Skills training to help young people at high risk of severe mental illness
Tests a skills-based preventive program for young people with early warning signs of mental illness.
Plain-language title generated from the registry record
Registry title: Skills for Wellness
Key facts
- Where
- Halifax, CanadaSee the site
AI summary: who the study is looking for
From the trial's eligibility criteria. Machine-read from the registry text on this page, so it can be wrong. The registry text below and the trial team decide who can take part.
The trial is looking for young people aged 9 to 21 in the FORBOW study who have early warning signs of severe mental illness, such as anxiety, unusual experiences or sudden mood changes.
- Age
- 9 to 21 years
- Sex
- All sexes can join.
- Disease stage
- Early warning signs (antecedents) of severe mental illness: psychotic-like experiences, basic symptoms, anxiety or sudden mood changes. No diagnosis of severe mental illness yet.
- Earlier treatment
- More than 3 sessions of structured psychological therapy in the past 12 months means a person cannot join.
Main reasons for not taking part
- Diagnosis of severe mental illness (schizophrenia, other psychotic disorder, bipolar disorder, severe major depressive disorder)
- More than 3 sessions of structured psychological therapy in the past 12 months
- Not enough understanding of English to benefit from the intervention
Read by machine on 12 November 2026.
Could this be for you?
Answer for yourself. This is not a decision: only the study team can say whether you can take part.
- Are you between 9 and 21 years old?
Source: NCT01980147, who can take part
Where in Canada
- Nova Scotia Health AuthorityHalifax, CanadaEnrolling by invitation
Questions to ask the study team
- How often do I need to come in, and for how long each time?
- Are travel costs paid?
- Can I keep my own doctor?
- What happens if I want to stop?
Contact the study team: see the registry record → Contacts and Locations
Print a page for my doctorTrial details
- Who runs it
- Nova Scotia Health Authority
- Trial code
- NCT01980147
- Record updated
- 14 May 2025
- Original description
Severe mental illness such as schizophrenia and mood disorders typically develops at a young age and can cause life-long disability. Currently available treatments cannot cure severe mental illness. This makes it important to find ways to prevent severe mental illness in young people before it has a chance to develop. This research study will pilot a new preventive intervention for young people who are at high risk of developing severe mental illness. The investigators will target early preceding factors (the 'antecedents') to severe mental illness which includes anxiety, unusual hearing and visual experiences, the loss of previously acquired abilities, and sudden and unpredictable changes in mood. These antecedents strongly predict an increased risk of developing severe mental illness. They are often impairing and distressing to the individual but can be improved with self-management skills and parent training, and they are present in the individual years before the onset of severe mental illness which makes them an ideal target for early intervention. The goal is to intervene early enough in the young person's life that severe mental illness can be prevented, hopefully leading to a happy, healthy and productive adulthood. The investigators want to test the acceptability and short-term efficacy of this new preventive intervention.Read full original descriptionShow less
Skills for Wellness: Cognitive-behavioural Skills Training for Psychotic-like Experiences, Basic Symptoms, Affective Lability and Anxiety in Youth
Severe mental illness such as schizophrenia and mood disorders typically develops at a young age and can cause life-long disability. Currently available treatments cannot cure severe mental illness. This makes it important to find ways to prevent severe mental illness in young people before it has a chance to develop. This research study will pilot a new preventive intervention for young people who are at high risk of developing severe mental illness. The investigators will target early preceding factors (the 'antecedents') to severe mental illness which includes anxiety, unusual hearing and visual experiences, the loss of previously acquired abilities, and sudden and unpredictable changes in mood. These antecedents strongly predict an increased risk of developing severe mental illness. They are often impairing and distressing to the individual but can be improved with self-management skills and parent training, and they are present in the individual years before the onset of severe mental illness which makes them an ideal target for early intervention. The goal is to intervene early enough in the young person's life that severe mental illness can be prevented, hopefully leading to a happy, healthy and productive adulthood. The investigators want to test the acceptability and short-term efficacy of this new preventive intervention.
Inclusion: FORBOW (Families Overcoming Risks and Building Opportunities for Well-Being) participant between 9-21 years old; Meet criteria for one or more antecedents (psychotic like experience, basic symptoms, anxiety or affective lability).
Exclusion: More than 3 sessions of structured psychological therapy in the past 12 months; Diagnosis of severe mental illness (schizophrenia, other psychotic disorder, bipolar disorder, severe major depressive disorder); Insufficient understanding of the English language to benefit from the intervention.