Serving the Big Horn Basin for over 100 years
Serving the Big Horn Basin for over 100 years
On March 16, a grassroots committee hosted the Worland Mental Fitness Fair at the Worland Community Center.
Members of the panel were Dr. Ralph Louis, psychologist from Oxbow Center in Basin; Janae Harman, owner of Family Circle Counseling in Worland; Mary Johnson, CEO of Oxbow Center in Worland; and Carol Bell, provisionally licensed therapist at Foundations Counseling in Cody.
The panel answered prepared questions that came from the committee and from similar events in Shell, Greybull and Cowley.
The Northern Wyoming News will be covering the questions on a weekly basis throughout the next several weeks.
When is it typical teenage problems or something more serious?
Louis: The main thing is, do you know the teenager? Is it a change? Is it something that you’re worried about? Is it something that they seem to be struggling with?
Teenage years, for some people are difficult. There’s a lot to learn. And there’s a lot of change going on — physical, mental, our brains are changing quite a bit. People often struggle in teenage years, and we have to allow some room for that, because that’s how we learn.
My answer would be, there is no real clear answer to this question. But if you know your teenager, and if you see them change, and you have concern, get them help.
Harman: And we talked about earlier how to tell whether you need to get help with mental illness. And sometimes that’s like, your level of functioning.
So I I typically look at is this normal teenage behavior? Is it destructive? Have we gone so far that it’s become destructive and is going to be some serious repercussions? I think that’s an indication that help is needed. I second that, change isn’t a big deal, too.
But any time that it crosses into dangerous or impairing their life, then that’s an indication that it’s time for some action.
Louis: Yeah, again, another exclamation point. If we’re talking about violence, or we’re talking about danger to self or someone else, that’s always the time to intervene.
And if it’s a risk to you, and you’re worried about your own safety, it’s time for you to get some help, too. Make sure you change the situation or get out of the situation.
Next week: How do we treat anger issues?