Nov 30, 2017, UK Huffington: Girls Aged 16-17 Are Among Highest Users Of NHS Mental Health Services - Here's Why http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/girls-aged-16-17-are-among-highest-users-of-nhs-mental-health-services-heres-why_uk_5a2000c5e4b037b8ea200c4c In total, more than 2.6 million people are known to have had an open referral with mental health, learning disabilities and autism services at some point during the year. Of these, 560,000 of these were under 18 years of age. While 11% of females aged 16-17 received a referral, the figure dropped to 8% for males of the same age. A total of 2% (1,300) of females in this age group were admitted to hospital as part of their referral. … The Mental Health Foundation told HuffPost UK: “These statistics reflect what we might expect to see, knowing the pressures that young women in this age group in particular are under.” Commenting on the figures, Tom Madders, director of campaigns at the charity YoungMinds, said “we are facing a mental health crisis for children and young people”. “We know that teenage girls face a huge range of pressures, including school stress, body image, and early sexualisation,” he told HuffPost UK. … “I started self-harming, because I didn’t feel like I had a way of talking about or a way of releasing my feelings and I wanted to feel something that wasn’t worry and sad.” Sarah believes social media is the umbrella cause of a lot of the pressure girls her age feel.
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