Plena Mind Center

10/08/2026

Last weekend, our Plena team walked for OCD awareness. Next week, October 11 to 17, is OCD Awareness Week, and this years theme, "Thats OCD," pushes back on the narrow picture most people have.

In kids and teens, OCD rarely looks like liking things neat. It can look like:

◽️ Endless reassurance questions

◽️ Intrusive thoughts a child is too ashamed to share

◽️ Routines that must be done just right

◽️ Avoidance without a clear reason

These symptoms are often hidden or mistaken for anxiety, defiance, or perfectionism.

The good news: OCD is very treatable. Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), with family involvement, helps kids take their lives back. Earlier is better.

10/06/2026

In-Person vs Virtual Therapy

Not sure if your child needs PHP or IOP? Learn the difference, what a typical week looks like, and how to know when weekly therapy isn’t enough.

10/06/2026

This past weekend, our Plena team joined the Jada's Journey 5K in memory of Jada and in support of the families who carry her mission forward.

Jada's story is a reminder of how deeply mental health struggles can shape a young person's life, and how exhausting and isolating it can be for families searching for the right help. Jada's Journey is working to change that by supporting families who have run out of options, raising awareness in schools and communities, and fighting the stigma that keeps too many kids and parents from reaching out.

Those goals are close to our hearts. Every day, we see how much it matters when children, teens, and their families are met with understanding instead of judgment, and when care is within reach.

Thank you to Jada's family and everyone who made this day possible.

10/05/2026

On Saturday, our Plena Mind Center team joined thousands of people for the 2026 Out of the Darkness Chicagoland Walk.

We walked for the kids and teens we care for, for their families, and for everyone who has lost someone to su***de.

In our work, we see every day how much it matters when a young person feels heard early, and when the adults around them know what to look for. Walks like this one help build that awareness, and the funds raised support research, education, and prevention programs right here in Illinois.

Thank you to everyone on our team who showed up, and to every family who has trusted us with their childs care.

Donations are open through December 31: https://lnkd.in/giMQVCDT

If you or someone you know is struggling, call or text 988.

***dePrevention

American Foundation for Su***de Prevention

09/14/2026

One in seven children in late elementary school has thought about ending their life. Two thirds of them get no treatment.

Anxiety in young children is easy to miss. Here is what to watch for, and when Chicago families should consider PHP or IOP over weekly therapy.

09/10/2026

Today is World Su***de Prevention Day, and Plena team made this. The message is simple. If someone is on your mind, check on them. Ask directly and let them know you are here. You will not be planting anything, you will be letting them know it is safe to tell you the truth.

If you or someone you love needs help right now, call or text 988.

***dePreventionDay ***dePreventionMonth #988

08/25/2026

Most schools know what truancy looks like. School avoidance is harder, because the child usually wants to go. They just cannot make it through the door. In competitive academic environments the grades often stay strong the whole way down, so it gets caught late. Some thoughts here on the earlier signs.

Most schools know what truancy looks like. School avoidance is harder, and the reason is simple: the child usually wants to go. They just cannot make it through the door. That distinction gets lost…

08/10/2026

One in four American teenagers is sleeping less than five hours a night.

Not eight. Five.

A few things parents may not know:

🔵 It is not defiance. Puberty shifts melatonin release about two hours later, so your teen is genuinely not sleepy at 10 p.m.

🔵 Short nights cut the last third of sleep, which is where most REM lives. That is the part that helps the brain process emotion.

🔵 A child who skips breakfast and barely eats lunch goes nine hours unfed. Irritability and poor focus follow, and they look exactly like psychiatric symptoms.

🔵 The gut-brain connection is real, but the pediatric evidence for probiotics is still thin. What works is less exciting and more effective.

🔵 August is the best month of the year to fix this. Start shifting wake time now, fifteen minutes at a time.

Our new article covers what the science actually shows and what to set up before the first bell.

Every year, right around the second or third week of the school year, our phones start ringing. The calls are not all the same. Some are about stomachaches every school morning and a pediatric workup…

07/24/2026

School is still weeks away, but for a lot of kids, especially the ones who struggled last year, the dread starts now.

We believe kids are more resilient than we think, and our job isn't to make the discomfort disappear, it's to help them build a relationship with it so it doesn't run the show.

SPACE informed treatment has been a foundation of our work at Plena for years, and it's helped a lot of the families we work with, even when the child isn't ready to sit in a therapist's office themselves.

A bit more below on what's normal, what's worth paying attention to, and how this approach works.

If this sounds familiar, you're not doing anything wrong. And there's still time this summer to make things a little easier before September gets here.

There’s a particular kind of quiet that shows up in a house in the last weeks of July. The pool towels are still on the line, but something’s shifted. A kid who used to fall asleep the second their…

07/22/2026

Introducing the very first Plena Puppy Cam! 🐾🎬

Meet Ziggy, our newest (and cutest) correspondent. He's taking you behind the scenes at Plena, one wag at a time.