“There is Hope for Our Children – Looking at Teen Mental Health”

The new year begins 2022 with new hope and new possibilities, but for many people, 2020 and 2021 has left deep scars and wounds. The good news is, we are starting to make strides against the pandemic, but the sad reality is mental health challenges are on the rise, especially in children and teens. For example, in March 2021, in a study of 80,879 youth globally (collected research articles and studies from Jan 2020 to Feb 2021) showed 1 in 4 youth had clinically elevated depression, and 1 in 5 had clinically elevated anxiety. Why aren’t we addressing this issue, if it is a global epidemic?

 

Where do we begin? That is the real question. During this pandemic, parents/caregivers are what I call “The Pandemic Teachers”. Many were frustrated beyond belief at the distance learning models that are being used at the time. Given that parents are the number one teachers of their own children, when we switched to virtual, so many skeletons in the proverbial education closet was unleashed and both parents/caregivers and educational professionals alike, were not prepared. Many parents have lost their jobs and were expected to be just as versed in educational strategies and curriculum as we teachers are. Just as exasperated are our teaching staff and school districts to be able to provide adequately for our students, especially our special needs population.

 

This angst, we saw, led to an increase in child abuse and higher suicide rates among our youth. No one knew how to handle the lock down well. Financial woes, childcare, and more raised the stress levels in adults, this in turn was reflected onto the youth. In a study by US News, in Oct. 2021, it showed the rate of abuse tripled at the beginning of Covid in 2020 when we were in lock-down status. This includes reports of neglect because parents needed to work, and many had no one at home care for their children. The stress didn’t stop there. Children and teens felt the effects of seclusion thru exhibiting mental health challenges. In 2020, children and teens were separated from their peers, alienated, and many didn’t have access to in-person resources due to Covid-19. It is no wonder we are observing behaviors like lashing out in frustration or complete shut down mode; we even see some extreme behaviors like “cutting” or total disengagement from things they once enjoyed. All of these are signs of anxiety and depression.

 

HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?

 

Many teens have been feeling the pressure of “adulting”: taking care of their younger siblings, household duties and working outside the home long before the pandemic. When Covid-19 hit; however, it brought to light some factors we either didn’t pay attention too, or didn’t prioritize. Now we are at this point. We make decisions that effect our children’s future, but they have little to no input. The reality of most inner city teens is of working age, not only attend school but many hold a part-time or full-time jobs. Some of our teens have children of their own while trying to finish a high school education. There are many scenarios, but one thing I hear from students is adults don’t understand the pressures we place upon them and expect them to bare it with ease because their caregivers/adults do. Along with these “adulting” responsibilities, are still the pressures of being a student: getting into a

decent college, getting good grades and scoring well on SAT/ACT’s. The reality is many don’t know how to process what is happening around them.

 

According to the CDC, youth depression can look a lot different or exhibit itself in ways Adult depression doesn’t. For teens of color, according to one of the few studies I could find on black children of color and how their mental health is impacted by covid, Children’s Hospital of Minnesota in an article in March 2020, stated that low socioeconomics, access to health care, along with the threat of racism has increased the anxiety level of Black teens. According to the Congressional Black Caucus, children that identify as white have a higher suicide rate; however, the rate of black suicides are increasing. UNICEF did a study on Latin American youth and youth in the Caribbean, and found those that identified as female were more likely to have a pessimistic view of the future and exhibited more anxiety about the economic impacts of this pandemic. A trend we are seeing nationally. For our Chinese-American children, their anxiety includes language barriers, anti-Asian racism and a threat in question to their own medical practices and treatments used in their community. The rate is higher among middle school teens in China. This is not just a problem in America, it is global.

 

SO WHAT CAN WE DO?

 

Parent/Caregivers are the first teachers for your child/teen. As parents/caregivers, you have a unique opportunity to give your teen support and encouragement to work through these moments in ways specialists can’t. You are a very important piece in their lives. Never underestimate the power of influence you have or how important you are in their hearts. YOU ARE!!! Listen to your teen. Acknowledge their feelings; if it is hard for them, it is hard for you. Build a support system for your teen/child so they know they are supported and loved. Talk it out. Give them a chance to express their feelings.

 

By being open, using love, being honest and using the right tools, we as adults help ourselves by helping our children. Teen depression is nothing new, and this horrific pandemic has helped to bring it more to light. As a global community, we may belong to different cultures and have different customs, but we have one common goal – helping our children and youth succeed and be the best loving and successful beings they can be. If there was any time to come together for a greater good, it is for our children right now. This pandemic has given us an opportunity to operate as a united community against a common foe. It has given us a chance to live, grow and thrive together. We got this, all of us!

 

Divine Celiane, is a California teacher with credentials in English, Multiple Subject and an Education Specialist of 21 years. She is a graduate of the University of California at Berkeley with a background in Social Welfare and Psychology; a student of Theology at the University of Sedona, and received her credentials at St. Mary’s College of California. Divine specializes in Intensive and Strategic learners, urban populations and differentiated instruction and curriculum for English Language Learners and children with Special Needs. Divine is creator of a self-love series, “Transformational Tantra: Love is the New Awakening” (www.wizdomspeaks.com). Divine is a Divine Love Coach and helps people of all ages find and love their authentic spirit so that they can love and accept themselves and others for who they are without excuses.

 

Resources:

(https://www.childrensmn.org/2020/07/16/covid-19-trauma-mental-health-struggles-among-black-teen s/)

https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2021-06-11/big-rise-in-suicide-attempts-by-us-

tee n-girls-during-pandemic https://watsoncoleman.house.gov/uploadedfiles/full_taskforce_report.pdf

https://www.unicef.org/lac/en/impact-covid-19-mental-health-adolescents-and-youth

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/health-equity/race-ethnicity.html

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666560321000062

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2782796

 

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