Mental health issues among youths introduction

One of the most crucial stages in the lifespan of man is the adolescence which is labelled as the time of youth.  It is essentially the stage between childhood and adulthood which precariously determines the final outcome of a life. Unfortunately it is often mismanaged because the custodians of this cohort namely parents, teachers,   and other significant stakeholders do not have a well-thought out training agenda or at worst deploy ineffective traditional training techniques that have not essentially proven good.  The youth is unfortunately saddled with a body that has all the embodiments of adulthood but with a mind that is just growing and devoid of mastery that comes with years of experience. The hormones are powerful chemicals that activate the secondary sexual characteristics in the physical body which rushes them into ideological, emotional, cognitive and religious tendencies that may be destructive when they are not guided. This makes them vulnerable to mental illness that manifests in antisocial and self-destructive manner.
Mental health problems seem to have increased considerably among adolescents in the past 20-30 years. The rise has been driven by social change, including disruption of family structure, growing youth unemployment, and increasing educational and vocational pressures. The prevalence of mental health disorders among 11 to 15 year olds in Great Britain is estimated to be 11%, with conduct problems more common among boys and depression and anxiety more common among girls.1
Globally, it is estimated that 10-20% of adolescents experience mental health conditions. Half of all mental health conditions start by 14 years of age, but most cases are undetected and untreated. Suicide is the second leading cause of death among people who fall within the (15 – 29) age bracket. Depression in adolescents is a major risk factor for suicide, the second-to-third leading cause of death in this demographic. Girls are two times more likely than boys to be diagnosed with depression in adolescence and throughout the course of their life. But boys have issues with anger and engage in risky behaviours. Research also further proves that gender-based differences contribute significantly to the prevalence of mental health issues among young persons.

