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Children and adolescents experience many of the same mental health problems as adults but require specialized care. If you’re worried about your child’s mental health, contact Prashanth Pillai, MD, and Ksenia Pillai, MD, at The Fountain Group in Reston, Virginia. They have considerable experience helping children and young people with depression, eating disorders, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and other psychiatric conditions. Call The Fountain Group today or schedule a telehealth consultation online for superior child and adolescent psychiatry.
Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Q&A
What is child and adolescent psychiatry?
Child and adolescent psychiatry diagnoses and treats mental health conditions affecting children and teenagers. Symptoms that might indicate your child needs help include:
- Falling grades
- Refusing to go to school
- Continual hyperactivity
- Frequent, severe emotional meltdowns
- Depression (extreme sadness and hopelessness)
- Difficulties sleeping
- Loss of interest in leisure activities
- Persistent risk-taking
- Repeatedly acting without thinking
- Recurring nightmares or night terrors
- Aggressive language or behavior
- Difficulties concentrating
- Social isolation or significant friend group changes
- Alcohol or drug misuse
- Self-harm
It’s not always easy to tell if a child’s behavior is something to worry about because most children sometimes display challenging behaviors. The most telling clues are sudden or dramatic changes and frequent behaviors.
Contact the Fountain Group for advice if you have any concerns about your child or teenager’s mental health. Their psychiatrists care for people of all ages but specialize in child and adolescent psychiatry.
Which conditions do child and adolescent psychiatry treat?
Child and adolescent psychiatry helps young people struggling with:
- Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)
- Depression
- Eating disorders
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Separation anxiety disorder
- Substance use disorder
- Social anxiety disorder
- Bipolar disorder
Child and adolescent psychiatrists also offer specialized care to children with behavioral and developmental conditions. These include autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
In addition, you can get help for your child when they go through challenging experiences like losing a loved one, trauma, parents separating, or problems like anger and low self-esteem. Your child’s therapist completes an age-appropriate psychiatric evaluation to determine what treatments will best help them.
Which treatments are used in child and adolescent psychiatry?
Treatments The Fountain Group uses include psychotherapy (talk therapy) and medication.
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy involves your child talking about their feelings and problems to help them overcome negative thoughts and harmful experiences. You might attend sessions with your child, or they can speak to their psychiatrist alone. For convenience, all sessions take place using secure telehealth.
Medication
When correctly prescribed, medications are highly beneficial. They reduce the severest symptoms so that your child can better engage with talk therapy.
It’s vital to consult a doctor with expert knowledge of prescribing medication in children because the side effects and responses usually differ from adults. For example, certain antidepressants can increase suicidal thoughts in some young people.
Call The Fountain Group today or book an appointment online to discuss child and adolescent psychiatric care.