During the early months of each year, North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center conducts an informal study in an attempt to understand who is calling us for help and what needs they’re calling us about. In recent years, the trend has been that most of the children and teens we see are experiencing depression, often coupled with anxiety. Approximately 1 in 5 teens experience major depression, but about 60% do...
By guest blogger Sydney Spilko With the support of same sex marriage becoming more and more popular in the United States, more confusion about these topics may hinder acceptance. If you’re the parent of a gay, bisexual or queer child and are confused about the terminology, this blog post is for you. Here is a listing of various terms to help you understand the state of language usage when it comes to...
By Andrew Malekoff I cannot recall precisely how I was feeling or what my state of mind was during my late teens and early 20s, when my life revolved around school, work and relationships. The word that jumps to mind is uncertainty, which is a more formal way of saying that a lot was up in the air. Maybe a clue to how I was feeling can be found on my bookshelf....
Garden City resident Paul Vitale was named to the Board of Directors of the North Shore Child and Family Guidance Center. As an Executive Vice President at The Toy Association, Paul Vitale spends his days hard at work—not, as you might think, playing with the latest game or gadget! His role is of a more serious nature as he oversees the finance and operations of this leading toy industry trade association...
AR-15 rifles are displayed on the exhibit floor during the National Rifle Association (NRA) annual meeting in Louisville, Kentucky on May 20, 2016. Photo Credit: Bloomberg/Luke Sharrett In the wake of the mass shootings in Texas and Ohio, we heard a White House narrative that focused attention on the role of mental illness. Although people living with mental illness have been targets of discrimination for centuries, studies show that they are disproportionately...
Urbach–Wiethe disease in skin biopsy with H&E stain. (Image by TexasPathologistMSW via Wikimedia / CC BY-SA 4.0) Can you imagine what it would be like to feel no fear regardless of circumstance? I am not referring to being courageous or resolute in the face of grave danger. Rather, having no physiological response to perceived threats to one’s survival. Would you like to have that capacity? Sounds like having superpowers minus the ability to bend...
By guest blogger Sydney Spilko “Non-Binary.” “Transgender.” “Gender non-conforming.” If you’re a parent, and you’ve heard these terms before, you may be confused about what they mean. As a larger understanding of gender among young people has increased over the past few years, topics, terms and ideas have emerged, and you can be sure that your kids are talking about it. In next week’s blog, we will be talking about sexuality; that is, the...
The summer season is upon us, with BBQs, beaches and fun events of all kinds in full swing. Whether your children are spending time in the water, playing sports, or on the playground, their wellbeing is always at the top of your list! Water safety is especially important for infants, including time spent in pools or in open water such as oceans and lakes. According to the Centers for Disease Control...
Audrey Shine has excelled during her time at Plainview-Old Bethpage High School, but she has also done great work away from school. One of the best examples of this is the valedictorian’s work at the nonprofit Children’s Center at Nassau County Family Court in Westbury, which has been run by North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center for about a decade. “Over the summer, I got a phone call from a...
When Emily (not her real name) first came to North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, she was experiencing anxiety and depression that was largely caused by her fear of coming out to her family. Her fears weren’t unfounded. “Her parents were very disapproving and would not accept their daughter’s bisexuality,” explains Elissa Smilowitz, LCSWR and Coordinator of Triage & Emergency Services at the Guidance Center. “It was devastating to Emily,...