‘Olivia Takes a Mental Health Day’ aims to help children
Dr. Jasmin Searcy-Pate, a licensed clinical child/pediatric psychologist. Searcy- Pate is the author of “Olivia Takes a Mental Health Day.” PHOTOS PROVIDED BY LANA SIMON
Dr. Jasmin Searcy-Pate is the author of the book. She also is a clinical child/pediatric psychologist. She treats children who have anxiety, as well as children who have anxiety, plus a medical diagnosis. Searcy-Pate also provides individual and family therapy.
Searcy-Pate came up with the idea for the book through her background as a child pediatric psychologist. The story was inspired by gymnast Simone Biles’ story, who in 2021 pulled out from the Olympic competition to focus on her mental health. Searcy-Pate was already working on a children’s book, but Biles’ story influenced the character of Olivia, who is an aspiring gymnast.
In 2021, the U.S. Surgeon General put out a report called, “Protecting Youth Mental Health.” According to the report, “In recent years, suicide rates among Black children (below age 13) have been increasing rapidly, with Black children nearly twice as likely to die by suicide than White children. Moreover, socioeconomically disadvantaged children and adolescents— for instance, those growing up in poverty—are two to three times more likely to develop mental health conditions than peers with higher socioeconomic status.” The report also states that in order to take action, every child should have access to high-quality, affordable, and culturally competent mental health care.
Searcy-Pate hopes that parents who read the book are able to help and support their children with expressing their emotions. Searcy-Pate wants the book to give parents the language to help children verbalize emotions and normalize mental health. In the back of the book, there are tips to help parents normalize and model behaviors for their children. Searcy-Pate also wants the book to help parents create a safe space for children.
Searcy-Pate wants parents to read the book with their children, and the children can read the book by themselves. She also thinks it is a good idea for parents to read the book then that can help the children to process what they are reading.
For the children, Searcy-Pate wants them to know they are safe to express their emotions, feelings and thoughts. She also wants them to know that mental health is normal and learn how to advocate for their needs.
Families who have already read the book are happy the book has diverse characters. Every character in the book is from a different nationality or ethnicity. The children also have been able to relate to the illustrations of Olivia’s feelings. Searcy-Pate believes that representation matters.
“When children see and read about characters that look like them and experience similar things, it promotes growth, it promotes resiliency, it promotes being able to relate to that character. For the parents, they like being able to pick up a book mental health book, written by an African American child-pediatric,” she said.
“Olivia Takes a Mental Healthy Day” is for children ages 5 and older. To purchase the book, visit www.searcypediatrics.org.
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