Lower self-esteem and anxiety over their body-image experienced by adolescent girls when compared to boys in the same age group is known to result in a higher prevalence of depression and of eating disorders in adolescent girls when compared to adolescent boys. In adults, there is a high incidence of depression and anxiety among women, while antisocial behaviours and substance use disorders are higher in men.
Although there is a rising research on the mental health literacy of adults, there is yet to be a parallel interest in the mental health literacy of young people especially in Nigeria. Some of the policies on mental health and development in Nigeria – the Mental Health Policy formulated in 1991, National Adolescent Health Policy (NAHP), and National Youth Policy (NYP) – do not earnestly address the issues of mental health among adolescents and young persons   just as there is a lacuna on data/statistics concerning the prevalence, pattern of mental disorders among young persons in Nigeria.
The result of this information gap is the continual disregard for mental health issues and the need for preventive services for young persons. It is important to understand the rate and distribution of these disorders among the population, to improve the health conditions of adolescents with psychiatric disorders.2
CONCEPTUAL DEFINITIONS 
An attempt has been made to define youth above in general terms but more specifically WHO defines ‘Adolescents’ as individuals in the 10-19 years age group and ‘Youth’as the 15-24 year age group which means that ‘Young people’ in general terms cover the age range 10-24 years.3 There are other terminologies that are subsumed into what we call the Youth as ‘Teenagers’ and ‘Young adults’.
The World Health Organization defines health as a state of physical, emotional and social well-being and not just the absence of physical infirmity4 which in my opinion takes health from just the narrow perspective of a clinical paradigm. The World Health Organization defines mental health as a “state of well-being whereby individuals recognize their abilities, are able to cope with the normal stresses of life, work productively and fruitfully, and make a contribution to their communities5.”
Applying such adult based definitions to adolescents and identifying mental health problems in young people can be difficult, given the substantial changes in behaviour, thinking capacities, and identity that occur during the teenage years. The impact of changing youth subcultures on behaviour and priorities can also make it difficult to define mental health and mental health problems in adolescents. Although mental disorders reflect psychiatric disturbance, adolescents may be affected more broadly by mental health problems. These include various difficulties and burdens that interfere with adolescent development and adversely affect quality of life emotionally, socially, and vocationally.6
This limitation in applying the basic mental health definition to the youth consequent on their adventurous, restless and confrontational attitude of the youth can be explained by Piaget’s theory of cognitive development which is a comprehensive theory about the nature and development of human intelligence. Piaget believed that one’s childhood plays a vital and active role in a person’s development. The theory deals with the nature of knowledge itself and how humans gradually come to acquire, construct, and use it7 To Piaget, cognitive development was a progressive reorganization of mental processes resulting from biological maturation and environmental experience. The final stage is known as the formal operational stage (adolescence and into adulthood, roughly ages 11 to approximately 15-20): Intelligence is demonstrated through the logical use of symbols related to abstract concepts. This form of thought includes “assumptions that have no necessary relation to reality.8” At this point, the person is capable of hypothetical and deductive reasoning. During this time, people develop the ability to think about abstract concepts.
Piaget stated that “hypothetico-deductive reasoning” becomes important during the formal operational stage. This type of thinking involves hypothetical “what-if” situations that are not always rooted in reality, i.e. counterfactual thinking. It is often required in science and mathematics. Abstract thought emerges during the formal operational stage. Children tend to think very concretely and specifically in earlier stages, and begin to consider possible outcomes and consequences of actions. Metacognition, the capacity for “thinking about thinking” that allows adolescents and adults to reason about their thought processes and monitor them. Problem-solving is demonstrated when children use trial-and-error to solve problems. The ability to systematically solve a problem in a logical and methodical way emerges.
While children in primary school years mostly used inductive reasoning, drawing general conclusions from personal experiences and specific facts, adolescents become capable of deductive reasoning, in which they draw specific conclusions from abstract concepts using logic. This capability results from their capacity to think hypothetically9
The adolescent is naturally equipped by nature to challenge the status quo because he must make deductions of his hypothesis. He is naturally adventurous and reckless at this point as he performs dangerous experiments to validate his theories in the search for identity.  The craving for meaning although a lifelong preoccupation becomes an intense need in the adolescent period. The desire for varied sexual adventures becomes very strong because of the hormonal stimulation often times resulting in unwanted pregnancies and other social menace.
IMPLICATIONS ON MENTAL HEALTH OF YOUTH
1. RISK-TAKING BEHAVIOURS AND VIOLENCE 
Many risk-taking behaviours for health, such as substance use or sexual risk taking, start during adolescence. Risk-taking behaviours can be both an unhelpful strategy to cope with poor mental health and can severely impact an adolescent’s mental and physical well-being. Perpetration of violence is a risk-taking behaviour that can increase the likelihood of low educational attainment, injury, involvement with crime or death. Interpersonal violence was ranked the second leading cause of death of older adolescent boys in 2016. Interpersonal violence is the fourth leading cause of death in adolescents and young people globally. Its prominence varies substantially by world region. It causes nearly a third of all adolescent male deaths in low- and middle-income countries in the WHO Region of the Americas. According to the global school-based student health survey 42% of adolescent boys and 37% of adolescent girls were exposed to bullying. Sexual violence also affects a significant proportion of youth: 1 in 8 young people report sexual abuse.10
