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Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

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Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

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The following are resources in the Central Texas area that are not affiliated with the Children's Special Needs Network but may be a great way for you to connect with the special needs community.

Caregivers Ladder - Click here for more information.

Down Syndrome Association of the Brazos Valley - Click here for more information.

Down Syndrome Association of Central Texas - Click here for more information.

Families of Autistic Children Engaged Together for Support (FACETS) - in the Bryan/College Station area. Click here for more information.

Heart of Texas Autism Network - Click here for more information.

Heart of Texas Down Syndrome Network - Click here for more information.

His Kids Support Group - Meets the 3rd Saturday of each month, 10am - 12pm at Temple Bible Church, contact Susie Marek at susie.marek@hoctilc.org or 254-933-7487 for more information.

Buddy Sports with First Baptist Belton - a recreation program for children and young adults with special needs - call 254-939-0705 or click here for more information.

Lisa's Dance Connection - Dancers with Possibilities for Children with Special Needs. Call 254-778-4344 for more information or click here

City of Harker Heights Superhero Adaptive Sports - provides recreational opportunities for youth and young adults with physical and intellectual disabilities. Click here or call 254-953-5657 for more information.

Variety - The Children's Charity of Texas - click here for information about events and recreational activities.

Special Olympics Texas - click here for more information.

Texas Angels Pageant - Texas Angels Pageant gives Angels with special needs the opportunity to strut their stuff and show their true beauty on stage. This is an opportunity for the Angel's personal growth, as well as the growth of the numerous volunteers to help support this great organization. Click here for more information.

FC Belton Special Needs Soccer - click here for more information.

Extreme Cheer & Tumble - click here for more information about Extreme's Special Needs Cheer & Tumble Program.

No Limitations Athletics - click here to learn more about this program that offers the special needs community in Central Texas the chance to play sports.

Challenger League Waco - click here to learn more about The Challenger Division of Little League that provides children with cognitive and physical challenges the opportunity to play Little League.

Variety - The Children's Charity of Texas - click here for more information about funding assistance.

Texas Elks State Association - click here for more information.

United Healthcare Children's Foundation - click here for more information about financial help for medical needs.

Childcare for Children with Special Healthcare Needs

Sammy's House - 2415 Twin Oaks Dr., Austin, TX - 512-453-5258

Education Connection - 2207 Florence Road, Killeen, TX - 254-526-9299

Central Texas Children's Center - 2000 Marlandwood Road, Temple, TX - 254-778-6785

Living Word Christian Academy & Daycare - 1005 Dunbar St., Waco, TX 254-799-3796

You may also search the Texas Department of Family and Protective services website for facilities that take children with special health care needs.

Heart of Central Texas Independent Living Council - click here for more information.

Emergency Preparedness for Individuals with Special Needs - information from the Texas Department of State Health Services

SPEDTex - Texas Special Education Information Center

Parent Companion - A guide for Texas parents and caregivers of children with diagnosed or suspected disabilities from birth through 5 years of age.
Texas Guardianship Association Austin Area Resource Guide for Children with Special Needs Texas Parent to Parent Resource Directory Bay Baylor Center for Developmental Disabilities Exceptional Georgetown Alliance Texas Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services lor Center for Autism Children with Special Health Care Needs (CSHCN) Services Program
Partners Resource Network - A parent training and information center that provides one-on-one ARD support and trainings.
Central Counties Center MHMR Texas Lions Camp Camp Summit Camp Bluebonnet Exceptional Georgetown Alliance Texas Elks Camp
Heart of Texas Region MHMR - The Heart of Texas Region MHMR Center is made up of caring professionals who are dedicated to helping individuals and families cope with mental illness, intellectual and developmental disabilities, developmental delays, and emotional conflict.

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The following are resources in the Central Texas area that are not affiliated with the Children's Special Needs Network but may be a great way for you to connect with the special needs community. Caregivers Ladder - Click here for more information. Down Syndrome Association of the Brazos Valley - Click here for more information.

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Positive Learning Environment for students with disorders

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Positive Learning Environment for students with disorders

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Creating Positive School Experiences for Students with Disabilities

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The school experiences of students with disabilities can be positively or negatively influenced by the attitudes and behaviors of students and staff and by general school policies. School counselors can take the lead in assessing school climate in relation to students with disabilities and initiating interventions or advocating for change when appropriate.

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An autism diagnosis covers a spectrum of children with a wide range of skills and impairments. Because of this, the developmental disorder can look very different from child to child. Many experts who diagnose and treat children with autism like to say, "If you've seen one child with autism, you've seen one child with autism."

The diversity of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can make it difficult to correctly diagnose. Sometimes autistic children are mistakenly diagnosed with a different disorder, like ADHD, or are told that nothing is wrong. Other times kids are diagnosed as autistic when they actually aren't.

That's why it's important for parents to know what the components of an autism diagnosis should be: What kinds of information should a clinician who's evaluating your child be considering? How can you know whether your clinician is following best practices in doing an autism assessment?

Social communication issues

Problems in social communication and social interaction are often what are flagged as possible signs of autism, and that's one source of confusion. "There are a lot of things that can cause social problems," points out Susan Epstein, PhD, a neuropsychologist. "There are subtle language disorders that can masquerade as autism. Or other disorders, particularly when they appear in clusters - ADHD, learning disorders, depression."

If a child is having trouble with formulating phrases or sentences, for example, that can create a situation that might at first glance look like a sign of autism, but could have other causes. "The child has trouble communicating, which causes problems with peers, so the child might become withdrawn. It looks like they're having social problems, and they are, but it's of a different nature," explains Dr. Epstein.

Arriving at the right diagnosis requires gathering and interpreting a lot of information about the child. Dr. Epstein, who specializes in evaluating autism spectrum disorder, recommends that children should receive an assessment that goes beyond screening and diagnostic tools to get the fullest possible picture of what is going on before making a diagnosis.

There are a variety of screeners that pediatricians or other practitioners might employ as a first step to learning if a child might have autism, before beginning a formal evaluation. Some are questionnaires that parents fill out and others are assessments done by clinicians. The Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers, or M-CHAT, is one questionnaire that is used to identify red flags. The M-CHAT asks questions about behaviors that might indicate autism, but Dr. Epstein warns that the test purposefully "casts a very broad net," so it often flags children who may or may not be autistic. Similar scales include the Childhood Autism Rating Scale and the Ages and Stages Questionnaire, which is more of a basic developmental screener.

