Mar 5, 2018, CBS3, Kalamazoo, MI: Kalamazoo mental health providers see increase in teen patients http://wwmt.com/news/local/kalamazoo-mental-health-providers-see-increase-in-teen-patients Kids age 12 and up should undergo annual depression screenings, according to new guideline by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). The new guidelines come amid the growing number of school threats following the deadly Valentine’s Day shooting at a Florida school. Therapist Michelle Zukowski-Serlin believes the yearly screenings during regular checkups could prevent teens from hurting themselves or hurting others. Zukowski-Serlin, the executive director at Choices for Change Counseling agency in Kalamazoo, has seen an increase in teen patients in recent weeks. Some are students who are too scared to go to school, others are seeing her after making threatening comments. … That Zero Suicide program and the AAP depression screenings ask about suicidal thoughts but no homicidal thoughts. Gaggino believes that could be something to consider adding in the future.
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.