Risk-taking behaviour during adolescence also increases the risks of injury, HIV and other sexually transmitted infections, mental health problems, poor school performance and dropout, early pregnancy, reproductive health problems, and communicable and non- communicable diseases. An estimated 1.7 million adolescents (age 10–19 years) were living with HIV in 2019 with around 90% in the WHO African Region (2).  While there have been substantial declines in new infections amongst adolescents from a peak in 1994, adolescents still account for about 10% of new adult HIV infections, with three-quarters amongst adolescent girls . Additionally, while new infections may have fallen in many of the most severely affected countries, recent testing coverage remains low suggesting that many adolescents and young people living with HIV may not know their status.11
Unintentional injuries are the leading cause of death and disability among adolescents. In 2019, over 115 000 adolescents died as a result of road traffic accidents. Many of those who died were “vulnerable road users”, including pedestrians, cyclists or users of motorized two-wheelers. Drowning is also among the top causes of death among adolescents – more than 30 000 adolescents, over three quarters of them boys, are estimated to have drowned in 201910.
2. EMOTIONAL DISORDERS 
As a consequence of the peculiarity of the dominant cognitive tasks of hypotheticodeductive reasoning and the evolving hormonal state; certain emotional disorders commonly emerge during adolescence. In addition to depression or anxiety, adolescents with emotional disorders can also experience excessive irritability, frustration or anger. Symptoms can overlap across more than one emotional disorder with rapid and unexpected changes in mood and emotional outbursts. Younger adolescents may additionally develop emotion-related physical symptoms such as stomach ache, headache or nausea. These may not be significant enough to be classified as mental health disorders but they could cause dysfunction in the life of the youths. Emotional disorders can profoundly affect areas like schoolwork and school attendance. Social withdrawal can exacerbate isolation and loneliness. At its worse, it may lead to depression can invariably lead to suicide.
3. CHILDHOOD BEHAVIOURAL DISORDERS
Childhood behavioural disorders are the second leading cause of disease burden in young adolescents aged 10-14 years and the eleventh leading cause among older adolescents aged 15-19 years. Childhood behavioural disorders include attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (characterized by difficulty paying attention, excessive activity and acting without regards to consequences, which are otherwise not appropriate for a person's age), and conduct disorder (with symptoms of destructive or challenging behaviour). Childhood behavioural disorders can affect adolescents’ education and may result in criminal behaviour especially when not resolved.
4. EATING DISORDERS
Eating disorders commonly emerge during adolescence and young adulthood. Eating disorders affect females more commonly than males. Conditions such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder are characterised by harmful eating behaviours such as restricting calories or binge eating. Eating disorders are detrimental to health and often co-exist with depression, anxiety and/or substance misuse. This is not unconnected with globalization of values that dominate the social psychology of the youths in terms of fashion and body image preoccupation.
5 MAJOR PSYCHIATRIC DISORDERS
Conditions that include symptoms of psychosis most commonly emerge in late adolescence or early adulthood. Symptoms can include hallucinations or delusions. These experiences can impair an adolescent’s ability to participate in daily life and education and often lead to stigma or human rights violations.
A). Depression – This a major mental health disorder which is of great priority   in adolescent mental health because it can be easily missed with grave consequences. It has been found out that at any one time 8% to 10% of adolescents have severe depression which may not be detected and not have professional attention.  It has been discovered that the transition from childhood to adulthood may be marked with depressive illnesses especially among boys but often masked but with a much increased incidence among females in adulthood. 
There are potential risk factors for developing depressive illness in adolescence such as low mood, loss of interest in usual activities, some persistent vague complaints of pains in the head and abdomen coupled with self –harming behaviors, social withdrawal and loneliness. Adolescents with antisocial behavior such as theft and robbery and abrupt changes   in school performance may require some clinical assessment. There is a close relationship between the abuse of psychoactive substances and depressive illness. 
Classical  Sign and symptoms of severe depressive illness  may include  Persistent sad or irritable mood,  Loss of interest in activities once enjoyed,  Substantial change in appetite or body weight , Oversleeping or difficulty sleeping,  Psychomotor agitation or retardation, Loss of energy, Feelings of worthlessness or inappropriate guilt, Difficulty concentrating, Recurrent thoughts of death or suicide6 (Five or more of these symptoms (including at least one of the first two) must persist for two or more weeks before major depression can be diagnosed.)
B) Anxiety disorders are relatively common in adolescents and often persist into adulthood. Whereas separation anxiety disorder and mutism are more prevalent among younger children, generalised anxiety disorder and panic attacks emerge during adolescence. Generalised anxiety disorder is marked by uncontrolled excessive worrying, accompanied by difficulty in concentrating, irritability, sleep problems, and often fatigue. Panic disorder is characterised by recurrent spontaneous panic attacks, often associated with physiological and psychological signs and symptoms. As with other mental health problems in adolescence, anxiety disorders are often accompanied by other conditions, particularly depression.​ As many anxiety disorders during adolescence are accompanied by physical symptoms, careful evaluation is needed—at least a complete medical history and a comprehensive physical examination—to exclude conditions such as hypoglycaemic episodes, migraine, seizure, and other neurological problems6. 

