Children and young people’s mental health

Around three children in every classroom have a mental health problem and many more struggle with challenges from bullying to bereavement.

At Cardiff University, researchers are investigating the causes of mental health problems, and conditions such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), in the hope of improving diagnosis, treatment and support for people of all ages in the future.

Below is a selection of talks from mental health researchers, some based at NCMH and some who we collaborate with on this vital research.

Youth mental health in a digital world

With so much of our lives being online, it’s important that we understand the link between the digital world and mental health.

Dr Ruth Sellers is involved in a project called Enurture which focuses on better understanding youth mental health in a digital world.

She talks about some of the evidence for digital risks for youth mental health, digital opportunities to support mental health, as well as tips for staying safe online.

Ruth is a Senior Lecturer in Child Development & Community Mental health at the University of Sussex. She is also an associate of Cardiff University and the University of Cambridge.

Tips for sleep-deprived teens

Aimed at teenagers and nearly-teens, in this webinar, Dr Katie Lewis talks about:

• what controls our sleep
• how sleep changes during our teenage years
• sleep problems and what we can do about them

Katie is a Research Associate at the National Centre for Mental Health (NCMH) at Cardiff University. Her research investigates the link between sleep and mental health.

She completed her BSc in Psychology at the University of Bath and PhD in Psychological Medicine at Cardiff University. Her PhD examined the role of sleep loss as an early warning sign of mania in bipolar disorder and postpartum psychosis.

She has recently been awarded a Sir Henry Wellcome Postdoctoral Fellowship, where she will investigate the relationship between sleep and mood disorders using genetic, longitudinal and neurophysiological data.

Young people’s mood and wellbeing

Dr Rhys Bevan Jones talks about mood, well-being, and depression in young people – including how low mood or depression might present, possible underlying reasons and approaches to prevent and manage difficulties. It is in the context of the young person as well as their families/carers.

He also discusses a digital programme called ‘MoodHwb’, created to support mood and well-being, and developed with young people, families, carers and practitioners at Cardiff University. A trial of the programme is planned soon in Wales and Scotland.

Rhys is a psychiatrist and researcher at the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Section, Department of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, Cardiff University.