Fostering Mental Health Self-Advocacy
Many people with Asperger's — adults and children — grapple with anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues. Psychiatric diagnosis and medication may become a way of life, especially if the individual receives clinical benefit from this approach. The caveat lies in parents believing that this is the sole answer. Remember, the key is prevention, not intervention. It's never too early to shower your child with adoration and accolades that will become a foundation of strength for him. Finding a medication regime that is a good match is a trial-and-error process that may take time, sometimes months or years. However, medication isn't everything; if your life is still lousy and there is no positive change, medication can do only so much.
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Creating an informal circle of support around your child (that also includes him) will provide him with an unconditional place of communion with those who know and care for him best. The circle should create a positive, personalized plan of support — a map or blueprint — to complement the IEP (Individualized Education Program), psychiatric treatment plan, or other types of written documents designed to assist your child.
If you have confirmed that your child is suffering from a mental health problem, empower him to become self-aware in order to grow into a strong self-advocate. His ability to recognize his symptoms and know his needs is of great importance. What follows are examples to foster mental health self-advocacy in your child.
There are over 100 different chemicals in your body. Each chemical must have balance with the others so you can feel your best. Sometimes, the chemicals are unbalanced. When there is too much or too little of one chemical, it can change the way you think, feel, and behave. When this happens, you may be unable to control your thoughts, feelings, or behavior until the chemicals become balanced again. Your body may need medication to help the chemicals become balanced again.
Everyone has many different feelings. Some feelings may make you very happy. Other feelings may make you sad enough to cry. Feelings like happy and sad can also be called moods. Most people have moods that go from very happy to very sad. But when the chemicals in your body become unbalanced, your mood can become higher or lower than usual. When these changes happen it is called a mood disorder, because the moods are out of the usual order.
The mood disorder has two parts with different names. The highest mood is called mania. The lowest mood is called depression. Because mania and depression are two parts of one mood disorder, it is named bipolar disorder. Bi means two. Polar means poles, like the North Pole or the South Pole of planet Earth. Bipolar means two different poles that are opposite from one another. We think of being happy and sad as opposite from one another.
People who have mania say it feels as if their body is racing hard inside. They can be happier than usual. Or they can get so upset that they break things. Or they may hurt themselves or others even if they don't really mean to. They want to keep doing things they like to do without stopping. It may be hard to sleep or eat or think clearly. They may even believe they have superpowers and can do impossible things. This is harmful.
People who have depression feel sadder than usual. They may cry easily. They stop doing things they used to like a lot. They may feel tired all the time, no matter how much they sleep. Some people who have depression may not feel hungry. Others may feel hungry a lot. They may feel so bad inside that their bodies really hurt, and they can't find a way to make it better. It is like having an engine inside you that just won't start no matter what.
Bipolar disorder happens in cycles. This means that at certain times a person can feel either mania or depression. After the mood goes away, they may feel okay again. If someone has bipolar disorder, it is very important that others understand how it feels. It is especially important that a doctor understands how it feels.
Another strategy that has been effective is to partner with the child to draw the mental health problem as he envisions it. What has worked with many children is to imagine a car in which you are competing for control of the driver's seat. In the driver's seat, you're in control of the car, but if your mental health problem takes control, you may be bumped to the passenger seat, with limited control — or worse yet, you're bumped to the backseat or the trunk. Many children are able to accurately tell, on any given day, exactly where they are positioned in the car. The ability to independently articulate one's mental health experience will be of lifelong value for your child.