The Screening Tool for Autism in Toddlers and Young Children, or STAT, is another screener that probes for autism symptom behaviors in more detail than the other screeners mentioned, but is still intended to be used as a tool to catch children who are candidates for further evaluation. Screener results alone should never be considered a diagnosis.

Diagnostic instruments

If a screener indicates that a child may have autism spectrum disorder, the child should receive a comprehensive evaluation from someone trained in diagnosing autism.

This evaluation will often begin with a diagnostic instrument such as the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, or the ADOS-2. The ADOS is a test with different modules to accommodate a range of children. There is a version for toddlers that is play-based. For kids older than thirty months, there are modules that include more conversation, according to the child's language level.

This isn't the kind of test where there are right answers. The purpose of the ADOS is to evaluate the social skills and repetitive behaviors the child displays during the test. This means the evaluator is paying attention to things like if the child asks for help when he needs it, gives other people a chance to speak, and follows along with changes of subject.

The Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales (CSBS) is another good diagnostic instrument for toddlers and young children. This play-based instrument is also backed by research, but is used less than the ADOS, which covers a broader age range.

Problems with interpretation

Dr. Epstein notes that even with these tools it is important to be working with a mental health professional who has experience diagnosing people on the autism spectrum. "You want to be working with someone who understands the subtleties," she says. "For example, a person who has real expertise will be able to distinguish if a child has poor eye contact because the child is shy, versus if there is poor eye contact in the way we expect to see it in an autism spectrum disorder."

A recent study underscores the difficulty in distinguishing between autism and other disorders, like ADHD, using even gold-standard tools like ADOS. Looking at school age kids with high verbal functioning, the study found that found that 21% of children with ADHD-but not autism-met diagnostic criteria for autism when given the ADOS.

"The minute that we diagnose blindly based on score, we're going to misplace a lot of kids into categories," lead researcher Somer Bishop, assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco, tells Spectrum, an online journal on autism research. "These instruments were designed to assist in clinical decision-making, but they are not a replacement for a clinical brain."

Catherine Lord, director of the Center for Autism and the Developing Brain at New York-Presbyterian Hospital, who developed the ADOS, adds that it's important to consider the motivation for the behavior. A child with ADHD might avoid an adult's gaze because he thinks he has done something wrong, she tells Spectrum, rather than because of a social deficit. Or, a child's face might be unexpressive because she is bored or distracted, not because she is less expressive in general.

Screeners and diagnostic tools are ways of gathering information, but they have to be considered in the context of other information from a range of adults who know the child. A full evaluation should also include a thorough interview with the child's parents that covers general development and current concerns. The interview will also closely investigate ASD-related symptoms. To gather more information, parents might be asked to fill out special questionnaires as well.

The Autism Diagnostic Interview, Revised (or ADI-R) is one such interview, and is often paired with the ADOS. However the ADI-R takes two hours to provide, making it difficult to use in clinical assessments, Dr. Epstein notes. An interview based on the ADI-R or a parent checklist, such as the Social Communication Questionnaire, can also be effective if it is led by a clinician trained in diagnosing autism.

Dr. Epstein explains that it is important to include early developmental information during the interview, because there are many circumstances where symptoms are more obvious earlier, say at around four years of age, but diminish as the child grows. "If you aren't attending to that early development and you have an eight or ten year old, for example, you're going to risk really missing out," she warns. Having that information about early development can help the provider make a more accurate diagnosis.

If the child is of school age, it is also helpful if the practitioner can speak to the child's teacher to get their point of view, too. A school visit to observe the child would be "absolutely ideal," says Dr. Epstein, but not always possible. A conversation with the teacher, or having the teacher fill out a questionnaire, will give the person doing the evaluation some insight into what the teacher is seeing firsthand at school, which may be different from what parents are seeing at home.

An assessment should also include some amount of cognitive testing. One reason for this is that cognitive testing gives the person doing the assessment another chance to examine the child's behavior, but this time under different circumstances. The ADOS is a socially loaded test that is also less structured, which might be difficult for some kids. Dr. Epstein explains that some kids will do better during a more structured cognitive test when they are answering specific questions. "Or maybe they will get upset during the cognitive testing if they don't know the answer to a particular question, and they might have a tantrum," says Dr. Epstein. All of this information is helpful for the person doing the evaluation.

The cognitive testing is also important because you want to learn more about how the child thinks - for example you want to learn more about how the child organizes and plans, or solves problems. Beyond helping the evaluator in making an accurate diagnosis, Dr. Epstein explains, "If you don't know their strengths and weaknesses, you can't really contribute meaningfully to building an educational program for them at school. You want to be able to say, 'He can do this; he can't do that; this is what he needs to be able to do that.' "

Working with an autism specialist

Screeners are often given by pediatricians, but if there are red flags that indicate further evaluation would be appropriate, it is best to work with someone who has both experience and expertise in diagnosing children on the autism spectrum. "You're not going to go to a doctor for a heart transplant who's done two or three, right?" says Dr. Epstein. "It's the same with autism. You want someone who's seen hundreds of kids with all different stripes - typical children, intellectually disabled children, autistic children - and knows what to look for." Academic and medical centers are often good places to find experienced diagnosticians.

Parents can ask some questions to try to gauge a potential provider's experience. For example:

What's your training and experience?

Have you had specific training in assessment of people on the spectrum? How much?

What do you plan to do as part of this assessment?

Will you be contacting my child's teacher or pediatrician?

Try to find a practitioner who is able to answer your questions readily and makes you feel comfortable. A clinician who takes your concerns seriously and is experienced in assessing autism spectrum disorder is essential to getting an accurate diagnosis.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is autism diagnosed?

How do you test for autism?

What is ADOS testing?

How do you get a child tested for autism?

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What Should an Evaluation for Autism Look Like? - Child Mind Institute

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An autism diagnosis covers a spectrum of children with a wide range of skills and impairments. Because of this, the developmental disorder can look very different from child to child. Many experts who diagnose and treat children with autism like to say, "If you've seen one child with autism, you've seen one child with autism."

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Most children and parents will have some distress or upset - so how do I know when a child or family needs additional help?

Ask your patients (and their parents) about reactions and coping.

Listen for ongoing or severe traumatic stress symptoms.

Consider a referral for a more thorough evaluation with a mental health professional if:

Traumatic stress reactions are severe or prolonged (more than a month).

Traumatic stress reactions interfere with recovery or with returning to normal activities.

