Behavioral and mental health services in schools can transform the culture of the entire institution.
The years of K-12 education are critical for avoiding mental health challenges developing into life-long conditions.
Entering higher education signifies a massive transition in any student’s life. Behavioral health support can help smooth this change.
How does TrueCare™’s Behavioral Health Counseling for Students Work?
Behavioral and mental health conditions can develop at any age. However, statistics show that most life-long diagnosable mental health conditions have started by the time a person reaches the age of 14. That means access to mental health support, including behavioral health counseling, is never more critical than during the K-12 years.
Behavioral and mental health challenges can vary widely from person to person. Some students experience challenges due to stress caused by their academic work. Others are working to come to terms with childhood trauma, for example. Because of those variations, mental and behavioral health care needs to approach each student individually.
TrueCare™ has developed diverse methods based on the needs of the individual student. That is why our counselors start with a thorough assessment of the child or young person to understand their challenges truly. Based on that, our professional counselors will recommend a course of treatment aimed at identifying and working through the underlying causes of the problem.
Each course of treatment is uniquely geared towards individual clients to ensure the best possible outcome.
Why Should You Consider TrueCare™ for School Counseling Services?
TrueCare™ is a well-established, proven provider of mental and behavioral health care services across the United States. Over time, our company has built an extensive network of counselors with versatile expertise and experience.
This broad network allows us to address various conditions in different settings, including educational institutions. All TrueCare™ counselors have been screened, giving school administrators the peace of mind of knowing they can rely on their support and knowledge to help their students.
As a team, we can offer counseling and other treatments for various mental health challenges that are common during the K-12 years and in higher education.
Whether students need support in their academic achievement or struggle with conditions like Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), TrueCare™ Counselors have the experience to address these issues.
Educational institutions benefit by being able to offer support directly where the students are. There is no need to travel across town for an appointment, losing valuable study time in the process. Instead, offering mental and behavioral health support in school breaks down some of the stigma surrounding these challenges and makes it easy to access customized help.
How does School Affect Mental Health?
It is easy but overly simplistic to remember childhood and college years nostalgically. In reality, most students going through education find their time in high school or college at least partially challenging.
Being able to access professional help during those critical years can be life-changing. Suffering from behavioral or mental health challenges without access to professional support to address those problems can hamper a person’s entire adult life. On the other hand, relying on qualified advice is often the key to unlocking outstanding performances, both academically and otherwise.
Students may suffer from a wide variety of behavioral and mental health challenges during K-12 as well as higher education. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), pre-college, ADHD, anxiety, and behavioral problems are among the most diagnosed conditions, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Those illnesses affect nearly one in ten students.
At the same time, the educational environment itself may bring challenges. It is not uncommon for students to become stressed by academic pressures. For many, chances of attending college depend on academic and athletic performance. Sustaining a certain level of performance can be difficult.
Students may also struggle with social anxiety or peer pressure. Whether it is caused by bullying, shyness, or transitioning from one school to another, the challenge becomes easier to navigate with professional help.
Concerning transitions, entering college is one of the most significant steps in a young person’s life. For many students, this is their first time living away from home. Some have to travel great distances to college, making it harder to return to a familiar environment.
In many ways, going to college disrupts every single routine established during the K-12 years. Patterns and habits are critical to good mental health. Re-establishing healthy habits or creating new, positive practices is the core of effective behavioral health care. Students with access to this support will find it easier to succeed during their college years.
Benefits of Mental Health Services in School
Mental and behavioral health services can transform schools.
Teachers benefit from calmer classrooms where students can concentrate and achieve more. Consequently, students’ overall academic results improve. It is not only beneficial for the individual students but also enhances the school’s reputation.
At a high-school level, improved mental health leads to fewer drop-outs and more students moving on to a college education. In college, behavioral health care counseling not only helps navigate the transition from living with family to living with roommates. This type of counseling also allows students to develop new, healthy routines.
Counseling can help prevent or deal with alcohol and substance abuse. Professional behavioral health support also includes practical advice on healthy eating and forming positive relationships and friendships.
Students with access to mental and behavioral health care when needed are more capable of balancing physical, mental, and behavioral health in later life. For schools, the long-term benefits of offering these services include improved ratings.
With higher ratings, schools can attract outstanding students and, in many cases, additional funding.
Pros and Cons of Mental Health Services for Students
The pros far outweigh the cons when it comes to offering mental health services in schools and colleges. Making these services available to students supports not only the students themselves. Teachers will notice better behavior during lessons and a calmer, more supportive working environment.
The entire atmosphere of a school can be transformed with the help of behavioral health support.
Pros of behavioral health support:
- Improved academic performance
- Improved socializing and eating habits
- Fewer conflicts between students as well as students and teachers
- Improved ratings for schools
Cons of behavioral health support:
- Cost of offering the service, although benefits will offset this
- Access to mental health support is less discreet than private, off-campus appointments
In many cases, the ease of access to support far outshines potential concerns about a lack of privacy associated with in-school or on-campus support. Plus, offering mental health support openly and making mental health concerns a regular topic of conversation helps break down the stigma surrounding these issues.
FAQs on Behavioral Health Services in Schools, K-12 and Higher Education
Behavioral health services can transform the entire atmosphere of a school. Students gain from having easy access to professional support to deal with the pressures of full-time education. Teachers enjoy calmer teaching environments, and many schools will see their overall ratings improve.
Working with a proven partner like TrueCare™ gives schools a simple and cost-effective way of offering behavioral health care services. Rather than hiring an in-house counseling team, schools access our nationwide network of experienced counselors as and when their students require support.
TrueCare™ counselors offer a wide range of behavioral health counseling services tailored to each student’s needs. Plus, schools are not tied to long-term contracts. Instead, they can access counseling as necessary.
Why are behavioral health services essential during the K-12 years?
Most lifetime diagnosable mental health conditions have started developing by the time a person turns 14. Early support can prevent mental health challenges from becoming diagnosable and allow students to lead happier lives.
School guidance counselors have a varied role that comes with a busy schedule. They cannot deliver one-on-one counseling sessions to students with varying behavioral health concerns.
Behavioral health professionals specialize in delivering this type of counseling, following a thorough assessment of their client.
Both counselors may have the same training and educational background, but their roles differ significantly.
Moving out of home for the first time is a huge transition that disrupts routines and demands a lot from students. Professional support can make the difference between a person’s college years being a challenge or a success. This difference can influence their entire adult life.
Apart from dealing with the transition to college, it is not uncommon for students to suffer from depression and anxiety. Sometimes, these issues are related to their academic work, but often there are deeper underlying causes.
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