Dec 11, 2017, WTTW-TV, Chicago: How Stress and Anxiety Are Hurting Children http://chicagotonight.wttw.com/2017/12/11/how-stress-and-anxiety-are-hurting-children Kids are feeling more anxiety these days, especially in elite public high schools. That’s according to a recent series by the Chicago Tribune and Pioneer Press. The pressure for good grades – nailing that placement test – and juggling extra-curricular activities to boost college applications are taking their toll. That anxiety is putting more kids into mental health facilities. And when you throw in family problems and complicated teenage social situations, some kids have even taken their own lives. So what does anxiety look like in children? “Often when we see kids who are angry, bad, or obstinate, they are anxious,” said Dr. Debra Kissen, the Clinic Director of the Light On Anxiety Treatment Center. Kissen specializes in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for anxiety and related disorders. She also serves on the scientific advisory board of Beyond OCD and is the chair of the Anxiety and Depression Association of America Public Education Committee. “In 3-year-olds, you see separation anxiety, tantrums,” said Kissen. “In college kids, you see them failing. Parents sometimes think its drugs, but it may be anxiety.” “Anxiety needs active treatment,” said Dr. John Walkup, the head of the Adolescent Psychiatry Department at the Ann & Robert Lurie Children’s Hospital. He’s also the director of the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. …

Childhood Lost
Children today are noticeably different from previous generations, and the proof is in the news coverage we see every day. This site shows you what’s happening in schools around the world. Children are increasingly disabled and chronically ill, and the education system has to accommodate them. Things we've long associated with autism, like sensory issues, repetitive behaviors, anxiety and lack of social skills, are now problems affecting mainstream students. Blame is predictably placed on bad parenting (otherwise known as trauma from home).
Addressing mental health needs is as important as academics for modern educators. This is an unrecognized disaster. The stories here are about children who can’t learn or behave like children have always been expected to. What childhood has become is a chilling portent for the future of mankind.