How to Get Treatment for Your Child's Mental Health Issues
If you have concerns about your child's mental health, talk to your pediatrician or healthcare provider. Here's additional information on how children are assessed and treated, how schools can support you, and a list of resources.
Susanna Sung, LCSW-C
9/2/20253 min read
If you're concerned about your child's mental health, you should talk to your child's pediatrician or healthcare provider about your child's behavior and your concerns.
How is children’s mental health assessed?
An evaluation by a mental health professional can help understand and clarify your child's emotions, behavior, and current situation. Based on this information, the mental health professional can decide if your child would benefit from an intervention and what intervention might work best.
A comprehensive evaluation of a child’s mental health usually involves:
• A parent interview to discuss the child’s developmental history, temperament, relationships with friends and family, medical history, interests, abilities, and any prior treatment
• Information gathering from the child’s school, such as standardized test scores and reports on behavior, capabilities, and difficulties
• If needed, an interview with the child for testing and behavioral observations
Asking questions and providing information to your child’s health care provider can improve your child’s care. Talking with the health care provider builds trust and leads to better results, quality, safety, and satisfaction with care.
Here are some questions you can ask when meeting with prospective treatment providers:
• Do you use treatment approaches that are supported by research?
• Do you involve parents in the treatment? If so, how are parents involved?
• Will there be “homework” between sessions?
• How will progress be evaluated?
• How soon can we expect to see progress?
• How long should treatment last?
How are childhood mental health disorders treated?
The mental health professional will review the evaluation results to help determine if a child’s emotions and behavior are related to changes or stresses at home or school or if they may indicate a disorder for which they would recommend treatment.
There are several treatment options the mental health professional may recommend.
• Psychotherapy (sometimes called talk therapy), which includes many different approaches such as structured psychotherapies directed at specific conditions Effective psychotherapy for children often incorporates:
o Parent involvement in the treatment
o Teaching the child skills to practice at home or school (between-session “homework assignments”)
o Measures of progress (such as rating scales and improvements on “homework assignments”) that are tracked over time
• Medications, which will depend on the diagnosis and may include antidepressants, stimulants, mood stabilizers, or other medications. Medications are often used in combination with psychotherapy. If multiple health care providers or specialists are involved, treatment information should be shared and coordinated between providers to achieve the best results.
• Family counseling, which includes family members to help them understand how a child’s challenges may affect relationships with parents and siblings.
• Support for parents, such as individual or group sessions that include training and the opportunity to talk with other parents. Parental support can provide new strategies for helping a child manage difficult emotions and behavior in a positive way. The therapist can also coach parents on how to work with schools to receive classroom accommodations.
How can the school support my child’s mental health?
Children who have behavioral or emotional challenges that interfere with success in school may benefit from plans or accommodations provided under laws that prevent discrimination against children with disabilities. Your child’s health care providers can help you communicate with the school.
A first step may be to ask the school whether accommodations such as an individualized education program (IEP) are appropriate for your child. Accommodations might include providing a child with a tape recorder for taking notes, allowing more time for tests, or adjusting seating in the classroom to reduce distraction.
The U.S. Department of Education offers information and resources on what schools can and, in some cases, must provide for children who would benefit from accommodations and how parents can request evaluation and services for their child.
• The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act consolidates information about how states and public agencies provide early intervention, special education, and related services for infants, toddlers, children, and youth with disabilities.
o The Office for Civil Rights provides information on federal laws that prohibit discrimination based on disability in public programs, such as schools.
o The Center for Parent Information and Resources lists Parent Training and Information Centers and Community Parent Resource Centers in each state
The following organizations and agencies have information on symptoms, treatments, and support for childhood mental disorders. Some offer guidance for working with schools and finding mental health professionals. Participating in support groups can provide an avenue for connecting with other parents dealing with similar issues.
Note: This resource list is provided for informational purposes only. It is not comprehensive and does not constitute an endorsement.
• American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Facts For Families Guide
• Anxiety and Depression Association of America
• Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Children’s Mental Health
• National Alliance on Mental Illness
• National Federation of Families
• Society of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, Effective Child Therapy
