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Learning the facts about mental illness and how to begin a dialogue on these sensitive issues is the best place to start to reduce the stigma around mental illness. It is only through deliberate and mindful actions that we can make a change. So, let’s talk about the facts and what we can do now!

At Franciscan Children’s our Child Life Specialists promote effective coping, and facilitate healing through play, preparation, education, and self-expression activities. In honor of Child Life Month, we’re sitting down with them to learn more about how they’ve expanded their team to provide support and services to patients in our Inpatient Mental Health Program.

School may be out for summer, but our Children’s Wellness Initiative (CWI) staff are still working hard to make sure that care for kids continues year round.

Technology has become an integral part of our lives, but our increasing need to stay connected is threatening our personal connections with our families and friends. Julie Ogletree, LICSW, a child and adolescent psychotherapist in our Outpatient Mental Health department, talks about the negative effects of screen time and how you can set safe boundaries for your family.

Devin is a Residential Counselor in our Community Based Acute Treatment (CBAT) program, providing direct support to children experiencing behavioral and emotional difficulties. “I love to be active and do group games with the kids to introduce the concepts of sportsmanship and taking turns,” says Devin. “You can learn a lot from a simple game of kickball.”

Ryan is a Mental Health Specialist on Unit 1, our Child and Adolescent Inpatient Mental Health program, providing support and services to children, adolescents and teens experiencing mental health crises. “When you leave the Unit, you’re not cured,” said Ryan who hopes that resilience is one of the main takeaways for patients as they leave. “[Franciscan Children’s is] teaching you coping skills for life.”

The popular Netflix series, 13 Reasons Why, recently created a flurry of media and social buzz and brought the topic of teen suicide to the forefront of conversation. In our latest blog post, Dr. Ralph Buonopane, PhD, Program Director of the McLean-Franciscan Child and Adolescent Inpatient Mental Health program (Unit 1), talks about suicide, the warning signs, and what parents need to know.

Maria is a Mental Health Specialist on Unit 1, our Child and Adolescent Inpatient Mental Health program, providing support and services to children, adolescents and teens experiencing mental health crises. “Some people just need to be shown how to cope with mental illness” Maria says. “[The staff at Franciscan Children’s is] here to support and help during a crisis.”

Childhood anxiety is a hot topic for many parents and families. We recently asked Dr. Kiera Boyle, Supervising Psychologist at Franciscan Children’s, to answer some popular questions about how children experience and express anxiety and how parents can help manage it.

Franciscan Children’s recently partnered with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) to host a free 6 week course called NAMI Basics, a course designed to introduce caregivers to the basics of care techniques and coping strategies. The NAMI Basics classes served as a valuable medium for fostering helpful conversations between Parent Leaders and participants who care for children from a variety of different age groups and backgrounds.