mental health

A Lawrence-based psychologist says more light exposure could help reduce the effects of Seasonal Affective Disorder.

Johnson County recorded 93 suicide deaths in 2023, down from 122 the previous year. Mental health experts say it’s hard to know if the encouraging numbers are a sign of things to come, but it could indicate that mental health services are working in the short term.

There are 418 Missourians across the state on a waiting list for a mental health bed, up from around 300 at this time last year. People are spending an average of 14 months in jail before receiving their court-ordered treatment.

Hundreds of unhoused people in Kansas City have been sleeping outside, even in the recent frigid temperatures. We asked them to explain — in their own words — why. Plus: sports betting will soon be available in Missouri, but public health experts worry about the effect online betting will have on gamblers' mental health.

A Wellness Court opened this month within Kansas City's Municipal Court, replacing the separate mental health and drug courts. The new approach offers a unique focus on co-occurring issues and lowers the barriers for people to get help.

Missouri lawmakers will consider dozens of health-related bills this session. Topics like insulin pricing, food labeling and mental health are top of mind, as well as efforts to reverse the abortion rights amendment passed by voters in November.

In November's election, a majority of Platte County voters approved a quarter-cent sales tax that would fund youth mental health services. But Platte County Commissioners refused to enact the tax, drawing criticism from residents and mental health providers.

Raising kids is harder now than 10-15 years ago, so much so that the U.S. Surgeon General issued a health advisory about parenting. A Kansas City mental health expert and parent discuss the modern day challenges to raising children.

Stress is a part of every human’s life, but the way it feels and how we handle it varies based on the individual. That’s one of the reasons stress is such a challenging topic for scientists to study. Dr. Rajita Sinha of Yale’s Stress Center says new brain imaging technology is helping us better understand our stress biology, the lasting effects of chronic stress, and healthy ways of dealing with it.

Nonprofits in Platte County collected signatures to get a quarter-cent sales tax on the Nov. 5 ballot after resistance from the county commission.

For decades, Kansas City only had a single women's rugby team. Inspired partly by the U.S. Olympic team's success, interest in the sport has grown enough to form a second team — and this weekend, they'll play against each other for the first time.

Platte County voters will decide in November on a sales tax proposal that would help support mental health care for at-risk kids. Why is it needed, and what could it mean for the county if it passes?