CONTACTA HochFranken traditionally kicks off on the day before the trade fair opens with the regional teacher training course in the Audimax at Hof University of Applied Sciences. Prof. Dr. med. Michael Frey, Professor of Biopsychosocial Medicine, will speak today, Tuesday, 24.09.2024, from 4 p.m. on “Mental abnormalities in young people in school and training”. At a time when mental health is increasingly coming into focus, Prof. Frey will provide valuable insights into the causes, symptoms and support services for young people facing mental health challenges.
In our interview, Prof. Frey talks in advance about the key points of his lecture, why this topic is so relevant today and how teachers, parents and trainers can provide targeted support.
Could you start by giving us a brief overview of why there has been a greater focus on mental health problems in young people in recent years?
The Covid-19 pandemic has certainly played a decisive role. It became clear that children and young people in particular have suffered from the measures necessary to combat the pandemic. The significant increase in certain mental illnesses in children and young people during this time has focused the public’s attention on this.
In your experience, which mental health problems are most common among young people? Are there certain clinical pictures that are particularly on the rise?
In child and adolescent psychiatric and psychotherapeutic care, anxiety disorders and depression play a role alongside ADHD. The latter two have also increased the most compared to before the pandemic; not only in Germany, but also in many other countries.
In your opinion, what factors contribute most to the development of such disorders in young people? Do social media, school pressure or family problems play a greater role?
The development of mental illness is usually multifactorial, i.e. caused by numerous influencing factors. A possible predisposition plays just as much a role as environmental factors, e.g. family circumstances, and acute stressors. Social media and school can be both supportive and helpful as well as stress factors. Children and young people are particularly sensitive to social problems, social exclusion and conflicts in their social environment.
How can teachers, parents or friends recognize psychological problems? Are there early warning signs that are often overlooked?
Children and young people who display disruptive behavior, e.g. as part of ADHD or a social behavior disorder, usually get help earlier. However, those affected by anxiety and depression often only receive help after a long delay. They do not stand out, they withdraw, they don’t expose themselves and their problems to anyone. If such changes in behavior are observed, it is worth approaching those affected and asking about them.
What role do teachers play in recognizing and supporting pupils with mental health problems? In your opinion, where are the limits of the school’s influence?
Schools and teachers have a very significant influence. We also saw that during the pandemic. During this time, school was temporarily closed and the associated learning and practice areas, e.g. for social interaction, were also lost. This made it clear once again how important schools are for promoting psychosocial development in addition to imparting knowledge. Schools can make a significant contribution to the prevention and promotion of mental health.
However, teachers currently rightly complain that they are often confronted with mental health problems among their pupils that exceed their remit and often lead to a feeling of being overwhelmed. This means that the lack of timely child and adolescent psychiatric and psychotherapeutic care ultimately falls back on the school.
What measures can schools or the healthcare system take to identify and treat mental health problems at an early stage?
The most important approach is prevention, especially for children and young people. Measures that are generally health-promoting, such as a healthy diet, exercise, sufficient sleep and social integration, also contribute to mental health, which has been well documented by studies. In addition, knowledge transfer about mental illness and the associated destigmatization are crucial.
How do you see things developing over the next few years? Do you expect mental health problems among young people to continue to increase? What can be done to counteract this in the long term?
An increase in depressive disorders in particular could already be observed before the pandemic and this is likely to continue, including among adults. The causes of this have not been clarified, but are certainly to be found in our lifestyle. As a society, we must clearly focus on prevention for ethical, economic and healthcare policy reasons.
We would like to thank Prof. Dr. Frey for the interview!
