CAMHS information for children and young people

Growing up is not easy, and sometimes it's hard to cope with whatever life throws at you. Child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) can help if you: 

  • feel sad or like you do not want to be here anymore
  • have problems with your family, friends or at school
  • hurt yourself or want to hurt yourself
  • feel anxious and / or scared
  • have problems with eating and food
  • have trouble talking or sleeping
  • hear voices or see things
  • feel angry or are struggling to control your behaviour or temper
  • find it hard to concentrate or get on with friends
  • have to check or repeat things, or worry about germs
  • do not like yourself or have low self-confidence

You can be referred to CAMHS by your parents, teacher, social worker of GP. If you're old enough (over the age of 16), you can refer yourself. 

What can I expect from my CAMHS appointment?

Knowing what to expect when you're going to CAMHS will help you feel more in control of what's happening. 

Rethink has a guide that offers tips about what to expect and ask during your first CAMHS appointment and beyond. 

CAMHS are made up of teams of different professionals, such as psychologists, social workers, nurses and therapists. You may be asked a lot of questions and team members might want to talk to your family. This is because the team you see will want to get a good understanding of the problem, how you see it, and what ideas you might have about dealing with it. 

Once they have a good sense of who you are and what you want, they'll suggest different things that can help you and you'll decide what to do next together.

Watch the videos on My CAMHS Choices, where young people talk about what it's like when you go to CAMHS.

Want to speak to someone anonymously?

If you'd like to chat to someone anonymously, you could try calling a helpline or visiting websites such as Childline or The Mix.

ChildLine

ChildLine provides a confidential telephone counselling service for any child with a problem. Ir comforts, advises and protects. You can: 

The Mix

The Mix provides a free confidential telephone helpline and online service that aims to find young people the best help, whatever the problem. You can: 

Last Modified: 19/10/2020 11:43:56