Mental Health

You Are Not Alone

If you or a loved one are experiencing a mental health emergency, please, please call the National Crisis Hotline at: 1-800-273-8255 or Text HOME to 741741 to connect with a Crisis Counselor 24 hours a day. Or call 911 or go to your closest emergency room. There is help, and YOU are not alone!

Page Contents

Resources

Do I Need Help?

Statistics

Articles

Books

References

Use These Resources

Find help at the Suicide Prevention Lifeline

Find a mental health professional in your area

Go to the SAMHSA National Helpline

Do I Need Help?


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Women and Mental Health

Statistics About Caregivers and Mental Health

Research Shows that Caregivers:

  • Have up to 2x the risk for developing physical and mental health symptoms
  • Experience stress, anxiety, anger, grief, and depression at higher levels compared to the national average.
  • Are at greater risk for experiencing faith struggles.

More Statistics:

  • 18.5% of all adults  experience mild to severe symptoms of depression (Centers for Disease Control)
  • 31% of parents of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities experience moderate depression.
  • 24% of moms caring for children with autism experience symptoms of depression.
  • Mothers caring for children with cerebral palsy have double the risk for developing depression.

Trauma and Caregivers:

  • Traumatic pregnancies or traumatic medical events in a child’s life compounds the risk for depression and anxiety in caregivers.
  • Approximately 20% of parents of children with severe illnesses and medical treatment met the criteria for post-traumatic stress disorder in a 2021 Covid pandemic study.

Articles About Mental Health:

Books

Does My Child Have PTSD: What to Do When Your Child is Hurting from the Inside Out by Jolene Philo

Special Needs Parenting: From Coping to Thriving by Lorna Bradley

Mental Health and the Church: A Ministry Handbook for Including Children and Adults with ADHD, Anxiety, Mood Disorders, and Other Common Mental Health Conditions by Stephen Grcevich

Still Life: A Memoir of Living Fully with Depression by Gillian Marchenko

Resilience: The Protective Factor of Spirituality & Faith

Click Here to Read Transcript

References

Ano, G. G., & Vasconcelles, E. B. (2005). Religious Coping and Psychological Adjustment to Stress: A Meta-Analysis. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 461-480.

Brehaut, J. C., Guevremont, A., Arim, R., Garner, R. E., Miller, A. R., McGrail, K. M., . . . Kohen, D. E. (2019). Using Canadian Administrative Health Data to Examine the Health of Caregivers of Children With and Without Health Problems: A Demonstration of Feasibility. Retrieved from International Journal of Population Data Science: www.ijpds.org

Caruso, Jill M. “Stress, Anxiety, and Depression Experienced by Parents of Children with Special Needs and Self-Care Techniques.” ProQuest Dissertations Publishing, 2017.

Corsi, M., Orsini, A., Pedrinelli, V., Santangel, A., Bertelloni, C. A., Carli, N., . . . Carmassi, C. (2021). PTSD in Parents of Children with Severe Diseases: A Systematic Review to Face Covid-19 Impact. Italian Journal of Pediatrics, 1-7. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1186/s13052-021-00957-1

Gajeton, K. L. (2015). Religious Coping and Spiritual Struggles in Parents of Children with Autism Specturm Disorder. Virginia Beach, VA: Regent University.

Grubbs, J. B., Wilt, J., Stauner, N., Exline, J. J., & Pargament, K. I. (2016). Self, Struggle, and Soul: Linking Personality, Self-Concept, and Religious/Spiritual Struggle. Personality and Individual Differences, 144-152.

Keshavarz-Afshar, H., Sheikh, M., Karimian, A., & Ghahvehchi-Hosseini, F. (2016). Relationships Between Attachment to God and Marital Satisfaction and Mental Heath in Parents of Children with Special Needs. International Journal of Behavioral Science, 35-39.

McGuire, J. M., & Pace, A. C. (2018). Self-Stigma of Depression in Christians Versus the General Population. Mental Health, Religion, & Culture, 601-608.

Scherer, N., Verhey, I., & Kuper, H. (2019). Depression and Anxiety in Parents of Children with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. PLoS ONE, 1-18. Retrieved from https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0219888

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