ECHOES, that's absolutely horrible. It's absurd for an employer to expect people to only need catastrophic coverage. After all, everyone should go in for checkups etc. even if they're perfectly healthy.

But back to the original question (what was it again?).

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Does anyone think there are significant negatives to having a mental health diagnosis attached to a minor's record?

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I think it depends on what field you're in. In my particular line of work, I don't think anyone would think negatively of me (or anyone) for seeking that type of help. In fact, several of my co-workers know I go to a therapist and they all think it's a good thing that I'm interested in taking care of my mental health. It might be more of a problem if I were incapable of good job performance as a result of it though. But then it would be the job performance, rather than a mental health issue, that would be to blame there.

On the other hand, my brother is in the medical field (he's a surgeon). He once went to a therapist when he was having trouble with making some serious decisions. That therapist wanted him to seek a psychiatric evaluation (perhaps for depression or something), and my brother refused. He refused because he was afraid it would get attached to his medical records and hurt him in finding a job later on. I thought he was being paranoid, but another friend of mine (who works in public health policy) told me he was right and that it'd be safer for him not to let that onto his record. So for him, if he wants to seek a psychiatrist, he'd have to seek one without ever letting the insurance companies know (which would be too costly for him as he's still in training and doesn't make much money yet).

It's sad that there's such a stigma attached to trying to stay healthy.

Sidony