In reading the postings on Thirteen, the question of 'how do youthworkers respond to teen girl depression' became an apparent deep question that requires further discussion. Apparently, depression affects at least one in ten girls each year!As a result, I have created an additional posting to discuss possible solutions to this issue.
Major Janet Ashcraft (MA, Counseling) - a colleague of mine at Project 1:17, and a trained counselor - is going to post suggestions on what to do/steps to take when you see this issue emerging in your after-school program or youth group.
In the meantime, I would recommend reading Mary Pipher's Reviving Ophelia: Saving the selves of adolescent girls. Thank you, Janet for being willing to comment on this critical topic.
Steve
Update: February 8, 2006
I just received a couple of additional links from Janet. Here they are:
National Institute of Mental Health on Teen Depression
Chirstianity Today Article on Cutting
3 comments:
Thank you Janet for taking time out of your hectic schedule to write this response. I hope that it helps frame our discussion for possible solutions.
If anyone else has suggestions/ imaginative strategies for dealing with such an issue, I encourage you to post.
Steve
Thanks again Mrs.Ashcraft for taking the time to write this. I think that a problem allot of people deal with in a relationship is that they think that people will judge them based on decisions they have made in the past or things they have heard. And there are definitely people who do that. I know plenty of people who feel that way and therefore don't really build relationships with others or are too scared to.
Just some thoughts..
Allison
Hi Allison,
One of the best descriptions I've heard of to describe what a Corps should be, is by Commissioner Phil Needham. He calls the church a 'grace-based community' (in the book "Community in Mission")
Unfortunately, we don't always rise up to this standard (which is incredibly unfortunate), but this is something that we need to strive to do.
So, when people who come into our churches are different then us (whether it be pierced and tattooed; from a different ethnic background; are financially poor or WHATEVER) We are to be an open community that invites in the WHOSOEVER - that is at the heart of a grace-based community.
Maybe it's worth all of us asking ourselves what we would do if someone like Tracy were to come into our Corps? I hope we would respond as Christ does.
Keep up the great postings,
Steve
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