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May 7 is National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day, set aside to bring attention to the issue and the community’s role in helping youngsters thrive. It is also a day to publicize treatment and support programs.

“Thriving in the Community” is the theme for this year’s celebration of mental wellness in children and adolescents. While focusing on the positive, the Children’s Mental Health Awareness initiative strives to increase awareness of the prevalence of mental health diagnoses in youngsters. The National Mental Health Association has compiled these statistics:

• One in five young people is affected by mental health problems at any time.
• As many as 33 percent of America’s children are depressed, and the percentage is even higher in adolescents.
• Suicide is No. 3 on the list of causes of death in 15- to 24-year-olds and No. 6 in 5- to 15-year-olds.
• Approximately 60 percent of teenagers in juvenile detention have mental health issues.

Because mental health disorders are diagnosed by their symptoms, paying attention to the following “warning signs” can alert people who regularly interact with a young person to the presence of a mental health problem and the need for professional help:

• Personality changes
• Inability to cope with daily life
• Strange or grandiose ideas
• Excessive anxieties
• Prolonged depression
• Eating and/or sleeping issues
• Talking about harming self or others
• Severe mood swings
• Substance abuse
• Excessive anger, hostility or violent behavior

There are some effective treatments for mental disorders in children and adolescents based on the “System of Care” philosophy, which stresses the importance of family and community supports in developing and implementing family and child-centered plans and services.

System of Care is the core of the best practices in children’s mental health treatment to achieve the most successful outcomes.

How can you learn more about the System of Care and community resources available to help Guilford County’s children and adolescents?

In conjunction with Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day and Mental Health Awareness Month, a local collaborative of parents, community advocates and health care agencies is hosting the second Children’s Mental Health Community Resource Fair on May 7 in Jamestown. Admission is free.

Parents, guardians, other caregivers, child care workers, teachers and community members who want to know more about children’s mental health issues may attend. The fair will include exhibits by local service providers and community resource agencies. Two local child mental health experts will speak.

Penny Casto is public information specialist with the Guilford Center. Contact her at pcasto@GuilfordCenter.com