Without urgent action, health care providers predict that by next year, the region’s waiting list for children and youth will more than double since the start of the pandemic.
Mia and her family knew she needed mental health support when she was just 10 years old.
But their attempts to get help were delayed or denied, and Mia’s condition deteriorated so severely that she almost lost her life.
“I wasn’t considered that sick. I was told I was fine and everything was fine,” Mia explains. “I told them, ‘This is not normal,’ but they didn’t listen.”
But Mia was struggling. Her mental state deteriorated and eventually reached a crisis point.
“By the age of 12, I was self-harming. Some days I felt like I couldn’t handle it, but I still did well in school. When you were a kid in the country, that’s how they did it.” Mark your health status. ”
Help finally came when Mia turned 15, but only after she had a breakdown. She was arrested on charges of false imprisonment and criminal damage after attacking her teacher, and was eventually admitted to a psychiatric ward.
Mia believes that the situation could have been prevented from becoming a crisis if she had intervened sooner.
“If it were me, I would have killed myself. That’s what I would have done. Mental health care saves lives. Just like cardiac care saves lives. Just like diabetes care saves lives.” If you have a mental health problem, you will not be able to live a healthy and happy life without support.”
Mia’s story of her struggle to receive the right mental health care at the right time reveals a system in crisis. Children and young people across the country are forced to endure long waits for specialist treatment, and demand continues to grow.
NHS England estimates that a quarter of young people aged 17 to 19 now have a possible mental disorder, compared to one in 10 just six years ago.
David Barker and the team at Youth Talk offer free confidential counseling to 13-25 year olds.
But there are record numbers of children and young people in need.
Charities have doubled their capacity to operate, but this is still not enough.
Mr Barker told Sky News: “Before the pandemic there was a crisis in young people’s mental health, but the pandemic has made all of that significantly worse, and as a result the coronavirus pandemic has had a long tail. I see it happening,” he said. Mental health, especially in terms of youth. ”
Local medical services are also struggling. A survey of NHS providers found that children now wait an average of 91 weeks for an assessment for autism spectrum disorder and 207 weeks for an assessment for ADHD, up from 72 weeks.
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Jenna Hughes had to wait three years to get a diagnosis for her eldest son Amelia.
Her youngest child, Imogen, has already been waiting a year. Caring for Amelia and Imogen without special help has affected her entire family.
“I’ve been struggling with my mental health,” Jenna says. “Because my children need the level of care that they need. It’s hard on my family. The NHS is overflowing and it puts a lot of pressure on families and it creates tension and stress. I’m giving.”
Demand is expected to continue to increase.
And without urgent action, health providers like Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust predict that by next year waiting lists for children and young people in the region will more than double since the pandemic.
Elliott Howard-Jones, the company’s chief executive, said the biggest challenge for his trust in responding to the growing crisis was finding the right staff.
“That’s not where we want to be. We want to see shorter wait times for children. If we can’t see children quickly, it will have a huge impact on their life chances and educational attainment.” I’ll give it to you.”
“It is clear that the biggest challenge with community services is not the vision of what we want to do, but supporting people at home and helping children develop as best we can. It’s just a matter of growing it fast enough.” We can handle it. ”
Mia is currently 21 years old. She passed her A-levels with top grades and is in her final year of a degree in wildlife biology at the Royal Veterinary College.
But the outcome could have been very different and will be for the thousands of children who are still suffering unless we urgently address the children’s mental health crisis.
Anyone experiencing mental distress or suicidal thoughts can seek help by calling Samaritans on 116 123 or in the UK by emailing [email protected]. In the United States, call your local Samaritans branch or call 1 (800) 273-TALK.
