From a recent Washington Post story about depression screening:"...Caroline's emotional problems were linked to her sister's death. After several intensive evaluations that delved into the girl's mental and emotional history, and that obtained a family history and detailed information about Candace's death, Caroline was placed in "art therapy," painting or making sculptures with a therapist who simultaneously used the sessions to draw out the teenager's emotional problems.
The therapy had an immediate and beneficial impact and turned Mathy Milling Downing, a skeptic about some kinds of mental health treatment, into a fan of mental health treatment done right.
"My grades went from almost failing algebra to honor roll," Caroline Downing, now 20, said in an interview. The treatment worked, she said, because "getting all the stuff out of your head that you don't need there gives you more room for all the stuff you need to have in your head."
Thank you for sharing your experience, Caroline.
