Understanding the illness representations of young people with anxiety and depression: A qualitative study.

Our findings suggest that illness perceptions are complex, highly idiosyncratic, and specific to youth anxiety and depression. Given the complexity of these beliefs and the known association with important treatment- and health-related outcomes, it is important that clinical formulation incorporates young people's illness belief models, including their perceptions of symptoms, cause, timeline to recovery, consequences, and personal and treatment control. To increase help-seeking, treatment engagement and adaptive coping strategies, therapy should work to a shared understanding of illness beliefs. Increasing congruence between the belief models of young people, families, and clinicians may serve to improve treatment benefits and address the unmet mental health needs of young people.