Cybersynapse Podcast: Episode 3

The long term impact of negative childhood experiences

20 NOVEMBER 2017 / Insight

“The film is a documentary highlighting ground-breaking research about the impact of ACEs on children throughout their whole lives. ACEs are traumatic situations and events in a child’s life which can have long-term negative effects on their health and well-being. As well as all forms of abuse and neglect, ACEs include experiences such as parental substance misuse, parental mental health problems or having a parent or carer in prison. The film beautifully crafts together statistics and first-hand testimony.”

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Family therapy for anorexia: can it create closeness and containment in parent-adolescent relationships?

"In England, family therapy is recommended in the NICE guidelines as a therapeutic approach for anorexia. This study was carried out in Australia, and concerns a manualised family therapy aptly named Family-Based Therapy (FBT) (Lock & Le Grange, 2013). FBT is a 20-session therapy that starts by placing the responsibility for food and meals firmly with the parents, and then builds on the family’s reactions to this change through exploration of family communication and relationships."

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"Neuro-plasticity, Resilience and Kids in Pain"

"Resilience research and neuroscience show that young people can overcome trauma and mistreatment and become stronger in the process. The number of caring “adults” outside the family continues to be a major predictor for success in high risk youngsters."


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Mental health service models

"The Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST) has published a research briefing describing new models of children and young people’s mental health services (CYPMHS) being developed by Clinical Commissioning Groups in England. Models being developed include: whole-system models, schools-based models, and community based models."Source:  UK Parliament  Date: 06 October 2017

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2017 Children's Mental Health Report - Child Mind Institute

"In this year’s report, we take a look at the teenage years, highlighting unique factors that make adolescence exciting, important, and potentially dangerous — including its role as a significant risk period for mental health disorders"

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"Mental Ill Health Across Children of the New Century"

"This briefng paper summarises the prevalence of mental health problems among children taking part in the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS), which is a representative group of children born in the UK at the start of this century."


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"Childhoods in a Digital World"

"So swift has been the pace of change that future historians will likely view this period as an overarching era of change, much the same as we now view periods such as the Enlightenment or the Industrial Revolution. Indeed, ecologists and economists have identified the start of this millennium as a new human epoch – the Anthropocene – because of the fundamental shift in society brought by our mass access to commerce, automation and data. And so, internet access is both the biggest challenge but also the biggest opportunity for young people growing up in the UK today. "

 Source: Barnardo’s  Date: 19 September 2017

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What happens when google knows you're depressed?

"Google users should consider the potential damage the search engine's new depression questionnaire could do to their digital profile in the eyes of insurers and employers."

"The knowledge graph reassures the user “No individual data linking you to your answers will be used by Google without your consent. Some anonymised data may be used in aggregate to improve your experience.” In mental health, an area too often overlooked, we can be too quick to ignore the potential for damage in the seemingly beneficent actions of those in power. Data allows you to make models and models shape decisions. If you successfully turn a thing into data you can turn it into a commodity. These questionnaires, given with consent, may allow Google to confirm its hunches about who is and isn’t depressed"

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CAMHS shortfall is having a deadly affect on young people

"Why are the regulators and the Government deaf to the needs of some of the most vulnerable young people in our society?

Firstly, there is a lack of understanding that children don’t suddenly become sick, then have a few months treatment and are cured. Meaningful provision means preventative steps must be taken to protect our young minds from an early age.

We need far more robust education in our schools and care homes to identify the signs of mental health – and strategies and support put in place to help these worried youngsters.

It is also crucial that there are ‘step down’ facilities so young people have the support to re-integrate them into society and are not just dumped back in the situation that caused their illness in the first instance."

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School exclusion may trigger mental health problems

"The researchers from the University of Exeter who looked at responses from over 5,000 school-aged children said that young people could develop depression, anxiety and disturbed behaviour.

Relatively few pupils are expelled from school, but Professor Ford warned that even temporary exclusions can amplify psychological distress."

Link - school exclusion leading to mental health issues

UK data protection law

"The Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) has published a statement of intent outlining planned reforms in the Data Protection Bill. Reforms include: giving individuals more control over their personal data by providing easier access; parents or guardians will be required to give consent to information services where a child is under the age of 13; the right to be forgotten whereby individuals will be able to ask for their personal data to be erased - this will include provision to allow people to require social media platforms to delete information they posted during their childhood."

Source: DCMS  Date: 07 August 2017

Further information: A new Data Protection Bill: our planned reforms (PDF)

Must children fall into crisis before they get the help they need?

"Children’s services are under increasing pressure. As purse strings tighten, and children’s services have to respond to an ever-widening range of challenges, is there a risk we often only help those in most dire need?

A group of MPs and Peers is aiming to understand these pressures, and establish how high the bar is before services step in to help a child in need.

The All Party Parliamentary Group for Children (APPGC) is conducting a new Inquiry into the causes of variation in the thresholds for accessing children’s social care services. We are keen to hear directly from social workers about how decisions around threshold levels are made in practice. "

NCB accessed 07-08-17

LINK to full article

Resilience: A skill your child really needs to learn (and what you can do to help)

"Resilience is the ability to overcome hardship and be okay. It’s the ability to navigate life’s inevitable bumps and still be happy and healthy and stay on track. What worries me sometimes is that our current parenting culture of achievement and obsessing over safety — and the way that electronic devices have become so ubiquitous — may get in the way of learning resilience.

