Children with chronic medical conditions often suffer multiple blows to their mental well-being. A state program in California aims to provide appropriate treatment for these children and their families.

About a quarter of children in California have a chronic health condition. These include genetic disorders, birth defects, developmental delays, diabetes, and asthma. The rate is even higher among children of color, because of systemic racism that affects the conditions in which these children live and grow.

Research shows children with chronic illnesses are at least twice as likely as healthy children to develop a mental health disorder. They’re at higher risk for neglect and abuse. Their caregivers and siblings are also at increased risk for mental distress.

Yet there are few mental health treatment programs that cater to the needs of these children and their families.

“It’s kind of overlooked,” Distelberg said. “We always think of (these children) as, they have this physical health condition and we can really get behind that. But oftentimes what comes with that is all these additional stressors for the individual patient as well as the family system. Everything from the stress of just trying to deal with (the illness), to the financial stress that often comes with physical health challenges.”

Children with chronic medical conditions often suffer multiple blows to their mental well-being, said Daniel Tapanes, a psychotherapist who designed the MEND program and now helps to coordinate it. Children have expressed feeling like they’re “broken,” a burden on their families, or that they don’t belong because they look different from their peers or can’t participate in activities such as sports, sleepovers and parties.

Read the full article about mental health solutions for children with chronic illnesses by Claudia Boyd-Barrett at YES! Magazine.