How Seattle parents are coping with mental health struggles

Across the country, there are clear signs that many parents have struggled with their mental health in recent years. About 70% of all caregivers reported mental health symptoms such as anxiety or depression, according to findings published by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. in June 2021. The agency also reported a strong connection between the mental health of parents and that of their children When parents experience mental health symptoms like depression or anxiety, caring for their children can become more difficult, the agency reported.

In Washington, the 2021 Healthy Youth Survey found that 20% of 10th and 12th graders had reported that they had considered attempting suicide in the past year, while 69% of 10th graders and 74% of 12th graders had reported feeling nervous or anxious in the previous two weeks.

If you or someone you know is in crisis or having suicidal thoughts, help is available. Call or text the National Suicide and Crisis Helpline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255). Also, crisis connections of King County operates a toll-free, confidential 24-hour crisis line at 1-866-4-CRISIS (1-866-427-4747).

Dr. Michele Bedard-Gilligan, a clinical psychologist and associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Washington, said she recently noticed a theme among her parenting patients that involves heightened feelings that the world is less sure. They seem to feel more anxiety and fear about things like their children going to school or even running errands, particularly after news coverage of school shootings and hate crimes in public places like supermarkets, and the focus of local media about crime in Seattle. One of her patients recently decided to homeschool her children because she no longer trusted the school system to keep them safe from gun violence and COVID.

Bedard-Gilligan recommended that parents struggling with safety fears take some time to reflect on how many of their concerns are factual rather than emotional. She suggested that parents consider how much of their fear is based on actual experience and think about the likelihood of what they fear happening.

Natalie Serianni, whose two children are in first and fourth grades, said she remembered having to drive one of them to school the day after the shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, in May.

“I’m freaking out inside and now I have to go to work,” she said. “There just isn’t a lot of room or time to process some of that stuff.”

Serianni said it’s been helpful to write about these kinds of situations, take breaks when you need them, and just be more honest with your friends and family about how you’re doing, especially when you’re struggling.

In the Sound, which has more than a dozen facilities in Western Washington, children’s and family physicians reported seeing a 25% increase in parents and caregivers seeking mental health services since the pandemic hit the state.

Sound therapist West said she and her parent clients often discuss issues such as concerns about their parenting skills, job loss, struggles with childcare, feelings of loneliness and difficulty processing grief and loss.

Finding a therapist can be a challenge in Washington. according to a 2018 Washington State Health Assessment Reportthe most recent available, there was one provider for every 360 people in the state.

“We were a system that was pretty stretched to the limit before [the pandemic], and then we’ve really gotten so spread out that it’s hard,” Bedard-Gilligan said. “I will be the first to acknowledge that it is incredibly difficult to access mental health care right now.”

Often the biggest hurdle for parents is inside their own heads, said Alice Nichols, chair of the mental health organization’s board. Nami Washington.

“I think parents are worried about being judged,” he said. “And there’s so much blaming of mothers and fathers in our culture that a lot of times parents are afraid to share what’s really going on.”