HOUSTON — A child living with a mental health disorder can take a serious toll on parents, not just emotionally but physically as well.
KHOU 11's Kimberly Davis spoke with a psychiatrist at UT Physicians about what parents can do to avoid developing medical conditions.
"Everything that is stressing the parents, every worry, every thought is going to have a physical correlation into their physical health," said Cesar Soutullo, MD, PhD. "Sometimes it's because anxiety or feelings of sadness can impact the blood pressure and make your heart go faster."
Regular life can be stressful enough, but that stress can be heightened if you are a parent to a child with mental health disorders.
"A lot of what I do is stressing and underlying to the parents that this is not their fault. It's a medical problem that can happen to anyone," Soutullo said.
He wants parents to know that psychological problems are very common. Parents should be on the lookout for changes in behavior, even if it's small.
"Extreme fears that is impacting the child to the point of avoiding different situations so the child is cutting their freedom," Soutullo said.
The sooner symptoms of a mental health disorder are detected, the faster a doctor can help.
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