rankings of all 50 [More]
Tags: suicidal ideation, mental health care, New England, national mental health, rankings, severe major depressive episode, mental workforce availability
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October 1st, 2018
By Janine Weisman
A residential treatment program for girls with emotional and behavioral problems in Arlington, Massachusetts, shut down in September after a decision by its parent organization to shift focus to community-based services. That decision impacted 150 staff members at the Germaine Lawrence campus on Claremont Avenue operated by the national private non-profit Youth Villages. The vast majority of positions are direct care staff, including several master’s level and licensed positions, nursing and maintenance staff. The program is licensed to serve a maximum of 72 girls between the ages of 12 and 22. But there were only 48 girls on site when [More]
Tags: suicidal ideation, depression, Youth Villages, Germaine Lawrence campus, residential treatment, educational services, girls behavioral program, physical aggression, self-harm, verbal aggression, truancy
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March 2nd, 2018
By Catherine Robertson Souter
Katie Lewis, Ph.D., a research psychologist at the Austen Riggs Center in Stockbridge, Mass., is the recipient of the Robert S. Wallerstein Fellowship in Psychoanalytic Research. The fellowship carries with it a minimum of five years. The San Francisco Center for Psychoanalysis chose to support Lewis’ research on the impact of interpersonal relationships on suicidal ideation and urges. The study will track up to 150 residents of Austen Riggs, a psychiatric hospital and residential treatment program, over a period of two weeks through a smart phone app designed by Lewis’ team. The purpose of the research is to understand how [More]
Tags: Dr. Katie Lewis, Robert S. Wallerstein Fellowship in Psychoanalytic Research, interview, suicidal ideation, suicidal urges, Austen Riggs Center, interpersonal relationships, depression, hopelessness, impulsivity
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