Mental Health During the Pandemic

Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist Dr. Stefanie Hanisch joins us to discuss mental health, especially that of youth, during the current pandemic.

Dr. Hanisch was born and raised in South Africa. She attended medical school at the University of Pretoria, South Africa, before obtaining her fellowship in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX. She served as Chief Resident before moving to Fargo, ND. She has been in her current practice since 2007 and currently serves as her Department Chair in addition to having faculty appointment at the UND School of Medicine. Dr. Hanisch is married and has two sons. She enjoys traveling with her family and is an accomplished runner.

In this episode, we talk about mental health (with a focus on youth) during the pandemic. We discuss the following points:

How kids might respond differently based on their age and developmental level

How to talk with kids about their feelings and fears.

Validation of feelings

Spend time with the fear, and then transition to constructive thinking (what you can do about the situation)

The value of parental role modeling

How to maintain health for all during the pandemic

When to seek help: WHEN NEEDS OUTWEIGH RESOURCES

Available resources include:

Your primary care provider

First Link (211)

Emergency department

Health Pearl: take time to relax and destress. There are many great resources for this, including the following:

Headspace app

Ahway Island Podcast (for youth)

Calm app

Youtube Meditation

Peloton app - meditation, yoga, family work outs

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