C. Schizophrenia 
This is another major psychotic illness with delusions and typical hallucinatory experiences. Oftentimes when it occurs in this age group may have strong hereditary underpinnings. Due to the maturing personality of the adolescent; schizophrenia dislocates the personality structure and presents with ‘foolish and silly’ behaviors, poorly formed delusions and poorly defined hallucinatory experiences in the form of Hebephrenic Schizophrenia.

6.   SUICIDE AND SELF-HARM
An estimated 62 000 adolescents died in 2016 as a result of self-harm. Suicide is the third leading cause of death in older adolescents (15-19 years). Nearly 90% of the world’s adolescents live in low-or middle-income countries and more than 90% of adolescent suicides are among adolescents living in those countries. Risk factors for suicide are multifaceted, including harmful use of alcohol, abuse in childhood, stigma against help-seeking, barriers to accessing care and access to means. Communication through digital media about suicidal behaviour is an emerging concern for this age group and could be due to an unrecognised and untreated depression.
7. TOBACCO, ALCOHOL AND DRUG USE
The vast majority of people using tobacco today began doing so when they were adolescents. Prohibiting the sale of tobacco products to minors (under 18 years) and increasing the price of tobacco products through higher taxes, banning tobacco advertising and ensuring smoke-free environments are crucial. Globally, at least 1 in 10 adolescents aged 13–15 years uses tobacco, although there are areas where this figure is much higher.
Drinking alcohol among adolescents is a major concern in many countries. It can reduce self-control and increase risky behaviours, such as unsafe sex or dangerous driving. It is an underlying cause of injuries (including those due to road traffic accidents), violence and premature deaths. It can also lead to health problems in later life and affects life expectancy. Worldwide, more than a quarter of all people aged 15-19 years are current drinkers, amounting to 155 million adolescents. Prevalence of heavy episodic drinking among adolescents’ aged 15–19 years was 13.6% in 2016, with males most at risk.
Cannabis is the most widely used psychoactive drug among young people with about 4.7% of people aged 15–16 years using it at least once in 2018.  Alcohol and drug use in children and adolescents is associated with neurocognitive alterations which can lead to behavioural, emotional, social and academic problems in later life.12  
There about 7 groups of commonly abused drugs namely the  central nervous system (CNS) depressants, CNS stimulants, hallucinogens, dissociative anesthetics, narcotic analgesics, inhalants, and cannabis and 4 are the commonest namely the  stimulants (e.g. cocaine) depressants (e.g. alcohol), opium-related painkillers (e.g. heroin) , hallucinogens (e.g. LSD) 
In Nigeria, the burden of drug abuse is on the rise and becoming a public health concern. Nigeria, which is the most populous country in Africa, has developed a reputation as a centre for drug trafficking and usage mostly among the youth population.13According to the 2018 UNODC report “Drug use in Nigeria”—The first large-scale, nationwide national drug use survey in Nigeria, one in seven persons (aged 15–64 years) had used a drug in the past year.14 Also, one in five individuals who had used drug in the past year is suffering from drug-related disorders.15  Drug abuse has been a cause of many criminal offences such as theft, burglary, sex work, and shoplifting16.

FACTORS OF PREDISPOSITION TO MENTAL HEALTH DISORDERS
UNRESOLVED MARITAL CONFLICT
When the marriage is persistently undergoing deep conflicts; it affects the proper nurture of children since the environment will be chaotic and distressful for the young minds to grow. There is strong evidence linking this to development of mental illness among youths either through continuous fights, separation or divorce.

DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILY LIFE 
This often is a product of perennial conflict where the couple choose to stay together but fail to achieve synergy. This manifests in faulty communication patterns that may get children to indulge in sensual pleasure without appropriate discipline through the indulgence of one of the spouses. Children may even become scapegoats in the ensuing conflict with grave consequences on their mental health.

SINGLE PARENTHOOD / ABSENTEE FATHERHOOD 
In situations of separation or divorce, there is the growing population of single parenthood without the balance of the other spouse crucial in nurturing the minds of the young ones. This may also take place in a dysfunctional family where there is skewed marital dynamics and the woman is the dominant figure as the father though physically present but has no input into the training agenda of the children.

POOR SOCIOECONOMIC SITUATIONS
When the basic survival needs of a child is not being met for physical and emotional growth; abuse is inevitable through grave deprivation that may invariably affect the growth of the children. Basic provisions for schooling, balanced diet, social expression for healthy sense of self may not be available with grave consequences on the growing psyche. 

GLOBALIZATION OF VALUES
We live in a global village where foreign values get to shape the development of our children through the TV, Smart phones and other social media handles. Different philosophies abound with everyone canvassing reasons for their choices in such a way that if a well-articulated parenting module is not available; growing children may get distracted and get involved in activities that can injure their minds. Issues of sexual preference and control, use of psychoactive substances and development of safe boundaries become hazy and the young ones become vulnerable.

POOR PARENTING STRATEGIES
Most parents are adopting very obsolete and parochial strategies in managing their children. In this paper we have raised issues of mental wellbeing and the criteria for its achievement. We have also raised the issues of the hormonal interplay with a hypothetico-deductive mind-set that makes children inquisitive, adventurous and challenging. Parents also make the mistake of comparing children with one another thereby inciting sibling rivalry and providing breeding ground for mental disorders. Where parents adopt strategies that are not adaptive, rigid and punitive without appeal to the mind development in the context of these principles, then such children will be prone to developing mental disorders.


POOR INDEX OF SUSPICION
This is actually a product of the previous point since a crucial role of sound parenting is the capacity to not only hear the children but to listen to them and notice when there are changes in their behaviours. Most mental disorders don’t start suddenly but develops over time starting with some minor but significant change in behaviour that should be picked early for professional intervention.

CULTURAL HANDICAPS AND STIGMATIZATION
Stigma is a big problem in our continent where folks who have mental health challenges are viewed as being doomed for life. This is tied to the supernatural conceptualization of mental illness which affects our health seeking behaviour and coming to accept that our children may need mental health intervention. We prefer to only seek the spiritual approach and neglect the professional pathways of care .This also affects the way we manage and accept such individuals who may be seeing mental health practitioners.

RELIGIOSITY vs SPIRITUALITY.
When a parenting modality is more religious than spiritual; there is a tendency of creating cognitive dissonance in the children. Religiosity is a more general way of worshipping God in a group guided by acceptable norms, customs and beliefs. For the youth growing up and eager to find better ways to life, he may challenge the existing viewpoints which may get the parents to react in anger rather than understanding beyond making a case for the group. This will require that such parent is informed and also has internalized values that he is espousing to the children. This is the challenge of spirituality over mere religiosity.

POOR MODELLING 
Youths are not easily challenged by theoretical propositions but by practical demonstrations of values that have been canvassed. This may be a fallout of the previous factor explained where children cannot see a practical demonstration of self-control, no courage in dealing with challenges of life and reckless indulgence in unethical practices. This may send a wrong signal to the children as they trust their peer group for guidance rather than the parental guidance. This may encourage poor or even maladaptive coping mechanisms that may lead to developing mental disorders.

PEER-PRESSURE
When the primary socialization scheme is faulty at home and at the beginning of life; the time of youth with all the tendencies to challenge existing paradigms may be empowered by the peer group with an alternative agenda that may lead to the development of mental disorders especially in the abuse of psychoactive substances.