Consider: Is the child participating in daily activities to the extent possible given their medical condition? Are stress reactions interfering with treatment adherence? Are new fears or worries troubling the child or parent?

Steps for making a referral Effective mental health treatment for traumatic stress Online resources - help in finding a mental health professional Distinguishing between types of mental health professionals
Therapist Resource Guide: There are many ongoing stressors that children and families endure after diagnosis of an illness or an injury. This guide focuses specifically on medical traumatic stress and responses that children and families may have.

Steps for making a referral

Mention concerns you have identified.
Say something like: "I'm concerned that (you are / your child is) having these upsetting thoughts and feelings. It might be useful to talk with a specialist who can help your family more."

Involve child and family in making a plan.
Ask for their ideas about what is needed now
Say something like: "What issues or difficulties are impacting you / your family the most right now? What would help make things better?"

Ask for permission to offer advice. Present advice as range of possibilities; be sure to incorporate patient/family ideas

Say something like: "I have some suggestions that have helped other patients in the past in situations similar to yours. May I share them with you?"

Range of possibilities might include: patient education materials / websites; speaking with social worker, local clergy, school counselor; seeking out support group, referral to therapist / community mental health center.

Ask about their readiness to act on this now or in the future.
Say something like: "Is this (suggested plan) something you would be willing to do when you leave today, or if you need it next week...month?"

Ask about barriers to potential plans / referrals, and strategies to overcome barriers.
Say something like: "What kinds of things would interfere with following-up on this plan we just discussed? How can we work through this so you end up getting the help you need.?"

Involve the child and parent in setting the agenda*:*Adapted from Wissow et al. (2008)

Keep the door open.

If your patient or their parents are not quite ready to act on a suggested referral now, arrange to follow up to see how your patient is doing.

You might say: "I'd like to talk with you again in a few weeks to see how things are going."

Promote continuity of care.
If your care for this patient is ending, ask permission to communicate your concerns about traumatic stress reactions or risk factors to the child's primary care provider, or to other providers who will continue to take care of this patient.

Facilitating collaboration between pediatric health care and mental health providers: The American Academy of Pediatrics Task Force on Mental Health has developed tools to facilitate collaboration between pediatric health care providers and mental health professionals, including a Physician Referral and Feedback Form template

Effective mental health treatment for traumatic stress

There are very good and helpful treatments for children who continue to have traumatic stress symptoms.
What treatment approaches are effective?
Evidence-based treatments include cognitive-behavioral treatment approaches, and in particular Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy (TF-CBT).

Click here for a fact sheet about effective treatments for youth trauma from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network.

A recent article includes informative summaries of effective mental health treatments for child traumatic stress symptoms, and guidance for health care professionals:
Cohen, J, Kelleher, K, Mannarino, A.. Identifying, treating, and referring traumatized children: The role of pediatric providers. Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine 2008;162(5):447-452 How can I help parents find effective treatment for their child?
When helping parents find a counselor or therapist to help their child with traumatic stress symptoms, you might suggest that they ask prospective therapists questions such as:

Do you have experience working with children after trauma?

What is your approach to working with this type of problem?

What is your success rate?

How do you work with parents?

The National Child Traumatic Stress Network offers useful tips and information about finding a mental health professional to help children and their families after trauma.

Online resources - help in finding a mental health professional

The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) has trauma-trained, child mental health professionals and community-based treatment centers in 35 states in the US. For information about or referral to a NCTSN center near you, please go to the NCTSN Organizational Members site.
American Psychological Association - Psychologist Locator National Association of Social Workers - Find a Licensed Social Worker American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatrists - Psychiatrist Finder Anxiety Disorders Association of America - Find a Therapist Sidran Institute Help Desk - Locate Trauma Resources ISTSS Clinician Directory - Find a Clinician, Counselor or Mental Health Professional
Distinguishing between types of mental health professionals

Psychologists are professionals who have earned a doctoral degree (Ph.D. or Psy.D.) after 4-6 years of graduate-level training in human behavior and development, psychological testing and evaluation, and psychotherapy. Psychologists are licensed by the state in which they practice.

Psychiatrists are physicians (M.D. or D.O.) who have completed medical school, plus additional advanced training in the evaluation and treatment of psychiatric disorders and emotional and behavioral problems. Psychiatrists are licensed by the state in which they practice. As medical doctors, psychiatrists can prescribe and monitor medications.

Clinical Social Workers are professionals who have earned a master's degree (M.S.W.) after 2-3 years of graduate training. Clinical Social Workers are licensed by the state in which they practice (LCSW or similar credential - varies by state).

Marriage and Family Therapists are professionals who have completed a master's degree (M.A. or M.S.) after 2-3 years of graduate training. Some Marriage and Family Therapists have completed a required amount of clinical hours and passed a state-administered examination to become licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT).

Licensed Professional Counselors (LPC) & Licensed Mental Health Counselors (LMHC) are mental health professionals who have earned a master's degree (M.A. or M.S.) after 2-3 years of graduate training and have obtained a required amount of clinical experience and passed a state-administered licensing examination.

For more information on the training and credentialing of mental health professionals, see Mayo Clinic: Mental health providers.

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When and How to Refer for Mental Health Care

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Pediatric providers can follow specific steps to determine if and how to refer a child and familiy for further mental health services after a medically traumatic event. Providers can also become familiar with current evidence-based treatments and online resources for mental health services for traumatic stress.

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How Can I Make My Teen Care About School?

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There are dozens of other therapies as well. It should be noted that not all of these are right for anxiety, and the degree of effectiveness changes for each one. For example, psychodynamic theory - the therapy created by Sigmund Freud that change the way people think about mental health - is now considered to be pseudoscience, which essentially means "fake science," by much of the scientific community.

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VIDEO- Symptoms and Strategies for Anxiety

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VIDEO- Symptoms and Strategies for Anxiety

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Symptoms and Strategies for Social Anxiety in Children and Teens

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Educators include but are not limited to administrative staff (i.e. principal, v-principal, receptionist, librarian, etc.), teachers, resource teachers, support aides, and support staff such as maintenance staff, cafeteria workers, and more. As educators, no matter the degree of interaction with students from central to peripheral, increasing your awareness of the impact of anxiety is essential. This section is designed to assist you, the educator, in becoming more knowledgeable about how anxiety presents in students within the academic setting.

Is my student struggling with an anxiety disorder?

