DuPage Mental Health Rising 3 Signs Your Child’s Struggling

As parents, we do our best to believe our children are happy, resilient, and emotionally well. But sometimes what’s going on inside doesn’t get expressed in words or in easily visible ways.

Statistics show that mental health is on the decline at every age. According to a recent report in the Chicagoland area, many of our local county ZIP codes now have a Mental Health Index value in the highest-need category, with index scores up to 83.2 out of 100 in some regions.

Additionally, according to a recent survey in DuPage County where my practice is located, 54% of respondents named “mental health issues” as one of the top three health concerns in the county, more than any other issue.

Hi, I’m Susan Stutzman, Registered Play Therapist and owner of Kid Matters Counseling. Over the years, I’ve helped hundreds of children and families navigate emotional healing.

Today I want to share some insight into identifying mental health decline and the possible need for additional support for your child (or children you interface with).

Many children don’t have words for their internal distress, but they are offering behavioral clues that are key “tells” of an internal struggle. Whether they act out, retreat, or “look fine”, looking for your child’s individual way of sharing, verbally or nonverbally is key.

We don’t want our kids internalizing anxiety, sadness, or confusion.

If we miss the clues, problems can compound, and early intervention becomes harder.

So Here are 3 practical ways from a child counselor to gauge your child’s mental health today, and open up pathways to support.

1. Track Persistent Shifts in Mood or Behavior

If your child becomes more irritable, has frequent meltdowns, sleep disruption, or loses interest in favorite activities, and these changes last more than 2–3 weeks, that’s a red flag.

These shifts often precede more serious distress.

2. Listen to How Your Child Communicates (Verbally or Not)

Kids often reveal inner worlds through play, art, or story. When play becomes dominated by themes of danger, despair, or conflict, or when a child starts drawing or telling stories with dark or repetitive content, that’s them trying to process through or tell you something.

Even silence or withdrawal is a message: something is weighing on them.

It’s kinda like when we have a bad day, maybe our boss yells at us for not getting something right, we might be able to shake it off, and say, “That didn’t feel good, I felt devalued for my work.”

However, we are more likely to just devalue the next safe or “lesser” person we interact with, like a spouse or restaurant worker. We are “showing” them how we feel internally, what happened to us that day, what we believe.

It’s not a good way to deal with stress, but it is quite a telltale sign of something else going on, like “feeling stupid” or “hurt”. “hurt people, hurt people.”

3. Observe Your Child’s Response to Everyday Stressors & Transitions

Every child faces small stressors: school changes, social challenges, or family disruptions. If your child reacts disproportionately (i.e. small triggers provoking big emotional responses), or seems unable to recover from minor disappointments, that suggests their coping system is under strain.

They may just need a little boost with some positive experiences where they feel valued to outweigh the negative, or they need help remembering the good vs. the negative. But, they may need more. This is why its imperative that you observe their responses and don’t wait until there’s a crisis.

There are lots of things you can do now to improve your child’s mental health — strengthening emotional safety, building consistent routines, and getting professional support early.

At Kid Matters Counseling, we specialize in helping children express what they can’t yet put into words through the use of therapeutic play. When kids feel seen, safe, and supported, healing begins.

If you suspect your child is struggling even a little, schedule an appointment with us. Let’s start exploring together how to help your child feel balanced, confident, and emotionally well.