Our featured service for June is a new mental health service called Momentum, developed to help children and adolescents with anxiety, depression and wellbeing. Supported by the Medical Research Future Fund – Million Minds Mission research program, funded by the Australian Department of Health, Momentum offers tailored online treatment programs to improve the mental health and wellbeing of young Australians.

Momentum offers tailored online treatment programs to help children and adolescents learn new ways to cope with feelings of anxiety and/or unhappiness. Designed in collaboration with young people, parents, clinicians and researchers, Momentum aims to help young people and their parents/guardians understand difficulties they may be facing, and ways to help overcome them.

In addition to managing anxiety and unhappiness, Momentum also offers help with sleep difficulties, information on wellbeing and help-seeking, and tips and information about substance use for adolescents.

To get started, individuals or their parent/caregiver will answer some questions which will be used to put together a report, and to build a program. The report describes where the user is having the most difficulties, which will also be provided to the parent/caregiver for users under 15 years old.

Users specially-made Momentum program will include between 7 and12 sessions to be completed each week at a time that suits you. Each session takes about 30-45 minutes, including information, activities, and rewards, which can also be accessed from their Momentum dashboard.

Each users Momentum program will be different as they are specially made for them. However, all programs include:

• Tracking tools for their anxiety and/or unhappiness.
• Step-by-step guidance to tackle anxiety and/or unhappiness.
• In-the-moment skills to manage anxiety and/or unhappiness and calm their mind and body.
• Learn ways to challenge unhelpful thoughts and find more helpful ways of thinking.
• Optional extra sessions to help with difficult situations.
• Personal Momentum dashboard to access information, activities and rewards.

Momentum is designed for young people aged 7 to 17 years seeking to learn new ways to manage anxiety and unhappiness.

The Momentum program includes a range of tools to help users:

• Keep track of their feelings
• Learn skills for coping with difficult feelings and situations
• Tackle anxiety and/or unhappiness step-by-step
• Calm their mind and body
• Find more helpful ways of thinking.

Momentum is designed to be undertaken by young people on their own. However, Health Professionals can refer young people to the program and support them through Momentum by:

• Get them started with the program, let them know how to check-in and answer any questions they may have.
• Schedule sessions every few weeks to go through their progress and talk through any difficulties.
• Work through the sessions together.

Health Professionals can learn more about how to use Momentum through the Momentum Professional Guide, available by completing an online request form.

Momentum is free for all young people living in Australia.

Momentum is an online program available at https://www.momentumhub.org.au/.

Depending on the users age, either the individual or their parent/caregiver will answer some questions that will create their custom Momentum program. The program can then be completed on a computer or using an iPad/tablet.

Momentum has been developed by a team of researchers and clinicians who have over 20 years experience in the field of child anxiety, depression, and online psychological treatment programs.

Access information on Momentums current research projects here.