As discussed throughout this website, anxiety is useful in certain situations, some of the time. But how do you, the teacher or administrator, know when a student might be struggling with an anxiety disorder? In some situations it may be painfully obvious. For example, you have a young student who still cries and clings to his mother each morning at drop off, and remains sad and tearful for the first hour of each day despite school being in session for six months. Or the student, who has lost her sister to suicide, and now withdraws from others, has difficulty concentrating, is jumpy, and skips class daily. And finally, there is the student that spends upwards of thirty minutes in the bathroom several times a day, and has red, chapped, and bleeding hands. These examples highlight the more obvious c ases of anxiety disorders in the classroom. However, anxiety can be an invisible disorder, not necessarily noted by the busy teacher. For example, a student who is performing below his/her capacity, is late to school most days, and is reluctant to read out loud in class. Or a child who is known as a "dream student", but unbeknownst to you spends upwards of six hours daily doing homework to perfection, has trouble sleeping due to fear of failure, and refuses to engage in any non-educational activities for fear it will rob her of essential learning opportunities. These students are also struggling with anxiety disorders.

Students spend between 25-30 or more hours in school each week, and you the teacher or administrative staff is in a position to play an essential role in identifying and assisting students to tackle unwanted anxiety. The first step is to become educated about what anxiety disorders look like in students within the classroom setting. Anxiety specialists have identified that when a child or teen experiences anxiety more often (e.g., most days, and for months at a time), and more intensely than other peers of the same age, it is more likely that the student has an anxiety disorder. Furthermore, the frequent and intense symptoms that students with anxiety disorders encounter, often leads to significant disruption in their lives. This disruption can interrupt or even stop a student from participating in a variety of typical school-based experiences such as:

Attending classes and school on a daily basis

Completing assignments

Joining social, athletic or recreational clubs

Learning

Making friends

Participating in class

If you believe that a student is experiencing symptoms of anxiety that are excessive, intense, and disruptive we advise that you begin by consulting with your school counselor or principal. Once you have done this, you may then consider scheduling a meeting with the student and/or his/her family to gather more information, and to provide resources such as those available on this website.
For more information about specific anxiety disorders, please click below:

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Educators include but are not limited to administrative staff (i.e. principal, v-principal, receptionist, librarian, etc.), teachers, resource teachers, support aides, and support staff such as maintenance staff, cafeteria workers, and more. As educators, no matter the degree of interaction with students from central to peripheral, increasing your awareness of the impact of anxiety is essential.

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Teachers who are struggling with anxiety disorders-Resource

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Teachers who are struggling with anxiety disorders-Resource

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Teaching is a stressful profession, even under the best of circumstances. You must be "on"-engaging and affable in front of a group of learners-nearly all the time. Your work day frequently stretches well past 3 pm, and work responsibilities (and worries) spill over into your free time. You're assessed on measures (such as student test scores) over which you have little control. And all too often, you're working without the resources or support you need to really do your job well.

These issues are challenging for all teachers. They're super challenging for teachers who have depression and anxiety disorders. Approximately 6.8 million American adults, or 3.1 percent of the population, have generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). More than 16.1 million American adults, or about 6.7% of the U.S. population age 18 and older, are diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder in a given year. And about 3.3 million American adults suffer with Persistent Depressive Disorder-a form of depression that usually continues for at least two years. And if you think the rate of teacher depression may be even higher, you could be right.

Both depression and anxiety are far more common in women than in men, and with the preponderance of women in teaching, it's highly likely that the rate of teacher depression and anxiety dwarfs the statistics for the population at large.

Don't let depression and anxiety steal your love of teaching or your ability to enjoy life. These six tips, from teachers who've been there, can help you cope.

Prone to panic attacks? Find a colleague who can step in and take over for you as necessary. That's what Crystal J., a teacher in South Carolina, recommends: "I had a buddy at school. If I called her, she would come to my class and let me go to the bathroom."

Lauren P., a ninth grade English teacher, accidentally stumbled on the same solution. "I had a panic attack in the classroom right before second period started," she says. "The interventionist specialist I work with took over and let me go calm down."

2. Seek help.

It can be really hard to admit you need help and even harder to get yourself to schedule a counseling session or medical appointment, especially when depression and anxiety are clouding your judgment and stealing your mojo. But teachers who have been there swear by appropriate treatment.

Rebecca S., a seventh and eighth grade English teacher in Buffalo, New York, was diagnosed with depression before she became a teacher, but years, she now knows, after her symptoms started. Medication and counseling have changed her life.

"[My antidepressant] gave me my life back," she says. She encourages other teachers to consult an expert. "When we experience physical symptoms, we go to a doctor, tell them our symptoms, and let them decide whether we need antibiotics or not," she says. "I say we should do the same thing for mental health. Share your symptoms, and they'll give you professional, expert advice."

"If you were diagnosed with diabetes, you would treat it," Rebecca continues. "You would take care of yourself, change your eating and drinking habits, see your doctor regularly, and take medication as necessary."

3. Get moving.

Exercise boosts the amount of feel-good chemicals in the brain and can help ease the symptoms of both depression and anxiety. That's something T.D., an Oregon-based teacher, learned after she had to discontinue taking her antidepressant due to side effects.

"I searched for alternatives and discovered that exercise and getting out into nature really balanced me," she says. "Now, I get out as much as possible and try to exercise regularly,"

4. Invest in other sides of yourself.

Sometimes teaching is so all-consuming that we forget that there are many, many facets to who we are as individuals. Rekindle your interest in activities and pursuits outside of school. For example, if you are artistically inclined, take a drawing or painting class. If you love theater, try to schedule at least one performance a month. Join a club, sign up for a race, take a class just for fun. Create a network of people who have similar interests and whom you will look forward to meeting up with on a regular basis.

5. Try not to isolate yourself.

It's natural to want to dive under the covers and hide when you're feeling depressed. Avoid feeling isolated by maintaining social relationships, if you are able. Make a coffee date, invite a friend over for take-out pizza or Facetime an old friend. Share your feelings with a close friend or relative outside of school, ideally someone who has known you for a long time and can help you put your current situation into perspective.

6. Establish routines.

It's so easy to let teaching take over your life! But teachers who've learned to live with depression or anxiety say it's important to set boundaries and establish routines.

One junior high teacher told us, "It helps to wake up and go to bed at the same time, eat routine lunches, and set a schedule for after-school grading time and free time. For example, I will stay at school until 4:15 at the latest. After that I go home and have my free time and dinner. When I don't stick to the schedule, I overwork myself, and I can't sleep. I eat poorly, and I have headaches."

