Skip to main content

4 Psychiatric warning signs to watch for before taking you kid to the ER

Occasional moodiness is normal at any stage for children, and changes in emotions and how they’re expressed go along with the territory of growing up and trying to establish one’s own identity. Even a small tiff between siblings or between you and your child will happen periodically. However, what do you do when his or her behavior becomes impossible to control? How do you deal with the revelation that your child may have been partaking in self-harm? We’ve done the searching and brought you some signs to watch for to help you determine when to take your child to the ER for behavior.

What qualifies as a psychiatric emergency?

As noted by the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, some signs that tell you right away to bring your child into the emergency room include:

Related Videos
  • Signs or threats to harm him or herself.
  • Signs or threats to harm others.
  • Profound and sudden changes in behavior that can’t be explained.
  • A reaction to changes in psychotropic medications or changes in the dosage of prescriptions for treating conditions that have already been diagnosed.

One specific sign that your child is pondering self-harm involves giving away treasured belongings that you know he or she wouldn’t normally try to pass on to someone else or if your son or daughter writes a “will” that outlines who will get his or her possessions in the event of anything happening to him or her.

Likewise, you should also look for signs that your child might cause harm to others. Some of these signs include diary entries or drawings outlining this type of plot, a list of people who the child might want to harm, or increased violent outbursts.

Also, if you notice changes in your child’s behavior and demeanor, such as persistent crying or angry outbursts, then you should seek help right away. These changes could be brought about by external factors, like alterations in the family dynamics or being bullied at school. Or if your child has been placed on medication for a condition that’s already been diagnosed, you might keep an eye out for dramatic changes in mood and behavior, as this could signal a reaction to the new medicine or dosage.

sad teenage girl sitting by window

How do I know my child is in crisis?

Along with the previously mentioned signs, a change in behavior that’s out of control, any attempts at self-harm, or harm to others point towards a crisis. Also, if your child experiences hallucinations or delusions, you’ll need to seek help immediately. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, other signs that tell you when to take your child to the ER include:

  • Expressing suicidal thoughts — overtly or even just dropping hints.
  • Expressing an inclination toward harming people, animals, or both.
  • Isolating from friends and family.
  • Displaying aggression.

If you see any of these behaviors, or if any staff members from your child’s school tells you about observing these behaviors, your child will need to be stabilized, protected, and evaluated as soon as possible.

What might constitute a mental health crisis or emergency in a child?

Another point to remember is that there are two types of crises. As noted by the National Alliance on Mental Illness, you can a have crisis where your child and/or others nearby are in immediate danger and a crisis can occur where your child is not in any immediate danger but needs an intervention anyway.

In a situation of immediate danger, you’ll need to call 911 and inform the dispatcher that your child is experiencing a mental health crisis. First responders are familiar with this term and are trained to deal with this type of emergency.

If you’re sure that your child is not in any immediate danger, and everyone else nearby is safe, then you should talk with your child and ask what triggered the crisis. You’ll need to reassure him or her that you’re there to provide support but let him or her know that help is needed. If your child is already seeing a mental health practitioner, then you’ll need to contact that person as soon as possible. If not, then you’ll need to contact your pediatrician for a referral to a mental health professional and to a facility that provides evaluations.

To be able to determine what type of crisis your child is experiencing and whether you can handle the situation yourself, you’ll need to watch for the following signs:

  • Talking extremely rapidly
  • Sudden mood swings
  • Rapid pacing
  • Profound changes in energy level (being “up and down” constantly with no in-between)
  • Extreme paranoia and expressing that “everyone is out to get them”
  • Being out of touch with reality and/or extremely confused or disoriented
  • Verbalizing suicidal thoughts

If you determine this situation is beyond your control, you’ll need to call 911 immediately. If the situation poses no immediate danger to your child or others — but you know you’ll need help with calming your child down — then take him or her to the ER.

Many families have dealt with emergencies related to their children’s mental health. One important thing to remember is that you and your child are not alone in this crisis, and there are resources that offer additional support and valuable information.

Editors' Recommendations

Need advice on parenting teens? Get support from these Facebook groups just for you
The best Facebook groups for parenting teens advice
A parent and teen talking.

Parenting teens can be a challenge, but doing it with the support of other parents can make it easier. These Facebook groups are places to find advice and support from other parents of teens as sounding boards to help you figure out the dilemmas that come up, like discipline, body image issues, dating and sex, and building trust.

Moms of Teens Support Group
This group is exclusively for moms, while others are open to all parents, caregivers, educators, and others. Get support, trade advice, or just vent about how parenting a teenager is going.
Parenting in a Tech World
Teens finding information, strangers, bullies, or all manner of things online is a concern for any parent in the modern age. This group of over 288,000 parents discusses issues of social media, screen time, online safety, and more about parenting in a tech world.
Parents of Teens with Depression, Anxiety and OCD
From 2016 to 2019, 5.8 million teens had anxiety and 2.7 million had depression, and those numbers have been increasing since. Supporting your teen's mental health is a special skill that can take an emotional toll and takes work to find a delicate balance of how to approach. This group of over 25,000 parents can help you find support in a safe space.
Raising Teenage Boys Is HARD!!
No matter their gender, raising teenagers is hard, but there are special challenges that come along with raising teen boys. This group, run by Teen Thrive, is for those raising teenage boys and looking for advice about puberty, communication, substance use, dating, bullying, internet and gaming device use, and mental health.
Raising Teenage Girls Is HARD! Parenting Teens Support Group by Teen Thrive
The sister group to the one above and also run by Teen Thrive, this group is all about raising teen girls. Issues like menstruation, mental health, dating, academics, body image and self-confidence, and peer pressure can all be discussed with over 35,000 other parents here.
Teenager parenting (Raising teens)
With hundreds of new posts every month, this group is a teen parenting haven. You can read through what others ask to get ideas on how to handle what's to come, give advice to others if you've been in their shoes, and ask your own questions about how to handle your own struggles with your teenager.

Read more
What is normal teen sexual behavior? We’ve got answers to help you understand your teenager
Read this to find out if your teen's sexual behavior is "normal"
Two teenagers on a date outside

What can parents actually expect when their kids turn into teens and start exploring their sexuality? It can be an uncomfortable subject, but being educated about typical sexual development and what your teen may be hearing from their peers is important to make sure you can talk openly with your child about protection, consent, risk reduction, and other issues.
Teens will be talking about sex and exploring this new part of their lives eventually and it's perfectly natural. Having your head in the sand won't make it go away, so the information below will prepare you with information to tackle this new stage of parenting.

Puberty
The onset of puberty is what can start the beginning of this stage of life for teens, but it doesn't mean they're ready for sex; just that they may start experiencing sexual thoughts like crushes or urges like feeling aroused. On average, puberty begins between ages 8 and 14.

Read more
Going through the IVF process? Here’s what to expect
Ready for the IVF process? The steps and expectations from start to finish
A woman undergoing an ultrasound

Because of modern science, the birds and the bees aren’t precisely what they used to be. The rise of assisted reproductive technology (ART) has given parents ways of conceiving besides intercourse.

More than 8 million babies have been born via in vitro fertilization (IVF) since its inception in 1978 and 2018. In 2019, more than 83,000 babies were born via ART, according to CDC data. It’s unclear how many of those were from the IVF process, but the CDC notes it’s the most common form of ART.

Read more