Family Wise: A letter to the next president [SantaFeNewMexican.com]

Our kids are hurting. About 1 in 5 children suffer from some type of mental disorder. Some problems are mild, but others are serious, resulting in debilitating emotional and behavioral problems. Untreated disorders resonate throughout a person’s lifetime, with terrible consequences for both children and society.

You may be reluctant to take on this initiative, feeling that little can be accomplished with such an overwhelming problem. The good news is that there is a tremendous amount of scientific research to support how we can better care for these children.

Here is what you can do.

Focus on families. Let’s try to prevent problems from occurring rather than treating them after they develop. The key is to support healthy families. Many mental disorders can be prevented by decreasing the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences. The more of these events that occur in a child’s life, the greater the likelihood of problems.