Robin C., a teacher at Prague Public Schools in Oklahoma, concurs. "Between my obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and anxiety, I've found that having my plans well written and being prepared with all my supplies helps me mentally, both beforehand and during the day."

7. Prioritize mental health.

There's nothing wrong-and whole lot right!-with taking an occasional mental health day, especially during periods of intense stress.

"I took one mental health day a month last year, especially if there was not a day off within that month," says one middle school teacher. Because she was working in a less-than-supportive environment, she didn't openly share the reason for her absences with administration, though she confided in some trusted colleagues.

And while many people would recommend relaxing self-care activities, such as massages and movies, for days off, she often used her mental health days to catch up on grading, phone calls, and doctor appointments.

The bottom line? Listen when your internal voice starts screaming that you need some time off. If your schedule is impossibly packed, try taking mindfulness breaks throughout the day to tide you over until you can take that mental health day.

8. Consider your environment.

An eighth grade science teacher in Houston, Texas, who would prefer to stay anonymous, says she was miserable in her previous job. "I didn't have the kind of support or direction I needed. The teaching pay was the lowest in the country," she says, and those stressful conditions exacerbated her underlying anxiety disorder.

Counseling and medication eased her symptoms-but what helped most was switching to a different, more supportive school this year. "My pay is much better, and I get treated a lot better," she says. "I can't emphasize enough how important it is to have support. If I wasn't here, I know I would not be in as good of a place mentally as I am now."
Have you dealt with teacher depression and anxiety? It can be such a tough issue to talk. If you feel like sharing, we'd love to hear about your experiences in our WeAreTeac hers Chat group on Facebook. Plus, how teachers deal with Sunday night anxiety.

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Teacher Depression and Anxiety Are So Common: Here's Help

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Don't let depression and anxiety steal your love of teaching or your ability to enjoy life. Learn how you can manage teacher depression and anxiety, from others who have been there.

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Autism Spectrum Disorders - HelpGuide.org

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An easy-to-understand guide to autism spectrum disorders, including common symptoms.

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Autism Spectrum Disorders

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Strategies for teaching students with Autism

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Strategies for teaching students with Autism

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School creates multiple challenges for children with DMDD, but with patience and an organized plan, educators can help them to succeed at school. The most effective tool to help these children is...

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Learning Community for Students with Disabilities

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Learning Community for Students with Disabilities

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Least restrictive environment, or LRE, means a child who gets special education should learn alongside general education peers as much as possible. Learn more.

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According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), approximately 25 percent of U.S. adults struggle with depression, anxiety or some combination of both. In any given year, approximately 6.9 percent of American adults - about 16 million people - live with depression. Approximately 18.1 percent - about 42 million - live with anxiety.

NIMH estimates that an even greater percentage of adolescents ages 12-18 struggle with depression and anxiety - approximately 9.1 percent and 25.1 percent, respectively. The precise incidence in children is unclear.

These numbers are staggering but perhaps not as eye-opening as another number. According to NIMH, 50 to 60 percent of those living with anxiety and depression receive no mental health services.

But what about those who do seek help? What works? Which treatments should counselors know about? Counseling Today asked several practitioners to discuss the steps they're taking to help clients who are engaged in struggles with anxiety and depression.
Letting go
Beth Patterson, a licensed professional counselor (LPC) with a private practice in Denver, uses an eclectic mix of mindfulness practices, epigenetics and, in some cases, eye-movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) to help clients with depression and anxiety. "I see a mix of depression and anxiety. They're really closely related. The same brain chemicals are involved," she says.

Depression and anxiety also share an essential psychological component - namely, pushing people away from living in the present moment. Individuals with anxiety are continuously worried about the future, while people with depression are often focused on what has happened in the past, explains Patterson, a member of the American Counseling Association.

Although she uses the same basic methods to treat both depression and anxiety, Patterson says it is essential to discern what clients are saying to themselves to help them address their negative self-talk. For example, she says that people dealing with depression ask a lot of "why" questions of themselves, such as "Why did I ... ?" People struggling with anxiety, on the other hand, tend to use statements indicative of fear of future events, such as "I'm really worried about what's going to happen with ..."

Patterson helps her clients recognize when they're having negative or anxious thoughts. She also gives them homework, instructing them to focus on noticing their self-talk. Patterson says she also teaches visualization as a tool to "bring them back down to their bodies" and out of the constant cycle of negative thoughts. Clients learn methods such as the "tree meditation," in which they imagine themselves as a tree that is growing from the ground and sprouting branches. Another technique she uses is to have clients breathe in and out while visualizing that they are drawing breath through their feet. Patterson also meditates with her clients, teaching them to focus on their breathing and center their bodies instead of always living in their heads.

Another mindfulness technique is known as the driving meditation. "When you are in the car, drive," Patterson tells her clients. "Turn off the radio [and] your cell phone and feel the road. When you get to a stop sign, stop and notice whether you're driving or making a shopping list." Over time, Patterson explains, these tools help clients become more aware of their thoughts and recognize when they are ruminating or engaging in negative self-talk. Once clients start recognizing negative thought patterns, they can then use visualization or other mindfulness practices to break the cycle, she says.

Clients often feel ashamed of having anxiety or depression and tell themselves that they must be weak to be susceptible to the condition, Patterson says. One of the ways she helps her clients see the fallacy behind this thinking is by asking them to build a family tree to find out whether depression, anxiety or trauma runs in the family. She talks with them about epigenetics, or chemical changes that alter a person's genome and affect whether certain genes are expressed. Some researchers believe that life experiences can cause these changes and that the alterations can be passed from generation to generation.

For instance, Patterson says that depression runs in her family. She believes that a great trauma - her grandmother's flight from the Russian pogroms at the turn of the 20th century - caused a change in DNA that was handed down in the form of depression.

Patterson also probes for trauma in the backgrounds of her clients because she believes it is common in people with depression and anxiety. "There are all kinds of trauma," she says. "There is large 'T' trauma and small traumas." Sometimes, the accumulation of small traumas can also cause psychological damage, she asserts.

