It was June of 2022 when Zaylyn, 6 years old at the time, started complaining of stomach aches.
“It was hurting here,” Zaylyn said as he pointed to just above his stomach and below his chest. “It was tight in there like someone was punching me.”
Zaylyn’s mom, Dominique, knew that didn’t sound like a typical stomach ache. Combined with him seeming irritable — and also knowing some of the stresses going on at home — led her to think this was related to anxiety. Symptoms of anxiety don’t always show up as nervous “panic attacks,” especially in children who may be too young to put their feelings into words.
“It didn’t feel like an emergency, but it was starting to feel unmanageable,” said Dominique. “I remember thinking that I couldn’t imagine getting through the whole weekend with him like this.”
That’s when she turned to Children’s Wisconsin and found a mental health walk-in clinic close by in Milwaukee. She took Zaylyn in on a Friday evening, and he immediately saw a Children’s Wisconsin therapist.
“I talked about my feelings,” said Zaylyn. “They helped me put things into words.”
“It was extremely helpful,” said Dominque, “and I remember leaving there feeling like a weight had been lifted off the both of us.”
Not only did the mental health walk-in clinic team help Zaylyn manage his emotions that day, but they also made him an appointment with a Children’s Wisconsin behavioral health consultant the following Monday. Behavioral health consultants are licensed therapists who work alongside the child’s pediatrician in Children’s Wisconsin primary care offices. Dominique and Zaylyn were put at ease and had a plan to move forward.
More than 900 kids helped in the first year
The mental health walk-in clinic in Milwaukee opened on March 8, 2022. It was the first and only clinic of its kind in Wisconsin available to children and teens. Children’s Wisconsin opened a second walk-in clinic in Kenosha in February 2024. To date, the walk-in clinics have seen more than 2,500 kids with a range of concerns. The most prevalent issues are trauma, anxiety and school avoidance.
“We have been steady and busy since we opened,” said Amanda Quesnell, MSN, RN, director of Mental and Behavioral Health at Children’s Wisconsin. “We keep hearing from families just how grateful they are for this service.”
The average age is 12, but they are seeing more and more younger kids like Zaylyn. Families travel from as far away as Manitowoc and Chicago, but the majority are from Milwaukee, Waukesha and Racine counties.
Since opening, there has been a lot of education and growth for the team. They have learned how to better connect kids to mental health resources after they leave the clinic. That could be Children’s Wisconsin behavioral health consultants, school therapists or other community organizations.
“If the issue feels urgent and unmanageable, we encourage you to come see us,” said Quesnell. “No concern is too big or too small.”
Using his new coping skills
Zaylyn, now 9, is in a much better place with his mental health. It’s been a journey that started at the mental health walk-in clinic. He has learned how to use new coping skills like breathing, and he’s gotten much better at putting his anxiety into words. He is seeing a long-term therapist and has a social-emotional group at school that provides support.
“I think kids don’t want to worry their parents and tell them what’s wrong,” said Dominique. “That’s why we have to pay attention to those signs that something is off.”
For Zaylyn, it was stomach aches. For other kids, it could be headaches, changes in sleep patterns, withdrawal from activities and friends, or something else. Dominique encourages parents to take these signs seriously and not be afraid to seek help.
“If your child was physically ill, you would take them to an urgent care,” she said. “This is the same thing. I’m so glad we went.”
Kids in Wisconsin are experiencing a mental and behavioral health crisis, and many families are unsure how to address it with their children. That's why the Children's Wisconsin Craig Yabuki Mental Health Center is committed to helping parents and caregivers get the answers they need. To learn about mental and behavioral health care available to children and teens, visit the Children’s Wisconsin website.
