skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Kids’ Mental Health Week: MI Parents Need Help, Not Blame

play audio
Play

Monday, May 5, 2008   

Lansing, MI - As Michigan marks Children's Mental Health Week, experts say parents need help, not blame. Melissa Pearson, family advocate for the Association for Children's Mental Health, says there are two key messages for parents and communities: Children's mental health problems are treatable, and parents shouldn't be blamed for their children's mental health issues. She says public stigma about mental health sometimes keeps parents from seeking potentially life-changing help.

"Parents are dealing with an incredible amount of emotion and stress when they're raising a child with mental health challenges, and we need to support parents instead of blaming them."

Pearson says one of the most successful ways to help parents of children with mental health challenges is to connect them with other parents in the same situation. Her group runs a statewide parent-to-parent support program.

"It is incredibly valuable for parents to know that they're not alone and to know that things can get better, and that there are services out there that can actually make a positive difference."

Pearson is optimistic that communities and political leaders are starting to pay more attention to children's mental health and explains that the next step is to promote early diagnosis and treatment.

"There needs to be more funding for programs providing early intervention for kids and families, instead of putting money into the back end; that's where we provide services after kids and families have such significant issues that it decreases our ability to be as helpful as we could be when they first start exhibiting symptoms."

Pearson believes a good first step for parents is a call to their county mental health agencies, which can help connect families with mental health services in their community. State lawmakers have declared May "Children's Mental Health Month" in Michigan.

More information about the Association for Children's Mental Health is available online at
www.acmh-mi.org/.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021