Patterson often sees clients with trauma-related depression. For those cases, she uses EMDR as part of the treatment. She sometimes also uses EMDR for anxious thoughts. Developed by psychologist Francine Shapiro, EMDR uses bilateral stimulation, or stimulation on each side of the body, to help alleviate the emotional distress caused by traumatic memories. The most common method of EMDR uses eye movement, but it can also be performed through physical stimuli, such as buzzers or tapping, explains Patterson, who uses hand-held buzzers with her clients.

Patterson's overall strategy in treating depression and anxiety is to use self-awareness techniques to help clients escape the thoughts and feelings that are holding them back. After clients learn to recognize their negative self-talk, she says, they can use the other tools she has given them, such as meditation and visualization, to ultimately banish their negative thoughts and the anxiety or depression that accompanies them.
Balancing the brain
Lori Russell-Chapin believes that neurocounseling - which combines traditional counseling with an understanding of how the structure and functions of the brain affect behavior and emotion - can deliver the most effective treatment for depression and anxiety.

In neurocounseling, clients are taught about the brain's structure and chemical processes and how they influence a person's emotions, she explains. Clients then learn that they can change some of these processes through neurotherapy.

"Neurotherapy is anything that changes or neuromodulates any of our neurons. That could be counseling, it could be neuro- or biofeedback, or it could be exercise," says Russell-Chapin, a licensed clinical professional counselor (LCPC) at Chapin and Russell Associates in Peoria, Illinois.

Russell-Chapin, an ACA member, begins counseling with a complete assessment of the client. Because she is probing for neurological and physiological factors, her assessments cover elements such as a client's medical history all the way back to birth. For example, Russell-Chapin wants to know whether there was any trauma during the client's birth, such as oxygen deprivation or the use of forceps. These details help reveal potential sources of brain dysregulation, or an unhealthy alteration of the brain's activity, explains Russell-Chapin, who is also a professor of counselor education at Bradley University in Peoria and co-director of the university's Center for Collaborative Brain Research. This dysregulation is at the heart of clients' mental health problems, she asserts.

For instance, she says, depression is related to frontal asymmetry - a condition in which the left frontal lobe, which is associated with positive affect and memory, is underactivated. In cases of anxiety, she adds, the right frontal lobe usually has excessive activity.

This dysregulation shows up in clients' brain waves and can be treated through neurofeedback, Russell-Chapin says. The process begins with an initial electroencephalogram (EEG), which will reveal where the brain is dysregulated and the corresponding imbalance of brain waves.

Neurofeedback sessions are designed to change specific brain wave activity, Russell-Chapin says. "During the session, an [electroencephalograph] tracks the client's brain waves. The neurotherapist sets a clinically needed threshold, and when the EEG indicates the desired brain wave activity, the brain is 'rewarded' with music or video activity," she explains. "For example, a client with depression may have an underactivated left frontal area -not enough alpha - and an overactivated right frontal area - too much beta. Over time, the principles of learning win over, with the reward system 'training' the client's brain. The sessions continue until the client's EEG is consistently showing the desired - or properly regulated - wave activity and the symptoms of depression begin to dissipate." The process usually takes 20 to 40 sessions, according to Russell-Chapin.

To make neurocounseling more effective, Russell-Chapin usually begins by teaching clients basic biofeedback skills such as controlling their breathing, heart rate and skin temperature. "I think [this] gives people great freedom and power," she says. "[They think], 'If I can control this, I can control anything.'"

Russell-Chapin also emphasizes to clients the importance of diet, exercise and sleep because they all have a significant effect on brain regulation.

"I had a client in my office who was drinking eight cups of caffeinated coffee a day. So we're going to have to withdraw some of that caffeine," she says. "I had another client who drinks maybe six or seven Cokes a day. Do you know how much sugar is in them?"

Russell-Chapin firmly believes that all counselors should take a similarly holistic approach with their clients. "What I am trying to do in my private practice and teach my students is that we now more than ever need to teach clients this holistic approach and that they can impact their physiology and brain and corresponding behaviors," she says. "There's really this underpinning of physiology underneath most of our mental health problems. We can do so much to help with this dysregulation."
Brain-based psychoeducation
Humans are hard wired to have negative thoughts, says Vanessa McLean, and that is something she emphasizes to clients with depression and anxiety. McLean, an LPC with The Westwood Group, a group practice in Richmond, Virginia, that offers a wide variety of therapies, has found that teaching people about the physiology of their emotions with intense brain-based psychoeducation can be very effective for treating depression and anxiety. Learning that the tendency to react with fear or sadness is in part biologically driven helps to lessen the shame that often accompanies depression and stress, she says.

"That initial emotional response, we often can't control, but it's what we do with it. Do we feed it?" asks McLean, whose areas of specialization include anxiety and mood disorders.

Although anxiety and depression involve overreactions or underreactions in different parts of the brain, McLean doesn't base her counseling on a diagnosis. "I don't really treat anxiety or depression - I treat people," she says. "They [depression and anxiety] are the same kind of feelings, just manifested differently."

McLean talks to clients about their personal histories and how they have traditionally reacted to and coped with negative emotional responses. She helps them understand that struggling with negative thoughts is normal, but they can learn to reinterpret or not dwell on these emotions.

"A lot of times, people spend all day living in their heads," McLean observes. She urges clients who might be struggling with depression or anxiety to distract themselves with exercise and other activities that they find enjoyable or that give them a sense of meaning and purpose.

She also talks to clients - particularly those with anxiety - about how the body and brain can create a kind of tension loop. "If the body is tense, the brain thinks something is wrong," McLean explains. "A lot of people with anxiety don't know what it feels like to be relaxed."

To short-circuit this loop, she teaches clients deep breathing techniques and progressive muscle relaxation. She also asks them about other activities that have helped calm them in the past.

When clients are open to it, McLean may also discuss spirituality with them and get them to talk about what gives them meaning and purpose. As one element of her practitioner profile, McLean identifies herself as a Christian counselor, so sometimes people seek her out because of that. However, she doesn't limit herself to clients of a particular religion. She believes that everyone is a spiritual being in one way or another, and she helps clients explore their beliefs - whatever they may be - to impart a sense of hope.

Something that McLean doesn't embrace is the medical model - the view that mental health issues are illnesses. She believes that calling depression or anxiety an illness encourages people to think that they can't do anything about their symptoms.

Lisa Jackson-Cherry has a counseling practice in a medical setting - the Chester Regional Medical Center in Chester, Maryland - and often receives referrals from physicians. She doesn't reject the concept of mental health problems as illnesses, but she believes that psychotropic drugs are rarely the answer to treating those issues.

