BASIC INTERNSHIP IN MENTAL HEALTH PRACTICES: AN EXPERIENCE REPORT.

The present study aims to report the experience of a Psychology student during Basic Internship VII: Mental Health Practices, held at the Child and Adolescent Psychosocial Care Center (CAPSi) in Teresina-PI. The central proposal consisted of analyzing how the experience in the Psychosocial Care Network (RAPS) device contributed to the academic training and mental health care of children and adolescents. The methodology adopted was descriptive, based on participant observation, field diary records and monitoring of institutional practices, including screenings, individual consultations, therapeutic groups and interdisciplinary activities. The planning of the interventions considered criteria such as psychoeducational objectives, age profile and thematic relevance. The results showed that the CAPSi acts as a facilitating environment for socio-emotional development, offering comprehensive and interdisciplinary care. Three main axes were highlighted: (1) the deconstruction of the medicalizing logic in the face of social vulnerabilities; (2) adolescence as a critical phase for the emergence of anxiety disorders, demanding comprehensive and culturally sensitive attention; and (3) therapeutic groups as spaces for subjectivation, belonging and strengthening of bonds, despite the challenges of adherence resulting from social and structural factors. It is concluded that the experience contributed significantly to professional training, by enabling a critical and contextualized look at mental health care, aligned with the principles of the Psychiatric Reform and Collective Health.