Mental health challenges affect people of all ages. For children and youth, these challenges can be especially acute, as they navigate early stages of development and technologies like social media and AI. In Hamilton, there are various supports for kids with mental health struggles, including the Lynwood Charlton Centre, the city’s lead agency for youth and child mental health, with its comprehensive network of residential, in-home, school, and community programs. 

In this episode of Vital Signs, Sarah Matsushita sits down with Dr. Michelle Hayes, interim executive director Lynwood Charlton Centre to talk about the mental health challenges kids face and what caregivers can do to help support them. 

Key quotes 

“Our work is impossible without collaboration and Hamilton is a great place for that.” 

“A lead agency’s role is to commit to systems planning across children’s mental health, promote collaboration and provide direction….to make sure we have the best possible mental health care for children and youth.” 

“This generation is facing unprecedented pressures. We see high rates of anxiety and depression, we know much of it was worsened by the pandemic, and it is a journey to see where we will be even ten years after that significant event. There is also social isolation and significant loneliness, the impact of poverty, housing instability, academic pressure, navigating identity, establishing a sense of belonging and safety, and the influence and pace of digital life.” 

“What we want to do is focus on trauma-informed care because there are so many experiences that children and youth have had over this period of time that we are only just beginning to realize what their needs are.” 

“It is a terrifying thing as parents to struggle to feel like you can’t help your child…over time, there has been stigma around what it means to receive mental health support but this is no longer part of that…every person, if they have not received this kind of support themselves, they know someone who has.” 

“Children and youth find a sense of community in social media…but it brings about exposure to things that cause risks including unrealistic comparisons, cyber bullying and harmful content. Constant connectivity means that something like cyber bullying follows them from the school environment to the home environment.” 

“Educating ourselves as parents and caregivers is stage one. We can do so much by just giving children a sense of safety.”