Anxiety disorders are among the most common diagnoses in children and adolescents. Anxiety problems that begin in childhood are often quite damaging, leading to low self-esteem, social isolation, inadequate social skills, academic difficulties, and physical manifestations such as headaches and stomachaches. Actual prevalence rates of anxiety disorders reported in the literature vary, but may, in fact, range from approximately 9% to nearly 20% of pediatric patients. Many children with anxiety disorders become adults with anxiety disorders. Read more →

Who wants to admit that they need to see a psychiatrist? There is often an inner sense of shame and disgrace when people seek psychiatric consultation, yet the pain of mental illness compels many people to seek help from family doctors or psychiatrists.

Most people who suspect mental illness initially go to their family doctors. However, it is valuable if the ill person knows the pro’s and con’s of consulting their family doctor about their mental symptoms as opposed to a psychiatrist or who specializes in diagnosing and treating mental illness. Read more →