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Anxiety & Depression - FAQs:
HHS's Substance Abuse and Mental Health agency sponsors programs that help persons with drug and alcohol addictions and abuse. You can locate a program to assist you at our Substance Abuse Locator site: http://dasis3.samhsa.gov/.
Depression is a serious medical illness; it's not something that you have made up in your head. It's more than just feeling "down in the dumps" or "blue" for a few days. It's feeling "down" and "low" and "hopeless" for weeks at a time.
Learn More:
- What is Depression? (National Institute of Mental Health)
- What a Difference a Friend Makes (SAMHSA)
If unsure where to go for help, talk to someone you trust who has experience in mental health -- for example, a doctor, nurse, social worker, or religious counselor. Ask their advice on where to seek treatment. If there is a university nearby, its departments of psychiatry or psychology may offer private and/or sliding-scale fee clinic treatment options. Otherwise, check the Yellow Pages under "mental health," "health," "social services," "suicide prevention," "crisis intervention services," "hotlines," "hospitals," or "physicians" for phone numbers and addresses. In times of crisis, the emergency room doctor at a hospital may be able to provide temporary help for a mental health problem, and will be able to tell you where and how to get further help.
Locate a mental health service in your state: http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/databases/ (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration)
Additional resources: http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/depression/men-and-depression/getting-help/index.shtml (National Institutes of Mental Health)
First, consult your child's doctor. Ask for a complete health examination of your child. Describe the behaviors that worry you. Ask whether your child needs further evaluation by a specialist in child behavioral problems. Such specialists may include psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and behavioral therapists. Educators may also be needed to help your child.
Learn More:
- Child and Adolescent Mental Health (National Institute of Mental Health)
- Treatment of Children with Mental Illness (National Institute of Mental Health)
- How to Find Help (National Institute of Mental Health)
