Articles by Gene Beresin, Khadijah Booth Watkins and Ellen Braaten, PhD

August 29, 2024

By Gene Beresin, Executive Director

Navigating Special Education in Schools Part 1: Legal and Practical Tips

Welcome back to a new season of Shrinking it Down: Mental Health Made Simple! For our season premiere, Gene and Khadijah are joined by two special guests who specialize in learning disabilities and special education law – Ellen Braaten, PhD, and Eileen Hagerty, Esq, – to do a deep dive on the special education system. […]

July 2, 2024

By Gene Beresin, Executive Director

A Letter to Those Struggling: Surviving a Severe Eating Disorder

Note: The following person’s account of his/her personal experience has been published with his/her consent to support the mission of The Clay Center for Young Healthy Minds, and let others in similar situations not feel so alone. Introduction Gene Beresin, MD, MA For many years, I cared for Kathleen who had perhaps the most severe […]

June 20, 2024

By Gene Beresin, Executive Director

Stories for Children’s Mental Health

Stories Matter, especially when it comes to children’s mental health and wellbeing. For our season finale, Gene and Khadijah are joined by two special guests from Barefoot Books – book editor Lisa Rosinsky and children’s author Joelle Retener. They explore how stories help kids to make sense of the world in all of its confusion […]

By Gene Beresin, Executive Director

“Walking in Another Character’s Armored Boots”: How Role-playing and Therapy Intertwine

Role-play is one of the most basic ways we learn about how to interact with other people, our identity, the world we’re in, and our place in it. It’s something we almost universally do as children and frequently continue as adults. To a degree, we all play different roles without realizing it; as an example, […]

May 16, 2024

By Gene Beresin, Executive Director

Boys, Body Image, and Eating Disorders, feat. Jason Nagata, MD

Most teens stress over body image at some point. But when you hear the term “eating disorder” what do you think of? Probably not boys and men. Yet, adolescent boys struggle with body image and disordered eating behaviors nearly just as often as girls do. Tune in below, or wherever you get your podcasts. Today […]

May 14, 2024

By Gene Beresin, Executive Director

The Youth Mental Health Epidemic: What Parents and Caregivers Can Do

In April 2024, I wrote an editorial in Academic Psychiatry with my colleagues indicating that the leadership of our field had fallen short in satisfying our moral, ethical and professional standards to promote efforts to address the mental health epidemic among our youth. This was prompted by the skyrocketing rates of depression, anxiety, stress, loneliness […]

May 7, 2024

By Gene Beresin, Executive Director

Conflict at College Campuses

There has been a lot of conflict on college campuses lately. College campuses have always been places of debate, conservation, activism and advocacy. But some college students did not ask for or expect this situation. Many go to school with the expectation of focusing on separation, making new friends, studying new areas of interest, joining […]

April 22, 2024

By Gene Beresin, Executive Director

The Role of Roleplay in Therapy

If you’re a regular listener, you’ll know we often reference the benefits of roleplay games – from dress up to Dungeons & Dragons – for healthy child development. It can help kids better understand themselves, better understand others, and build self-confidence. Today, Gene and Khadijah explore roleplay through a more therapeutic lens. They are joined […]

March 21, 2024

By Gene Beresin, Executive Director

Alcohol and Drugs. Why Do Teens Use?

Many of us know that the teen years can be a time for experimenting with alcohol and other drugs. But a recent CDC study found the reason why teens use substances today isn’t just for experimentation, but also to stop worrying about problems, and even to help with depression or anxiety. This is really concerning. […]

February 15, 2024

By Gene Beresin, Executive Director

Equine Therapy. How Does It Work? feat. Janice Gilman of BINA Farm – Shrinking It Down

You’ve probably heard of pet therapy, but what about equine therapy? Special guest Janice Gilman of BINA Farm Center joins Gene and Khadijah to help us learn about the many different kinds of equine therapy for kids. What make horses so unique when it comes to therapeutic treatment for Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD, anxiety, and more? […]