Jeremy
“You don’t look like you have mental issues.” Jeremy didn’t know how to respond. His friend was right. Jeremy looked like a typical, happy adolescent. He earned good grades, played sports and followed the rules. No one ever thought anything was wrong. That is until Jeremy made a serious suicide attempt. He just wanted to die […]
Roberto
Roberto was 12 years old when his parents brought him to WYS with concerns about his escalating level of anxiety. He was easily distracted, had trouble focusing in school and at home, and when talking he was easily excited and nervous.The WYS clinician working with Roberto, began a treatment plan that included family and individual therapy with the focus […]
Melissa
Ten-year-old Melissa was struggling in school. She had high levels of anxiety that led to regular meltdowns, she was unable to focus on her school work, and did not want to go to school. Melissa began to see a Western Youth Services (WYS) therapist in school who learned through their discussions that Melissa’s mom, a […]
Celeste
Celeste reached out to WYS when she realized that her anxiety about doing something embarrassing in public the fear of rejection from friends, turned debilitating over a six month period and these feelings were keeping her from living an active, happy life. At 19 years old, Celeste’s world should have been full of new experiences […]
Maddison
Maddison came to WYS as an overwhelmed mom of three kids. Initially, she was seeking counseling for her 12-year-old son Brian who was diagnosed with depression, anxiety, and autism. He was being bullied at school and started to run away from school to avoid facing his bullies. As her story started to unfold, the therapist […]
Patty
Patty had an anxiety attack at school. She didn’t know what was happening but felt major pressure in her chest and anxiousness pulsing through her body. She told her school counselor about it and explained that she wanted to kill herself because she was so afraid. She met with a counselor at her school for […]
Cassandra
Cassandra’s 13 year-old daughter was referred to Western Youth Services for behavioral concerns. After visiting with her family, our Outreach and Engagement Specialist felt that all the members of her family could benefit from our services. Cassandra was separated from her husband and raising 5 children alone. She was living in poverty, had signs of […]
Carmen
Carmen was seeking mental health services due to her crippling anxiety, depressive symptoms, suicidal thoughts, and recurring panic attacks. Having suffered from gang-related trauma, at the time of her intake Carmen’s symptoms were so severe that they resulted in her frequently visiting the Emergency Room due to physical complaints. She’d not attended her high school […]
Evan
When Evan came to WYS he was having suicidal thoughts, auditory hallucinations and social anxiety. He was also struggling with failure to communicate feelings, and problems eating and sleeping regularly — all of which were greatly impacting his grades at school. Evan was demonstrating a high degree of hopelessness, non-compliance with his medication, and resistance […]
Peter
WYS services are driven by the client and what they want to accomplish through therapy, so we ask our clients frequently if the sessions are going well and if the child and/or family feel therapy is progressing. One way we ask about this is by using a measure called the Youth Outcome Questionnaire (YOQ). The […]