"I believe that the majority of individuals can overcome their anxiety and depression with counseling," says Jackson-Cherry, an LCPC and a member of ACA. "I have found people want a quick fix [through medication] because they do not want to feel the uncomfortable feelings."

Although the process may take longer, Jackson-Cherry thinks that the tools clients acquire through counseling will bring longer lasting relief and will also help individuals cope should symptoms of depression or anxiety later resurface.

Although she often uses cognitive strategies to help clients, Jackson-Cherry, who is also an associate professor of psychology at Marymount University in Arlington, Virginia, doesn't use a predetermined script. She believes that depression and anxiety are inextricably linked to a client's life experiences.

"My experience is that anxiety and depression often interfere with life goals, sense of purpose and meaning issues," Jackson-Cherry says. "I believe many individuals have irrational beliefs or cognitive distortions. However, some of those ineffective cognitions are so enmeshed into their lives [that] listening to their ... struggles and stories is an important aspect [of treatment]."

Talking to clients about their experiences helps Jackson-Cherry to individualize their therapy, she says. For example, talking about the root of a client's anxiety may reveal that it comes from not feeling protected or safe in the wake of a sexual assault, she explains. In that case, Jackson-Cherry might use not just cognitive therapies but also behavioral therapy, such as talking about how the client can feel safer and more in control.
The gender gap
Research has shown that women are two to three times more likely than men to experience depression. Approximately 1 out of every 5 women in the United States will experience depression at some point in her lifetime. This is largely, though not entirely, due to hormonal factors, according to ACA member Laura Hensley Choate, an associate professor at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. She adds that this stark gender gap does not appear until puberty and then disappears after menopause.

"There are no gender differences between boys and girls until about age 12," she explains. "Then, at the onset of puberty, it [depression] spikes in girls. Puberty is a particularly vulnerable time."

In fact, between the ages of 12 and 15, the depression rate in girls triples, growing from about 5 percent to 15 percent of all girls, says Choate, who has written extensively about girls' and women's mental health, including two books published by ACA ( Girls' and Women's Wellness: Contemporary Counseling Issues and Interventions and Eating Disorders and Obesity: A Counselor's Guide to Prevention and Treatment). This rapid increase in depression incidence is related not only to a surge in hormones but also to factors that accompany the onset of puberty, she explains.

"Girls are more likely to experience multiple stressors at once," Choate continues. "They're going through puberty, they're changing schools [going from elementary to middle school], they're having to deal with romantic relationships ... so everything's hitting them all at once."

Girls who go through puberty early are at even greater risk for depression, Choate says, in part because their emerging physical maturity often pushes them into situations that they are not emotionally ready to handle, such as older boys becoming interested in them sexually. These girls may also find themselves pulled in socially by older students and encouraged to experiment with drugs and alcohol, which further sets them up for depression, she explains.

Boys, on the other hand, go through puberty about three years later, which gives them time to become settled in school and adjust to the challenges of adolescence, Choate says. In essence, they have more life experience before they face the hormonal surge of puberty.

Another factor in the early gender gap with depression is that girls place more importance on relationships than boys do, Choate notes. "That's another big issue [as puberty hits]," she says. "They're more sensitive to disruptions in their relationships, like fights with friends or fights with romantic partners."

And then there is the monthly hormonal shift that girls and women face with their menstrual period, Choate points out. Counselors should be aware that not only can PMS exacerbate depression symptoms, but in some cases, she continues, what looks like major depression may actually be premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), a condition that was added to the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.

If depressive symptoms seem to appear for only part of the month, a counselor should screen for PMDD by helping the client track her moods over time, Choate says. If PMDD is present, making dietary changes such as decreasing alcohol, fat, salt and caffeine and increasing complex carbohydrates may help. If antidepressants are needed, they may be necessary for only part of the month, Choate notes. Counselors can also help clients evaluate their options for lessening the symptoms of PMDD. For example, if a client decides she wants to consult her gynecologist or primary care physician, the counselor can help her come up with questions to ask to be fully informed about her options, Choate says.

It is also important for counselors to encourage female clients to focus on self-care during their symptomatic days, she emphasizes. Women need to be told that it is OK to slow down, plan a less hectic schedule and take care of themselves when they are feeling bad. "We know through CBT [cognitive behavior therapy] that just decreasing [self-] expectations can help," Choate says.

In fact, CBT is often regarded as the "go-to" treatment for depression by mental health professionals, but counselors should also consider interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT), especially if CBT doesn't work, Choate says.

IPT can be very effective for women and, in particular, girls, Choate asserts. "It works not just on depression but also on social skills, building up relationships and self-esteem," she says.

IPT assumes that regardless of depression's cause, it is intertwined with personal relationships, Choate explains. In IPT, counselors start by taking an interpersonal inventory of the client's life: Whom can she count on? Who supports her emotionally? Is she dealing with any relationship issues, including unresolved grief?

Role transitions, such as from childhood to adolescence or the transition into motherhood, are also important because they raise questions about loss, Choate says. For example, when she becomes a mother, a woman is gaining a child, but she may also question what she is losing, such as a degree of personal freedom. The uncertainty that accompanies transitions can trigger depression.

Because women are more likely to view relationships as central to their emotional well-being, supportive interpersonal relationships can help them cope with the emotional aspects of transitions. Conversely, interpersonal conflict may exacerbate feelings of anxiety or depression, Choate explains. Therefore, identifying negative and positive interpersonal factors in a woman's life can be essential to treating depression, she says.
Pregnancy and depression
The childbearing years are also a prime time for depression in women, Choate says. Part of that involves issues such as deciding whether to become a mother or becoming a mother and learning to juggle family, work and life.

However, pregnancy itself poses a depression risk that counselors may not be aware of, Choate cautions. Postpartum depression has become a familiar concept, but women can also become depressed during pregnancy, she explains. Women who have a history of depression are at very high risk for developing pregnancy-related depression. But prepartum depression can mimic normal pregnancy symptoms such as fatigue, loss of appetite and not wanting to participate in previously pleasurable activities, Choate explains. To help distinguish between normal pregnancy symptoms and depression, Choate advises counselors to ask their clients who are pregnant whether they would want to go out and do what they used to do if their physical symptoms such as nausea and fatigue disappeared. Most pregnant women would say yes, but those who are depressed would generally answer no, she explains.