According to Harvard University’s Center on the Developing Child, there are four factors that help children develop resilience."...

• Supportive adult-child relationships
• A sense of self-efficacy and perceived control
• Strong adaptive skills and self-regulatory capacities
• Being able to mobilize sources of faith, hope, and cultural traditions

Full article

"In A Heart Beat"-New Pixar Movie

"In a Heartbeat was put together by Ringling College of Art and Design students Beth David and Esteban Bravo as their computer animation thesis, but it has now taken on much more of a life than just a school project. It deals with a young boy struggling to come to terms with his feelings for a handsome peer, a topic never previously explored by animated film, and features an adorable jumping heart that is just begging to be made into a new Pixar mascot. In just 4 minutes, it captures the experience of countless LGBTQ youth, and shows them that there’s nothing to be afraid of."

Video Link

The AE Process

"Simply put, the AE Process is a way for people with Asperger’s and their families to have a better life. It was created by people with Asperger’s, and has now been tested with tens of thousands of people all around the world.
There are 3 main parts to successfully implementing the AE Process. These are: Community & Capacity, Culture & Connection and Change.

The entirety of the AE Process DOES NOT need to be implemented at once to see results. Pick 1 box, implement it, then pick another.Start with whatever piece you feel suits you best, and then move to the next. We suggest you move from left to right: Establish a solid foundational community and emotional capacity, then work on Culture & Connection and finally learn how to effectively change."

The more you implement, the more results you’ll see.
Watch the video below - 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-b_F1fAy6A

22 APPS THAT HELP OUR MENTAL HEALTH

JUNE 8, 2017 | MANAGING DEPRESSION | BY BLURT TEAM

"Although we love our phones, many of us find them a source of stress. Scrolling through insta-perfect images can impact on our self-esteem, and constant notifications are overwhelming and tiring.

However, our phones can also be super self-care tools. There are lots of apps out there designed to help us manage our mental health"

https://www.blurtitout.org/2017/06/08/apps-help-mental-health/

"The bold new fight to eradicate suicide"

"A simple belief drives Steve: that Edward’s death was preventable – at several stages during the rapid onset of his depression. Moreover, he and a growing number of mental health experts believe this applies to all suicides. They argue that with a well-funded, better-coordinated strategy that would reform attitudes and approaches in almost every sector of society – from schools and hospitals to police stations and the family home – it might be possible to prevent every suicide, or at least to aspire to do so."


https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/aug/01/zero-suicide-the-bold-new-fight-to-eradicate-suicide

Suicide by children and young people

The University of Manchester has published findings from a study of  suicide by children and young people aged under 25 in England and Wales during 2014 and 2015. Information collected on 922 suicides includes: 9% of under 20s who died had been looked after children, and self-harm was reported in 52% of under 20′s and 41% of 20-24 year olds who died.

Source: University of Manchester  Date: 13 July 2017

  http://research.bmh.manchester.ac.uk/cmhs/research/centreforsuicideprevention/nci/reports/cyp_2017_report.pdf

Website to support school and college staff to keep children and young people safe

The Centre for Research on Children and Families at the University of East Anglia (UEA), has launched a website to support school and college staff in understanding abuse and neglect from the child or young person’s point of view. The iCAN website includes free training materials and resources for schools and colleges, and a framework to help teachers and other school and college staff to be alert to children and young people who may be experiencing abuse or neglect, and to better understand: to what extent children and young people recognise maltreatment and how they decide whether to tell someone about it; how they may show their distress, even when they can’t talk about it; and what children and young people think about the help they receive.

Source: UEA  Date: 17 July 2017

http://www.uea.ac.uk/ican/

Children's Commissioners Report on Vulnerability

"New analysis from the Children’s Commissioner for England reveals, for the first time, the scale of vulnerability among children in England. These reports bring together a range of information held by various government departments, agencies and others. Its initial analysis reveals a host of shocking statistics about the number of children living in vulnerable situations."

• Over half a million children so vulnerable that the state has to step in

• 670,000 children in England growing up in ‘high risk’ family situations

• Thousands of children living with adults in treatment for drink or drugs

• 800,000 children suffering from mental health difficulties

• Tens of thousands of children involved with gangs

• Over a thousand new child victims of slavery each year

• Many more children under the radar, not being seen

https://www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/publication/childrens-commissioners-report-on-vulnerability/

The impact of childhood abuse: what can we learn from neuroscience?

3 APRIL 2017 / Insight

Professor Eamon McCrory shares the theory of latent vulnerability – and how a new clinical tool could help children’s mental health 

https://www.nspcc.org.uk/services-and-resources/impact-evidence-evaluation-child-protection/impact-and-evidence-insights/the-impact-of-childhood-abuse-what-can-we-learn-from-neuroscience

Partnership for Young London - Data

Partnership for Young London has published a collection of data sources about young people across the UK using official statistics and data from independent research. Statistics are provided for 10 subject areas including: mental health; bullying in education; children in care; safeguarding and homelessness

CASPAR alert from NSPCC Knowledge and Information Services for week commencing Tuesday 03 January 2017
http://www.partnershipforyounglondon.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Young-People-Count-2016.pdf