Child and adolescent psychiatry

Parents and teachers are the first to recognize when a child has an emotional or behavioral problem. For parents, seeking psychological or psychiatric help remains taboo. First, the Pediatrician is consulted and he is the one who guides and encourages to go to the specialist in child psychiatry if necessary. In general, the search for psychological help for children or adolescents is a difficult and painful time for many parents.

There is a tendency to think that a "normal" childhood should be free from emotional or mental problems, but this is not true. Childhood and adolescence, like any stage of life, there may be psychological or psychiatric illnesses and disorders. In fact, childhood and, especially adolescence, are critical moments where the person is very vulnerable.

The child, unlike the adult, cannot make the decision to go to the psychologist, but must be taken by his parents; By this I mean that the family must be aware of the problem and listen and observe the child to detect possible emotional or behavioral disorders. Children and adolescents lack the resources to clearly explain what is happening to them on a psychological level.

The most frequent diseases or disorders in these stages are: hyperactivity, anxiety disorders, depression, childhood psychoses or generalized developmental disorders.

At the moment a psychiatric problem is detected in the child, the family, school and Pediatrician must be informed and coordinated to offer the best help to the child.

The warning signs that can lead to suspect that a child needs psychological or psychiatric help are different depending on the age.

In young children:

• Major negative changes in school performance.
• Poor grades in school, despite making a remarkable effort.
• The child is very worried or overly anxious, which can manifest itself in refusing to go to school, sleep, or participate in normal activities for a child his age.
• Hyperactivity, restlessness, constant movement beyond the normal play of the child.
• Persistent nightmares and other sleep disorders.
• Persistent disobedience or aggression (over 6 months) and provocative oppositional behavior towards authority figures.
• Frequent and unexplained tantrums.

In adolescents the warning signs are:

• Poor school performance.
• Difficulty coping with daily problems, situations, or activities.
• Alterations in sleeping and / or eating habits.
• Frequent physical complaints: frequent somatizations such as headaches and tummy aches.
• Very marked sexuality and not according to his age.
• Depressive state manifested by a persistently negative mood and attitude, often accompanied by poor appetite, difficulty sleeping, and ideas related to death.
• Drug or alcohol abuse.
• Intense fear of gaining weight without taking into account their true weight and conducting behaviors in this regard such as restricting food intake or taking purgatives and laxatives.
• Persistent nightmares
• Threats or aggressive behavior towards oneself or towards others.
• Frequent outbursts of anger and aggression.
• Threats to leave home.
• Persistent violation of the rights of other people in an aggressive or non-aggressive manner; defiance of authority, absence from school, theft or vandalism.
• Strange thoughts, beliefs and feelings or unusual behavior.