Mental Health Awareness Month
May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Creating awareness of mental health care and wellness is important as children and youth in Iowa are in the midst of a mental health crisis. According to the Iowa Department of Health & Human Services, suicide is the second leading cause of death among Iowans 15-24 years of age. In Central Iowa, children and youth relying on Medicaid wait an average of 12 weeks for a first appointment with a provider (source: Blank Children’s Hospital).
Additional data underscores the crisis children and youth face. According to the 2021 Iowa Youth Survey, which surveys 46,000+ students, 192 school districts (public & private schools), and has been conducted every three years since 1999, depression, bullying and suicidal ideation are on the rise. The 2021 Youth Survey revealed that instances of name calling and hurtful teasing in schools increased from 2018 to 2021 by 10% for all students (30 to 40% for 11th graders, 45 to 55% for 6th and 8th graders). Ten percent of all students surveyed experienced severe bullying (resulting in missing school); 36% of all 11th graders reported feeling sad or hopeless, compared to 25% in 2016. Moreover, 24% of all 11th graders surveyed reported that they had considered suicide: 24% of all 11th graders; 21% of all 8th graders; and 17% of all 6th graders.
Moreover, there is a direct link between Adverse Child Experiences (ACEs) during childhood and adolescence, and chronic diseases, mental health disorders, incarceration and unemployment in adults. ACEs are traumatic events that can dramatically upset a child’s sense of safety and well-being. They include emotional, physical, sexual abuse; emotional and physical neglect; household challenges – separation, domestic violence, substance abuse, mental illness, incarcerated adult)
However, there is hope and good news. The antidote to trauma and adverse childhood experiences is resilience, the capacity to adapt and grow through adversity with support from others. Positive experiences, like connections to caring and committed adults, counteract adverse experiences and create resilience within all of us. Adults reporting 6-7 positive childhood experiences had 72% lower odds of suffering from depression or poor mental health, compared with those reporting 0-2 positive childhood experiences.
A caring and committed adult does not ask “What is wrong with this young person?”, but rather, “What happened to this young person?” This is a trauma informed approach to mental health and is critical to assisting people suffering from ACEs, as it helps reframe “maladaptive behaviors and coping mechanisms”. As trauma-based responses to perceived threats in a person’s social environment. Each one of us has a role in cultivating resilience in our young people and in each other. Professional help is advised, but clinicians cannot do it alone. Families, parents, parishioners, clergy, educators, neighbors and friends all serve key roles in this work.
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