I just learned today that teens or people 18-22 years old are in “nowhere land” when it comes to mental health. They no longer fit with the high school teen groups and they are not appropriate for the adult groups. We had this same problem when my son was 11 and 12 years old. He was not appropriate for the elementary set, but also did not fit into the teen set. Out of desperation they may end up in groups that are more mature than them rather than the younger groups and I am not sure that is the best option.
Now that I think about it this could actually be a more difficult time than the teen years. At least the teen years there were people out there that could help and organizations that just dealt with teens. The other obstacle is once they are over 18 parents no longer have access to the medical records and the teen has to want help. I guess I knew this all along, but with 18 right around the corner it is becoming more of a reality and it opens up a whole new can of worms. Especially with a son that is struggling with age appropriate behaviors. The only thing to do is embrace the experience and not fight it or it is going to drive me crazy.
I wanted to throw these thoughts out there and see if anyone had a comment or experience with this transitional time.
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This is an interesting evaluation of mental health for the teen/ post teen ages. Both times can be difficult for many teens and parents alike. Parents and their kids have always struggled to find a way to make their relationships easy going and fancy free, despite any sort of problems that may arise. Country Music Television’s show “World’s Strictest Parents” has come up with a way to help. They have a website, http://www.cmtworldsstrictestparents.com where you can use the Parenting Survival Guide as an aid to help solve your problems with your kids. It’s a really great site – and they have some fun interactive stuff too! Definitely check it out for some parenting tips, share some advice, and have a little fun while you’re at it!
I don’t have any experience with this age yet, but it is on the horizon, only 11 months away (the magic 18.) You are right, there are very few services for that 18-22 age group. I spend hours on the internet looking for possible services for when my son hits that age, and come up empty-handed. There are practical issues as well–what happens when they get kicked off the family insurance when they turn 18? How to pay for the expensive psych meds? It is a huge worry for me–it is not like someone throws pixie dust on them when they turn 18 and suddenly their minds are clear and they are full of good judgment and always make the right decisions. Once they turn 18 and graduate from high school there seems to be very little out there for them. And I know what you mean about age appropriate–my 15 year old son got tired of hanging around the Alano Club with 50 year olds. If you are rich, there are programs for kids this age, but there doesn’t seem to be any county or state programs to help them make this transition.