Youth

Q & A with Leah Eckley, Associate Director of Smart Support with SW Human Development: The importance of mental health in early childhood development

National data shows that pre-K children are expelled at three times the rate as K-12 students for challenging behaviors. A child’s early years can be a roller coaster of emotions and behaviors, but when do challenging behaviors cross the line into mental health issues? What does early childhood mental health […]

Attachment in Adoptive, Fostering, & Blended Families by David Bourne MS, LPC

Families come in all shapes and sizes. Recently I am seeing more created families coming into my office in the form of adoption and fostering as well as blended families. Families are beautiful expressions of love. That being said, families can require lots of work to help them flow smoothly. […]

Cyber Safety Nov. 20st & Nov. 22nd

Ben Storie will be presenting Cyber Safety: Protecting Your Child in the Cyber World on Wednesday, November 20th at Grace Community Church beginning at 7pm. There is no cost to attend this presentation but they do ask that due to the content and subject matter that will be presented and discussed […]

A Newfound Relationship between Depression and Bullying

A new study finds that depressed children may become targets for bullies and ostracizing.

Is my teen using drugs?

An informational article that provides tips for parents regarding teen drug use and insight into these questions: How do you know whether your teen is using drugs? And if they get caught using drugs, how do you help them get back on the right track? http://www.heartlightministries.org/blogs/markgregston/2012/01/26/is-my-teen-using-drugs/

Signs of Stress Checklist for Youth

Instructions: Look at the following symptoms of stress. Score each between 1-5. (1=rarely; 2=monthly; 3=weekly; 4=several times a week; 5=almost daily) _______1. Headaches _______2. Stomach problems – pain, diarrhea, constipation, nausea _______3. Fast heart beat _______4. Pain in body –legs, neck, lower back, shoulders, jaw ______ 5. Muscle jerks or […]

Grief and Youth

What does grief mean to youth? Some youth describe it as the “seasons”. Seasons are the natural part of nature. Well, people are something like nature. They also have seasons, such as: birth, baby, toddler, preteen, teenager, adult, and geriatric. Change is a natural part of the cycle of life. […]