HEREDITARY / BIOLOGICAL FACTORS 
Almost all the major psychiatric disorders have high concordance rates for monozygotic twins which shows that genetic factors are very strong in the development of mental disorders. However it does not mean that once there is a history of mental illness in a family that anyone in that family will develop the illness. There are variable penetrations of the genetic vulnerability across generations and the environmental nurture is equally a determining factor in the eventual development of mental disorder.
There are also biological factors linked to the development of certain psychiatric disorders such as the circumstance of birth such as in difficult prolonged labour, birth traumas. Also certain illnesses that affect the brain, head injury and growths in the brain that could predispose to mental disorders. There is always the need for professional consultation and advice crucial in managing these cases.

PHYSICAL / PSYCHOLOGICAL ABUSE
The growing mind of a child is like an empty slate which is acutely impressionable for good or for bad. When children undergo some form of abuse whether physical or psychological like rape, child labour, neglect and others. They may grow with very clear memory of such occurrences affecting their self-esteem and impairing their abilities to adjust to life challenges which may predispose them to abuse psychoactive substances or develop frank psychiatric disorders.


RECOMMENDATIONS 
In the light of the gravity of mental disorders on the individual, family and society at large; certain proactive steps must be taken to prevent occurrence of the illness and also to manage them when it occurs and to reintegrate them back to life.
SOLID PARENTING STRATEGIES 
This point cannot be over emphasized as it remains one of the most important cornerstone in preventing and managing mental disorders. Parenting is not just a science to learn but a spontaneous outcome of the synergy that comes from a healthy marriage.
Colossians 3 vs 18 -21.
Vs 18- Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord.
Vs 19-Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.
Vs 20-Children obey your PARENTS in all things; for this is well pleasing unto the Lord.
We can see that children are enjoined to obey their parents not the father separately or the mother separately. The synergy of wives submission and the reciprocal love of the husband provides a unified well thought out platform of instruction for the children. This platform of instruction is neither that of the husband or the wife.
Vs 21-Fathers, PROVOKE NOT your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.
Fathers as the custodians of authority are enjoined here not to abuse their powers over the children but to be engaging and loving in encouraging them. This does not preclude clear cut instructions and continuous value clarifications.
Children are also encouraged to obey their parents in all things since their counsels are derived from years of experience and guidance by GOD.
This point also takes care of marital conflicts and family dysfunction. Even for single parents, they can find a father -figure in the community of faith to balance the deficit of instructions.

RESPONSIBILITES OF THE YOUTH
Beyond what the parents or teachers or instructors can do, the youth must also have a resolution to live a worthy life.
Psalms 119vs 9.Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed thereto according to thy word.
The youth must understand the limitations and the evil of the Adamic nature in us that can explain their ready tendencies for evil to damage ourselves and others. The craving for sensuality even when it is clear that it tends towards damage and destruction are rooted in the Adamic nature that can be taken care of in the rebirth.  All the issues raised in terms of the hormones and the hypothetico- deductive reasoning that programs youths towards evil can be tamed and channelled for good by Gods words. This is a personal responsibility that no one not even our parents can do for us.
1 Tim 4 vs 12 -13 
Vs 12 Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity. 
Vs 13 Till I come, give attendance to READING, to exhortation, to doctrine.
This knocks out peer pressure and other unwholesome influences that can attempt to damage the youth who is sensitive. One translation says ‘do not let anyone take an advantage of you because you are young………
Almost all forms of mental disorders come from untamed and unguarded thought processes and youths can be very careless with their thoughts because they do not read. The youth that does not think cannot read because he has nothing to find out in books rather they indulge in social media, TV and the phones.
2 Corinthians 10 vs 4 -5                    
Vs 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds 
Vs 5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalted itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.
This becomes a veritable antidote for the youth to deal with thoughts, imaginations, attachments, propensities and vulnerabilities as they show up. This also helps in developing adaptive coping mechanisms in the face of stress or challenges. 
DEALING WITH EXTERNAL INFLUENCES IN THE ENVIROMENT 
There is the need for the youth to cultivate healthy boundaries that will not inflame his passions unduly. What you watch in the TV, smartphones and social media can misprogram the mind and make it vulnerable.
Prov 4 vs 23
Vs 23 Keep your heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
Romans 12 vs 2. 
Vs 2 And be not conformed to this world ; but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind , that ye may prove what is that good , and acceptable and perfect will of God .
Human beings are created to act on the environment and not to be acted upon. We are endowed to choose our response to the environment through the endowment of Self-awareness, Imagination, Conscience and Willpower. The central focus is the renewal of the MIND with the word of GOD.

