Kids and Suicidality: The Behavioral Health Crisis Care Clinic Steps Into the Gap

Xander at Meadowdale Beach in Edmonds with Tuft, the family’s dog. Xander began having thoughts of ending his life at age 9, but thanks in large part to the Behavioral Health Crisis Care Clinic, he’s now on the path to recovery.
Xander was just 9 years old when his life took a nightmarish turn.
It started with debilitating headaches, which got so bad that he needed inpatient treatment. The treatment helped, but as the headaches diminished, Xander’s parents noticed a difference in their son.
“He became depressed,” said Stephanie Simpson, Xander’s mother. “He would curl into a ball, was no longer active and couldn’t make it through the school day.”
As if those changes weren’t troubling enough, Xander told his parents something that terrified them: He was having thoughts of ending his life.
Fortunately, Xander was eventually referred to the Behavioral Health Crisis Care Clinic (BHCCC) at Seattle Children’s, where he received a diagnosis and evidence-based treatment that put him on the path to recovery.