News | Tuesday, 2nd February 2021
Children who hear voices need support earlier, new research shows
Some children experienced auditory hallucinations for more than four years before clinical intervention
Children who hear voices and their parents need tailored information and earlier support, new research shows.
The Young Voices project, led by a clinical psychologist at Manchester Metropolitan University, found that the average self-reported age of onset of voices of participants was 9 years and 5 months, but early intervention for psychosis services are not usually available through child mental health services until a young person is 14 years old.
The findings have raised concerns by researchers for the mental health of young children and their parents, who through a number of studies have reported the struggles they face day-to-day trying to find support.
In two separate studies, one published in July 2020 and the other in November 2020, young people aged 13-18, from 11 different countries, who experience auditory hallucinations – hearing voices that others cannot – talked about their experiences.
Most children reported a mix of nurturing and distressing voices.
Some talked about “friendly” voices that provided comfort, much in the way we understand imaginary friends - someone they could talk to as well as listen to. These children did not consider the voice-hearing as problematic or unwanted and said it reduced feelings of loneliness.
Others described negative voice-hearing experiences, which often made them feel frightened.
Lack of understanding
But a further study, as part of the Young Voices project, published yesterday (February 1) into the experiences of parents with children who hear voices raised concerns over a lack of support for families, which can place them under further strain.
Lead researcher and clinical psychologist Dr Sarah Parry, from Manchester Metropolitan University, said: “Many parents we heard from have felt largely unsupported by their local services. They are often worried about their child but aren’t sure who to talk to and some are worried what will happen if they do seek mental health support. Some parents and young people are worried about potential diagnoses or medications. Equally, we have heard from practitioners that they would like more guidance and support as to how to help these children and families.
“With more public awareness, we could work to reduce stigma around hearing voices, so that people do not automatically see voice hearing and other unusual sensory experiences as a problem. Hearing voices can be a coping strategy for some young people.”
Many parents reported concerns around seeking help from mental health services, with only 30% of participants reporting to have sought help.
Some parents also reported a strain within their family and feeling unprepared to help their child.
They called for changes in clinical care, including earlier early intervention pathways, easily accessible information, support groups and parent training programmes.
Stigma
The research found that emotions felt by the child often influenced the nature of voices they heard and was intensified by stigma from others about voice hearing. Social isolation and attribution of hearing voices to illness also had an impact on the voices heard.
Young people said they benefitted from multisensory coping strategies, such as imagery, meditation and exercise, which could offer important considerations for tailoring therapeutic interventions for adolescent voice-hearers.
Dr Parry added: “These findings suggest we may need to reconsider how the experience of hearing voices in childhood influences their relationships and how relationships influence the voice hearing experience.
“Young people have a broad understanding of what the term ‘hearing voices’ means, including visions and felt presences, amongst other sensory experiences. A more holistic understanding of this phenomenon could inform how researchers and practitioners work with this group of young people in the future.”
The results of the Young Voices study are being fed back to young people, parents and mental health practitioners, as well as used to create a range of information documents for young people and their families.