THE NEED FOR MEDICAL/ PROFESSIONAL CONSULTATION.
There is a need for parents to be vigilant and perceptive of the behaviour of their children especially when there is a sudden change in the pattern. After some interrogation, there will be no harm in seeking medical expertise.
1Tim 5 vs 23.
Vs 23 Drink no longer water but use a little wine for thy stomach’s sake and thine often infirmities.
This is Paul prescribing some form of medicament for Timothy for certain troubles in his body.


FAITH FOR THOSE UNDERGOING TREATMENT 
Irrespective of the struggles that any youth might be going through; there is a need to assure them of the healing power of God as they take their medications and also meditate on the scriptures.
3 John vs 2
Vs 2 Beloved, I wish above all things that thou may prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospers 


THE NEED FOR A RICH COUNSELLING MINISTRY FOR THE YOUTH
With the rising incidence of mental disorders among our youths, there is a need for a well trained counsellors in our churches and schools who can easily detect what parents and other teachers may not pick in the behavioural patterns of our youths. The training should be a blend of sound psychological understanding of youth behaviour and the deployment of sound spiritual principles in providing support for troubled youths. They will also be trained in referral and follow up of cases even after seeing mental health practitioners with a mandate to ensure compliance and break stigma.
REFERENCES 
Meltzer H, Gatward R, Goodam R, Ford T. The mental health of children and adolescents in Great Britain. 2nd ed. London: Office for National Statistics, 2000.
Torinmo Salau   Young people’s mental health is a ticking timebomb in Nigeria Guardian Newspapes 05 November 2018
WHO SouthEast Asia region , Adolescent Health , April 2021.
Larson, J.S. The World Health Organization's definition of health: Social versus spiritual health. Soc Indic Res 38, 181–192 (1996).
World Health Organization. Invest in mental health. Geneva: WHO, 2003.
Pierre- Andre  Michaud , Eric Fonbonne (2005)   Clinical Review ; ABC of Adolescence Common Mental health problems  BMJ 2005;330:835

Torres, J. and Ash, M. (2007). Cognitive development. In Encyclopedia of special education: A reference for the education of children, adolescents, and adults with disabilities and other exceptional individuals.
Piaget, Jean (1972). The Psychology of Intelligence. Totowa, NJ: Littlefield.
Berger, Kathleen Stassen (2014). Invitation to the Life Span, Second Edition. New York: Worth Publishers.
WHO Fact sheet , Adolescent and Young adult health , 18 January, 2021
 Consolidated guidelines on the use of antiretroviral drugs for treating and preventing HIV infection: recommendations for a public health approach – 2nd ed: World Health Organization; 2016.
WHO Factsheet, Adolescent and Young adult health, 28 September, 2020.
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2018). Drug use in Nigeria. (Accessed March 18, 2020). 
Ohuabunwa SI. (2019). Tackling the menace of drug abuse: a disruptive innovative approach.(Accessed March 18, 2020)
 Pela OA., Ebie JC. (1982). Drug abuse in Nigeria: a review of epidemiological studies. Bull Narc. 34 (3-4), 91–99. 
 Abiodun O. (1991). Drug abuse and its clinical implications with special reference to Nigeria. Cent Afr J Med. 37 (1), 24–30.
All scriptural quotations are from the Authorized King James Version.




Dr Adeoye Oyewole
adeoyewole2000@yahoo.com
+2348034905808(Whatsapp only)


                              

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