Mental Health
Mental health concerns span a range of intensity. People may need guidance to get through a difficult time in life (divorce, loss of a job, money problems). Others benefit from an intervention to cope with a situational depression or bout of anxiety. Still others have serious mental illness – brain disorders like schizophrenia or bipolar disorder that require ongoing support and medication to manage the illness.
Children also come to KYC for a variety of reasons and in different degrees of need. Parents may be going through a divorce and want a neutral helping person to talk with the children. Parents may also call if their child has a school phobia, anxiety, behavior problems, peer rejection, or has experienced a trauma. Some ask for help to reduce conflict within the family and restore harmony. We also see children who are in psychiatric crisis because of a serious emotional disturbance.
Intervention for Those with Mental Health Concerns
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When you, your child, or someone in your family is struggling with mental, emotional, work, school or relationship problems, you can talk to a counselor in Kenneth Young Center’s Intake and Referral Office. You may get some answers over the phone, such as a referral to a self-help group or other community resources. You will also be offered a screening appointment. In this meeting a KYC counselor will work to understand your reasons for wanting help and assess your current situation. The counselor will also learn about any previous treatment and will review options for care. You and your counselor will decide together whether to begin treatment at KYC. If so, you’ll be connected to the program you need, which might offer individual, group or family counseling or case management.
Counseling is for people unable to move through difficult life problems including relationship issues, social isolation and work issues. Therapy also helps people struggling with anxiety, depression, emotional trauma and other mental health issues. Treatment may include some or all of the following:
- You'll meet with a counselor to identify problems and set out strategies for change.
- Idividual or couple therapy lets you work on those strategies with professional support.
- Group therapy is often helpful for certain problems.
- Education is essential: about your problem, diagnosis and ways to change for the better.
- Some problems are best treated with a combination of counseling and medication. In that case, our doctor will prescribe and monitor medications and consult with you and your counselor.
With children, therapists may use play as well as discussion to address problems. The family is also involved. Counselors can provide direction and support for parents and help families understand the experiences their children are going through.
Treatment for Those with Serious Mental Illness
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People diagnosed with serious and persistent mental illness are coached and taught skills to move toward recovery. Clients may take part in groups that teach skills for self-care, social relationships, self-expression and independent living. Psychiatric services and medication monitoring are also essential, as 'recovery' entails managing your illness, your medications and your symptoms. Recovery from mental illness means living an independent, productive and satisfying life.
Other services that help those with serious mental illness:
Vocational Program Services
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Our vocational program helps people who have a diagnosis of mental illness to go to work. Some are returning to work; some may be trying for their first job and still others may have a spotty, problematic work history and are seeking solutions. We provide assessment, training, placement and job coaching to adults referred to KYC through the Illinois Division of Rehabilitative Services (DORS). Our services consist of assessment, job-search planning, career exploration, resume development, interview coaching, job retention counseling, and Job Club meetings.
Once placed in an employment position, emphasis is on coping with stress on the job and maintaining meaningful employment. KYC works with local employers to find supportive work placements and provides transportation to and from vocational sites.
Transitional Living Program
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Our transitional living program provides individuals with apartment living supervised at different levels. The primary goal is to support clients as they develop independent living skills within the community so they can transition to independent living.
Group Program
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Kenneth Young Center also offers a group program for people in psychiatric crisis or recently released from hospitalization. The SEA group helps them stabilize and return to their former level of functioning. People spend from as little as three weeks to as long as three months in a small group of about five people, where the focus is on peer support, problem solving, coping skills, socialization, and learning to manage medication and symptoms.
Often, clients referred to the groups are fragile and easily overwhelmed. Here they get safe, one-on-one intervention. Members find comfort in knowing others face the same struggles and share some of the same experiences. They leave when they are ready, moving on to either counseling services, PSR, back to work, or on their own again. The goal is that they will return to enjoying life as they once did.
SASS Program
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Children can also have serious mental illness, which shows up as a severe emotional or behavioral disorder. They may be a danger to self or others, which puts them at risk of being placed in a more restrictive setting such as a psychiatric hospital or residential treatment center.
KYC provides community based screenings, assessments, and supportive services to maintain children and adolescents with severe emotional disturbance in the least restrictive setting. For most, that means providing an array of support and wraparound services that enable them to remain in their home and community.
This program is called SASS (Screening, Assessment, and Support Services) and Kenneth Young Center is the SASS service provider for the Cook County, IL portions of the following townships: Elk Grove, Hanover, Schaumburg, & Maine. Referrals for the program come from families, schools, child welfare agencies, state and private hospitals, courts, police and other community agencies. To make a referral, please contact SASS at Kenneth Young Center: 847.524.8800. After regular working hours, callers to this number are given the option of speaking with a crisis counselor. Let them know you are calling for SASS services and they will page the SASS on-call worker for you.
