Carson City Juvenile Services addresses concerns about anxiety in students

Carson City Juvenile Services hosted a parent engagement night Tuesday at the Carson City Community Center to discuss the cause of anxiety in youth and appropriate responses.

Juvenile Services staff members offer monthly presentations on topics impacting teens’ health. The goal is to prevent criminal behavior that leads to arrests or reduce recidivism if they’re already in the juvenile justice system.

“All of us experience working with children and the families,” said Stephanie Bellusa, mental health counselor and doctor of psychology for CCJS. “But you all are the experts on your children and you know them best and, you know when things aren't right with them.”

CCJS’ Mayela Quintanilla, LMSW, juvenile outreach specialist, suggested having a conversation with parents would be helpful since most might assume different definitions of what anxiety is, which to be diagnosed medically is excessive worrying more days than not for six months or longer, Bellusa said. Anxiety, which provides the cognitive, somatic, emotional and behavioral aspects that come together to create an uneasy state, can occur without specific triggers, Bellusa said, and often are difficult for a child to identify on his or her own. It also can occur while anticipating something that might happen in the future as someone “overprepares” to cope with an event that hasn’t happened, she said.

A person might also experience a separation anxiety disorder, which occurs in younger or older kids in middle school.

Bellusa said it’s important to watch for symptoms, which include a student experiencing excessive anxiety or worrying for more than six months; disorders, isolation, feeling restless or fidgeting, difficulty concentrating, becoming easily frustrated or angry, experiencing sleep disturbance and others.

Children also can experience social disorders. They might fear being judged in public or suffer post-traumatic stress disorder after a traumatic event and the individual begins ruminating on it and it takes hold on them, Bellusa said. In panic disorders, the anxiety causes symptoms of a racing heart, hyperventilation, sweaty palms and phobias, such as a fear of spiders.

There are helpful techniques to approach a loved one experiencing anxiety, Quintanilla and Bellusa said, before seeing a therapist, although consulting a professional might be necessary. Trying to change one’s outlook to help the child learn they can control their environment can have a positive effect, Bellusa said.

“I was working with someone who was being bullied and we changed the way that (that child) thought about the bullying,” she said. “It was, ‘Well, maybe that child has something going on in their home and they're taking it out on you,’ and this bullying still happened, but now they felt that they had a voice to go tell the teacher, and they weren't scared and would get other people involved. The situation didn't change, but the way they thought about it did.”

The family could try relaxation techniques with calming music, deep breathing exercises and perhaps avoiding technology for a short time.

“It’s hard to turn off from the world,” Quintanilla said. “But then sometimes, the phone is relaxation, so it’s about finding that balance.”

Bellusa ran a mobile crisis response team in Reno and helped to treat kids in crisis for anxiety, suicide ideation or homicide, and she created recommendations and provided treatment, she said.

Parents in the room offered suggestions like taking a walk, listening to audio books, practicing yoga or meditation or other hobbies as their means of relaxation. But whatever they enjoyed, Quintanilla and Bellusa said it’s important to have a plan for the family and conversations to help avoid outbursts at home or in school.

This year, the need to assist with anxiety has elevated and families have seemed especially attuned to it, they said.

“I know it might be coming up even more now because of what’s been going on through the schools with potential threats and things like that,” she told parents Tuesday. “Kids might be nervous to go to school. You all might be nervous to send them to school.”

Bellusa said it’s important to be compassionate and try to understand the child’s feelings from their point of view.

“You might not understand it, but obviously they are going through it, so as much as you can kind of meet them where they're at, whether you think this is, you know, legit or not, it is the way they're feeling, and if you change the way you're responding, that helps them,” she said.