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Federal Resources
Director’s Blog: The Brain’s Critical Balance
Written by NIMH Director Thomas Insel, this blog post highlights one of early projects of the BRAIN Initiative, launched to support scientists as they conduct research on the brain, consciousness, and behavior. This project involves scientists at NIMH and the University of Maryland who are trying to understand how the activity of individual neurons integrates into larger patterns of brain activity
Improving Attachment Between Mothers and Children
This article describes a recent study on whether new mothers dealing with past trauma would be able to develop an attachment to their babies. If the mothers could develop an attachment, the study examined if addressing the mother’s issue would help with bonding. The results show that all the mothers in the study who were dealing with past trauma had trouble bonding with others and over 75% of the mothers with unresolved trauma had insecurely attached infants. The researchers found that being in the process of dealing with past trauma can help mothers form secure bonds with their children, despite the mothers themselves having difficulty attaching to others around them.
Share With Youth: Stay Informed — It Could Save A Life
CDC shares the risk and protective factors, warning signs, and sources of help for suicide.
5 Tips for Providing Trauma-Informed Sex Education
This article highlights the work of two researchers who are pioneering changes in sex education that bridge the gap between sex education and trauma-informed care by better understanding how sex education could be more sensitive to students’ traumatic experiences. This article also offers tips, based on this research, for implementing a trauma informed approach to sex education.
Webinar Recording: Bullying Prevention and Suicide Prevention for Schools
The recording is now available for the webinar, Bullying Prevention and Suicide Prevention for Schools: A Digital Approach From SAMHSA, presented by SAMHSA and the American School Health Association. The webinar provided an overview of the risk and impact of bullying and suicide in school-aged children and highlighted the connection between these public health issues and the "whole child" concept. The webinar also showcased SAMHSA's mobile applications, KnowBullying and Suicide Safe, and other key tools to promote bullying prevention and suicide prevention in schools.
Slideshow: 5 Collaborations to Ensure Trauma-Informed Care for Youth and Families
This slideshow highlights five types of professionals that runaway and homeless youth program managers can collaborate with to support youth who have experienced trauma.
QuickStats: Percentage of Children and Adolescents Aged 5–17 Years with Diagnosed Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), By Race and Hispanic Ethnicity — National Health Interview Survey, United States, 1997–2014
This Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report illustrates the trends in ADHD diagnosis among children and adolescents, ages 5-17, between 1997 and 2014. Results show that the percentage of young people overall with diagnosed ADHD increased significantly among non-Hispanic white, non-Hispanic black, and Hispanic children, while Hispanic children were the least likely to have diagnosed ADHD
Brief: Developing a Trauma-Informed Child Welfare System
This issue brief provides an overview of trauma and its effects, and describes some of the primary areas of consideration for state or county child welfare systems as they design and implement approaches that are more responsive to trauma.
Report: Racial and Gender Disparities in Suicide Among Young Adults
Using mortality data from the National Vital Statistics System, this report examines suicide rates and methods among young adults aged 18–24, by sex and race and Hispanic origin. Results show that young adult males were more likely than young adult females to commit suicide across racial and ethnic groups. The suicide rate was highest among the American Indian or Alaska Native (AI/AN) population, and likely to be underreported. Non-Hispanic black and non-Hispanic white young adults were most likely to use firearms, followed by suffocation. Hispanic, Asian or Pacific Islander (API), and AI/AN young adults were most likely to use suffocation, followed by firearms.
Recent Event: Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder
This Twitter chat featured Dr. Ellen Leibenluft, Chair of the Section on Bipolar Spectrum Disorder and expert on severe irritability in children, who answered questions on disruptive mood dysregulation disorder submitted by Twitter users.
Resource: Child and Adolescent Mental Health
This web portal provides information on mental health conditions and disorders among children and teens, including warning signs, latest news, videos, hotlines, and clinical trials.
Resource: Narrative Writing Exercises for Promoting Health Among Adolescents: Promises and Pitfalls
This resource describes a literature review that explores the potential mental health benefits and concerns of using narrative writing with youth and young adults.
Resource: Support for Families When a Suicide Attempt Hits Home
This resource provides information, tips, and useful links to families who have experienced a suicide attempt to assist in getting appropriate help and to foster resiliency.
