Mental health news

Image of a chatbot emerging froma smartphone

1 in 8 Youth Turn to AI for Mental Health. ‘It Just Tells Me What I Want to Hear’ 

Youth with the deepest emotional needs are using chatbots for therapy the most – but many are unhappy with the outcome.

Latest in Mental health news
California Tribal Advocate Who Fought to Prevent Suicides Dies in Apparent Murder-Suicide

Celinda Gonzales of the Yurok Tribe worked to prevent suicides among Native Americans after losing a son and a brother. She “was a friend to many,” the tribe said.

Ghost Guns, Made at Home on 3-D Printers, Are Linked to an Increase in Suicide Rates

Homemade ghost guns are raising new challenges around mental health, firearm access and suicide risk.

Countering the ‘Dark Passions’

Across liberal democracies and nations, like the U.S., that are sliding out of the democratic zone, autocrats are weaponizing our most divisive emotions. In "Anger, Fear, Domination," William A. Galston offers a guide to how these passions spread and what it takes to keep them from overwhelming us.

New York City’s Effort to Send Mental Health Workers to Crises Ends in Police Response 86% of the Time

Mayor Mamdani wants to speed up the expansion of community responders, but an analysis by THE CITY of existing efforts found that 911 dispatchers send cops in the vast majority of cases.

The Trauma and Resilience of Afghans: An Interview with Dr. Qais Alemi

Alemi says refugee trauma stems not only from war atrocities, but from cultural dislocation and the loss of language and identity,

Years After an Infamous Death, a Pennsylvania Jail Ups Use of Restraint Chairs

Prisoners with mental illness are most commonly subjected to use of these devices, which the United Nations calls a form of torture.

depressed boy in hallway
When Insurance Says No, Children Pay the Price

A proposed California law would force insurers to publicly disclose how often they deny care.

How Minecraft Therapy Is Transforming Child and Teen Mental Health Care

Two leading practitioners discuss how they do individual and group therapy that children want to take part in, using Minecraft, the most popular video game in the world. A MindSite News webinar.

Jazmine Mapes holds her son by the fence where she once lived in a tent while unhoused, just across the street from Los Angeles City Hall. Credit: Zaydee Sanchez for Tradeoffs and The Marshall Project
Homeless Camp Sweeps Can Harm Health. Some Cities Are Trying a New Way

Several cities and counties are addressing street homelessness with a new approach, which experts say can clear encampments while protecting the health of people who are forced to move.

Along the Mexico-U.S. Border, New Barriers to Harm Reduction

Border militarization is making it harder for healthcare workers to reach people who use drugs.

‘I’ve Never Seen Anything Like it.’ ICE Raids Sow Anxiety, Lead One Man to Ask: Should I Self-Deport?

Trump’s immigration crackdown is creating deep stress and fear among some longtime residents and prompting them to flee the country. They leave behind fractured communities and grieving loved ones.

Federal Budget Cuts Hit Youth Mental Health Corps in Colorado

Rural schools in Colorado have been making use of federal AmericaCorps funding to serve their students. Cuts by the Trump administration are making that a challenge.

With SNAP Benefits Delayed, Fountain House Clubhouses Scramble to Feed Hungry Members

From New York City to Salt Lake City, Fountain House and affiliated clubhouses have created plans to feed members impacted by cutoff of SNAP funds

For People Leaving Jail and Prison in California, Programs to Support Their Reentry Are a Lifeline

People in the reentry program can receive housing, job training and substance use treatment.

Gaza children have lived through more than two years of displacement, destruction, and repeated, unrelenting, exposure to distressing events, with limited or no access to safe spaces or mental health care.
What Comes Next for the Children of Gaza and Israel?

A look at the Gaza ceasefire, the difficult road to rebuilding and addressing mental health needs there, plus tips for couples on de-escalating arguments, and the changing trend of veteran suicide in the US.

Michigan’s LGBTQ+ student clubs create affirming spaces inside public schools 

Such alliances can provide LGBTQ+ students safe, welcoming places to connect 

Pétanque in Ukraine player Svitlana Brukhovetskaya of Irpin, Ukraine.
‘On The Field You Forget Everything’: A French Sport Is Healing Loneliness, PTSD Among Ukrainian Seniors

As Ukraine continues to grapple with the aftermath of war, the French game of pétanque has become an unexpected source of mental health relief for seniors and veterans.

Krystal Nice tried multiple times to get disability benefits for mental illness.
Why Getting Disability Benefits for Mental Illness Is So Hard

A shortage of mental-health providers and other barriers to proving a disabling condition can make qualifying for benefits especially challenging. Federal funding cuts could worsen the picture.

ICE Raids Bring Trauma and Fear to Los Angeles Latino Families

Therapists describe greater stress, anxiety, anger and fear among Latino patients in Los Angeles since immigration raids intensified in June.

How to Care for Your Mental Health as ICE Raids Continue
Newsom Promised Real Progress on Mental Health with CARE Court. Here’s What the Numbers Show

In the most-comprehensive look yet at whether people are using Gov. Gavin Newsom’s CARE Court, Calmatters found that far fewer Californians are enrolled in the mental health program than he projected.

‘We Can Walk the Journey With Them’: Another Way to Help Troubled Chicagoans in Crisis

A Chicago mental health provider is offering an alternative to police response by sending peer specialists to mental health crises.

In Pittsburgh, Involuntary Psych Hospitalizations Do More Harm Than Good

About 40% of involuntary commitments over a decade showed a trail of violence, overdose and suicide in Pittsburgh.

Settlement Commits New York State to Providing Kids with Community-Based Mental Health Services

Lack of community care has forced children into hospitals and residential facilities. Legal agreement charts a new direction.

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