Written with Yesenia Marroquin, PhD, a clinical psychologist in the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, this guide covers when to seek immediate help (active suicidality, severe symptoms), and explains why opening up communication about mental health reduces fear and stigma rather than creating new issues.

From NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness), this resource addresses why talking about mental health can feel uncomfortable and how to move past that. It includes free downloadable tools like “10 Questions on a Tuesday,” a discussion guide to help parents check in with kids about stress, hobbies, and emotional well-being, available in English and Spanish.

This guide explains depression as a mood disorder, not just sadness, and walks through the clinical categories doctors use: major depression (an intense recent episode lasting at least 2 weeks), chronic depression/dysthymia (a milder, longer-lasting form), and adjustment disorder with depressed mood (triggered by a specific upsetting event).

From CHOP’s Yesenia Marroquin, PhD, this guide is written for young people who suspect something feels “off” but aren’t sure how to ask for help. It covers picking the right moment for the conversation, leading with how you’re feeling rather than a diagnosis, and what to say when time is short, like asking to set up a time to talk later.