Depression during pregnancy - whether it is preexisting or prepartum - can also raise the particularly difficult question of whether to take antidepressants, she says. The answer is not simple. Untreated depression is bad for the mother, and research indicates that once the child is born, a mother's state of mind can have a significant impact on the child.

But the other side of the argument is also valid. "In the past, doctors have prescribed [antidepressants] without considering the risk, and the research really is mixed," Choate says. "So counselors can help [pregnant clients] weigh the risks of untreated depression versus an antidepressant. ... This is an emotionally charged issue, so counselors need to help the client and also check their own biases."

Although not conclusive, some research has indicated that antidepressants are associated with low birth weight, preterm delivery and pulmonary hypertension in newborns. Antidepressants may also be associated with spontaneous abortions and preeclampsia. However, many of these complications have also been associated with depression itself.

After the child is born, a mother experiencing depression will have to make another related decision: whether to take antidepressants and nurse, to nurse without taking antidepressants or to continue drug therapy and rely on formula to feed the child. Again, says Choate, the research on the implications of these choices is mixed.

There is also significant medical and social pressure for mothers to breastfeed, so female clients who are dealing with depression will need support gathering and considering all the variables to make a decision. Counselors can play a valuable role in helping clients formulate the right questions, Choate says.

As women leave their childbearing years behind, they also face increased risk of depression. "Women are more vulnerable to depression during the years leading up to menopause," Choate says.

Then there are the issues that women face related to aging in today's society, she continues. Women are valued for their youth, beauty and fertility, and as they grow older and no longer reproduce, they lose societal status, Choate says. These changes are especially difficult if a woman's self-identity is closely tied to her looks, she says.

So, Choate concludes, although hormonal factors are certainly a contributing factor, counselors should be aware of all the sociocultural influences that make women and girls more vulnerable to depression.

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To contact the individuals interviewed for this article, email:

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Additional guidance
The American Mental Health Counselors Association, a division of the American Counseling Association, was chartered in 1978. It represents mental health counselors and advocates for client access to quality services within the health care industry. Visit its website at amhca.org.

For more information on treating depression and anxiety, counselors can also access the following webinars and podcasts on the ACA website:
Webinars (counseling.org/continuing-education/webinars)

Depression: New and Emerging Treatment Strategies

Neuroscience: The Cutting Edge of Counseling's Future

Podcasts (counseling.org/knowledge-center/podcasts)

Assessing and Treating Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders

Suicide Assessment: Sharpen Your Clinical Skills

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Laurie Meyers is the senior writer for Counseling Today. Contact her at lmeyers@counseling.org.

Letters to the editor: ct@counseling.org

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Treating depression and anxiety - Counseling Today

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According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), approximately 25 percent of U.S. adults struggle with depression, anxiety or some combination of both. In any given year, approximately 6.9 percent of American adults - about 16 million people - live with depression. Approximately 18.1 percent - about 42 million - live with anxiety.

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Teachers-Source to Recognizing Eating Disorders

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Teachers-Source to Recognizing Eating Disorders

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Contributor: Crystal Karges, MS, RDN, IBCLC Director of Content and Social Media at Eating Disorder Hope
While eating disorders to not discriminate based on age, gender or any other factors, these mental illnesses are increasingly seen in adolescent and school-aged children.

It is estimated that 35-55% of adolescent girls engage in various forms of disordered eating and eating disorder behaviors, such as crash dieting, use of diet pills and/or laxatives, self-induced vomiting, fasting, and more.

It has also been observed that adolescent girls who are overweight are more likely to engage in extreme dieting behaviors [1].

Understanding the Risk Factors

School-aged children and adolescents may face environmental stressors that can create an increased risk for developing an eating disorder. A child who may be predisposed to developing an eating disorder may be even more vulnerable to environmental stressors exposed in a school setting.

This may include bullying episodes, peer pressure, social factors, and more. During a time of life that may be difficult for many school-aged children, teachers can play an instrumental role is identifying eating disorders.

Resources for Teachers

When it comes to eating disorders, many teachers may feel uncomfortable approaching this subject, especially with students. However, teachers have the potential to be in a life-saving role, especially in assisting with early identification of abnormal behaviors.

As a teacher, it may be helpful to be educated about some of the basic signs and symptoms of eating disorders. Practicing awareness in the classroom can also be helpful for picking up on any problematic behaviors.

If a child demonstrates repetitive difficulty with eating, isolates during meal time, frequents the bathroom after meals, is heard body shaming or displays food rituals, this may be indications that a more problematic issue is at hand.

As a teacher, it is also important to be aware of the mental health resources that might be available on campus for students. Being able to provide a student with appropriate resources for additional help can also be instrumental in connecting to treatment.

Eating Disorder Hope offers a variety of educational resources that may be helpful for a teacher seeking more in depth information about resources about eating disorders.

How Can Teachers be Helpful in Early Recognition and Treatment of Eating Disorders?
References:
[1]: Boutelle, K., Neumark-Sztainer, D.,Story, M., &Resnick, M. (2002).Weight control behaviors among obese, overweight, and nonoverweight adolescents. Journal of Pediatric Psychology,27, 531-540.
About the Author: Crystal is a Masters-level Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) with a specialty focus in eating disorders, maternal/child health and wellness, and intuitive eating. Combining clinical experience with a love of social media and writing, Crystal serves as the Special Projects Coordinator for Eating Disorder Hope/Addiction Hope, where her passion to help others find recovery and healing is integrated into each part of her work. As a Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor, Crystal has dedicated her career to helping others establish a healthy relationship with food and body through her work with EDH/AH and nutrition private practice. The opinions and views of our guest contributors are shared to provide a broad perspective of eating disorders. These are not necessarily the views of Eating Disorder Hope, but an effort to offer discussion of various issues by different concerned individuals. We at Eating Disorder Hope understand that eating disorders result from a combination of environmental and genetic factors. If you or a loved one are suffering from an eating disorder, please know that there is hope for you, and seek immediate professional help. Last Updated & Reviewed By: Jacquelyn Ekern, MS, LPC on July 13, 2016
Published onEatingDisorderHope.com
Tagged as: college, Eating Disorder Recovery, recovery

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Education for Teachers on Seeing Eating Disorders in Students

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Contributor: Crystal Karges, MS, RDN, IBCLC Director of Content and Social Media at Eating Disorder Hope While eating disorders to not discriminate based on age, gender or any other factors, these mental illnesses are increasingly seen in adolescent and school-aged children.

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8 Discipline Rules for Parents of Defiant Kids