Report: Testing Interpretation Bias Training (IBT)
This report describes a new, large-scale study that will test IBT, a computer game designed to diminish the tendency of children with disruptive mood dysregulation disorder (DMDD) to view ambiguous faces as angry. This study will also test cognitive behavioral therapy in conjunction with IBT in an effort to establish the first non-drug interventions for those with DMDD.
Resource: Helping Youth Prevent Suicide Among Their LGBTQ Peers
This article highlights free resources educators and youth service providers can use to implement the Trevor Project’s Lifeguard Workshop, a program encouraging young people to be “lifeguards” for one another by having the knowledge to help in a crisis. Professionals can request a free, in-person workshop or use the resources highlighted in the article to create personalized trainings.
Resource: Integrating Medical and Mental Health Care for Teen Moms
This article describes the mental health challenges teen moms face and highlights a Denver-based program that integrates mental health screening and treatment into their existing medical care.
Report: Prevalence of Parent-Reported Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Diagnosis and Associated Treatment Among U.S. Children and Adolescents, 2016
This study examines survey data from the National Survey of Children’s Health to estimate the prevalence of ADHD diagnosis and treatment. The results indicate that, as of 2016, 6.1 million children aged 2-17 years living in the U.S. had been diagnosed with ADHD, which is similar to previous estimates. Almost two thirds were taking medication, slightly less than half had received behavioral treatment in the past year, and nearly one fourth had received neither treatment.
Depression and College Students
This webpage provides answers to college students’ questions about depression. It addresses the types, signs and symptoms, and treatment of depression, as well as co-occurring disorders and where to find help. The webpage also features information on suicide, including the warning signs and what a person should do if they or someone they care about is considering suicide.
2019 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) Results
The 2019 YRBS results present a promising picture for some behaviors and experiences among high school students; however, other areas reveal that teens are still engaging in behaviors that put them at risk. While these health risk behaviors vary by sex, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation and grade, the 2019 YRBS results show that there is more work to do to help all teens create lifelong healthy behaviors.
John H. Chafee Foster Care Program for Successful Transition to Adulthood
The John H. Chafee Foster Care Program for Successful Transition to Adulthood (the Chafee program) provides funding to support youth/ young adults in or formerly in foster care in their transition to adulthood. The program is funded through formula grants awarded to child welfare agencies in States (including the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands) and participating Tribes. Chafee funds are used to assist youth/ young adults in a wide variety of areas designed to support a successful transition to adulthood. Activities and programs include, but are not limited to, help with education, employment, financial management, housing, emotional support and assured connections to caring adults. Specific services and supports are determined by the child welfare agency, vary by State, locality and agency, and are often based on the individual needs of the young person. Many State or local agencies contract with private organizations to deliver services to young people.
CDC Pregnancy Prevention Web Page for Teens
CDC’s Division of Reproductive Health created a Web page especially for teens. Designed with input from teens, the Web page aims to motivate teens to make healthy choices about sex by providing empowering messages on specific actions that teens can take to prevent teen pregnancy. This effort is part of the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Communitywide Initiative, which is a partnership between CDC and the HHS, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, Office of Adolescent Health.
CDC Teen Pregnancy
This website from CDC provides information and data about teen pregnancy. Sections of the site target resources for parents, guardians, and health care providers. It also includes videos, podcasts, reports, a social media tool kit and other resources focused on teen pregnancy and teen pregnancy prevention.
CDC Show Your Love Campaign
Show Your Love is a national campaign that promotes preconception health and healthcare with the goal of increasing the number of women planning pregnancies, and engaging in healthy behaviors prior to conception, and encouraging women who do not want to become pregnant to choose healthy behaviors and achieve their goals.
CDC's Teen Pregnancy and Social Media
CDC provides a range of social media tools to promote your teen pregnancy prevention efforts. This quick reference guide can be used as a companion to the CDC Social Media Toolkit for Health Communicators [PDF- 3.76MB], and specifically highlights a number of social media tools with credible, science-based teen pregnancy prevention messages from the CDC. These free, easy-to-use communication tools can help expand the reach of your health messages and help increase public engagement.
Declines in State Teen Birth Rates by Race and Hispanic Origin
This report, developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics, illustrates that the teen birth rate in the United States declined 25 percent between 2007-2011, a record low, with the steepest declines seen for Hispanic teenagers.