Teenagers

As the public conversation about anxiety continues to swell, I've been asking myself: would I have been better off as an anxious teenager today? Despite all the recent awareness-raising efforts, the reduction in stigma, the lessons in schools - and despite how hard it was navigating my own anxiety in silence - I find myself answering "No". A clinical psychologist working in schools told me that these adjustments are often put in place with no intention to review them, ever, as though the young person's anxiety will unquestioningly be there - and should be accommodated - for ever, rather than being treated. Some neurodivergent young people may also need more permanent adjustments to help them cope and succeed at school. People talk about the runner's high, but I think there is an equivalent for people prone to anxiety - let's call it the worrier's high. The solution is to help young people see that the label of anxiety is a starting point to challenging themselves and being brave, not an endpoint that will dictate their limitations for ever. Teach adults what anxiety looks like in young people and tell them how they can help. As much as possible, avoid treating anxiety as if it is a permanent personality trait.

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According to the 2021 National Survey on Drug Use and Health,1 20% of teens had a major depressive episode in the preceding year, with 75% of these episodes causing "Severe impairment." During that year, 13% of adolescents had serious thoughts of suicide and 6% - 1.5 million teens - made a suicide plan. Depression is a condition for which evidence-based, highly effective interventions exist, yet only 41% of teens with major depression receive treatment. Untreated depression in teens can have dire consequences including suicide, which was the second leading cause of death in 2020 among youth ages 10 to 14, and the third leading cause of death among individuals ages 15 to 24, according to the CDC. Teens with untreated major depressive disorder are more than twice as likely as their peers to use illicit drugs - at a rate of 28% compared to 11%, according to the NSDUH. This was the case for the son of an ADDitude reader in Maryland who described her 19-year-old's experience in this way: "My child feels lost and like he cannot 'get happy.' He is afraid to take next steps forward and he has turned to some substances." "Where most people sleep more, an adolescent will sleep less. Where most people lose an interest in sex, adolescents will become hypersexual." Further, the assumption that depressed people appear sad or tearful can be dangerously inaccurate; the most common symptom of depression in teens is not sadness but irritability. Diagnosing depression in teens is only the first step on the road to treatment. The study also found that teens required privacy to speak candidly about mental health concerns with doctors and, in cases where parents were not asked to leave the exam room, teens often chose not to disclose information about mental health issues. The Administration and Policy in Mental Health study discovered that many teens resisted seeking treatment because they feared appearing "Crazy" or "Sick." "Teens' reluctance to consult medical providers about their concerns was also strongly related to issues about identity. Contrasted with adults, the threat of an illness identity is likely to be much more salient to adolescents," the authors of the study wrote.

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Adolescents with an autism spectrum disorder diagnosis have increased odds of a co-occurring gender dysphoria diagnosis, according to a study published online July 3 in Pediatrics. Nicole F. Kahn, Ph.D., from the Seattle Children's Research Institute, and colleagues used data from the PEDSnet learning health system network for eight pediatric hospital institutions to examine the prevalence of co-occurring ASD and GD diagnoses among 919,898 U.S. adolescents aged 9 to 18 years. The researchers found that a GD diagnosis was more prevalent among youth with versus without an ASD diagnosis, with significantly greater odds of a GD diagnosis seen among youth with an ASD diagnosis in adjusted regression. The prevalence of co-occurring ASD/GD diagnoses was higher among those whose electronic medical record-reported sex was female and among those using private insurance, while prevalence was lower among youth of color, especially Black and Asian youth. "Our study adds to the growing body of research on co-occurring ASD and GD and provides important evidence to support additional research, improved screening for ASD and gender diversity, and care integration and coordination in specialty clinics and in underserved communities," the authors write. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.

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Most recently, Charlie has written and published four books in the span of just a few short months, three of which are about his experiences with autism. "Autism is often misjudged, and it's just not fair. I don't agree with bullies. I don't agree with the media profiting off lies about autism either, and that's why I decided to write my books." The young man hopes his books will help other people with autism learn how to navigate the difficult times in their lives and help people who are not on the spectrum better understand what it's like to be autistic. The first book, Charlie Baker: Autism And Me, is a memoir written in a "Chatty" text-style tone. The best-selling book has sold over 12,000 copies so far. Charlie then went on to write two more books about autism: Charlie Michael Baker: The Influencer Advocating Autism and Charlie Baker: Inside My Autistic Mind. He would especially like to write a book about what it's like to be a person with autism in the public eye.

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Researchers at the Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience at the University of Rochester have discovered a possible treatment target for neuropsychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia and autism, during critical windows of brain development. This could be key in the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders like schizophrenia and autism during these pivotal developmental periods, possibly influencing the brain's circuitry well into adulthood. "Brain development is a lengthy process, and many neuronal systems have critical windows-key times when brain areas are malleable and undergoing final maturation steps," said Rianne Stowell, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow in the Wang Lab at the University of Rochester Medical Center and co-first author on research out in the journal eLife. Researchers targeted underperforming neurons in the dopamine system that connect to the frontal cortex in mice. The National Institutes of Health is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. The NIH conducts its own scientific research through its Intramural Research Program and provides major biomedical research funding to non-NIH research facilities through its Extramural Research Program. With 27 different institutes and centers under its umbrella, the NIH covers a broad spectrum of health-related research, including specific diseases, population health, clinical research, and fundamental biological processes.

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What solidified their bond was that they were both autistic. "There are lots of strengths with neurodiversity, such as creativity and problem-solving, but there are some challenges as well, such as attention focus or social skills," says Scott-Lee, who was an HSBC neurodiversity ambassador before Caitlyn's suicide. Her passion for advocating for autistic adults began in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, where she established the first autistic support group. "In addition to mentoring autistic and ADHD teens and adults, I recognised a growing demand for corporate neurodiversity training," Sinclair says. As someone who is autistic and has ADHD, Sinclair is aware of the importance of neurodivergent voices being heard and valued within the workplace. "After losing a friend, who was also autistic, to suicide, I felt compelled to do more for the neurodivergent community."It's a sad reality that autistics have a higher rate of suicidal ideation and suicide than the general population, and it's the highest rate of all disability groups. " At her lowest point, Sinclair - who spent more than 15 years in the corporate world, unaware that she was autistic and had ADHD - says she also contemplated suicide.

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