Charlotte, North Carolina
CNN
—
A room full of teens — some old friends, some strangers — stood with their hands, feet, or backs together and their eyes closed.
“We are never alone in this world,” says Davis Cook, 18, the group’s founder and senior high school student, who has been guiding teenagers in meditation. “We are connected to a larger community that supports us.”
It’s not a Wednesday night to get teens excited after homework and after-school activities, but this group of eight attends monthly mentals with church leaders at Myers Park Presbyterian Church in Charlotte. He said he was looking forward to the health session.
Many high school students are affected by what experts call the teenage mental health crisis. A study released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention March.
Overall, more than one-third of high school students in the United States experienced poor mental health at least most of the time during the Covid-19 pandemic. A CDC investigation was found. More than 2 out of 5 students felt persistent sadness or hopelessness and stopped their usual activities. About 1 in 5 he had serious suicidal thoughts and about 1 in 10 her 1 student attempted suicide.
“[The teens]realized that this was a national emergency, that this was a matter of life and death,” said Michelle Michelle, assistant pastor for youth at Myers Park Presbyterian Church. Thomas Bush said. “If you can give them some resources because of the chronic stress they deal with, it could be a lifelong gift.”
The church’s program came together in 2021 after a long history of occasional mental health programs. At that time, church leaders learned how many teenagers had committed suicide in the area and how many church members were touched by it. Eight teenagers participated, but about 40 teenagers entered the program and 12 became accredited advocates.
Advocates receive training from church leaders in skills such as problem solving, breathing techniques, self-compassion, mindfulness, and meditation. Then you can bring these tools with you during your monthly check-ins to teach your peers. Be supervised by an adult who is always in the room, providing structure and providing support.
“Last year, I learned that mental health is something most high school students deal with. “Check what you think is working. It may not be.”
Most of the teenagers who attended the September conference said they had lost someone to suicide, received a phone call from a friend contemplating suicide, had suicidal thoughts (thoughts or plans to commit suicide), or experienced three I have experimented with combinations.
Mental Health Check-In aims to support teens at risk, connect their friends with adults who can intervene, and help students who feel okay invest in their mental health. There is
“We are all going to be in crisis and have hard days,” said Thomas Bush. “We want to give them the tools of life And provide resources to help them face it. ”
One of the most important parts of the evening was the time set aside for the teens to check in with each other.
It first happened when the group hunched over sofas, chairs and beanbags. They made a list of cards and categorized different words that describe their emotions to state how they were feeling that day.
It became clear that words such as stress meant frustration, and as a result of the discussion, I realized that someone was not only satisfied, but joyful.
They then moved around a table full of chipotle bowls and ate together, allowing them to break into smaller groups and open up to each other. They shared laughs, giggles, complaints, and moans about school, family, and friends.
In order for group members to gain the necessary vulnerability to support each other, the adults running the group should allow teens to talk about difficult things and share time to relax and have fun. .
Teenagers who attended the September session said they attended the first meeting because it was important, but they enjoyed it so much that they kept coming back. Because I felt the benefits of getting together with friends and sharing about mental health.
Another girl agreed, saying she usually sees people keep quiet about how they feel because talking about how they feel can be seen as attention-seeking. But now that I am able to get together with friends from different schools, I feel more confident to speak directly about my experiences.
Let’s talk about anything that causes stress, Thomas-Bush told teenagers. It was not surprising that universities appeared.
Teenagers came up with a worst-case scenario. They can’t get into any of the colleges they apply to. They then learned the method of decatastrophe, a psychological tool that explores the reality of feared situations and mitigates imaginary dangers. According to the American Psychological Association.
The consequences of not going to college would affect their future, but there were things they could do about it. or interning in a future career path to try again.
Now that you know how to solve the problem, what were the actual chances of the worst case scenario coming to fruition? decided that other options might be included.
Catastrophic destruction is one of the tools that members of the group have been practicing to get back to normal life.
One teen said her parents often asked her if the things she was worried about wouldn’t matter in 3 minutes, 3 hours, 3 days, 3 months, or 3 years. rice field.
Cook, the group’s founder, countered, saying that while it’s good to keep perspective, even the short-term pain deserves to be felt.
“Maybe three days won’t matter, but it might still take a minute,” Cook said.
When parents asked what they should know about their children, many students said that sometimes teens need a space to vent their feelings. They also suggested that parents may also need to learn how to use these psychological tools.
Psychologist Lisa D’Amour, author ofEmotional Lives of Teenagers: Raising Connected, Competent, and Caring Adolescents,” suggested a few things to such a list. First, adults need to be just as good at supporting each other as teens are at being completely unresponsible for the mental health of their peers.
“Teenage is hard. I never want to feel like teenagers believe their friends’ lives are in their hands,” says Ohio-based D’Amour. said.
“Those groups are trying to help each other, but they don’t always have the tools mental health professionals are trained to use,” says John Duffy, a Chicago-based psychologist. added. “The well-being of a teenager in need of professional care can sometimes be in the hands of fellow teenagers.”
He said it is important for such groups to have trained professional adults present.
“That’s why we have adults in the room because they can let us know and we can get it from them,” said Thomas Bush. “We are not responsible for providing treatment, nor are we responsible for helping them improve their situation. We are not responsible for protecting them every minute. It’s your responsibility to let your parents know when you know you’re going to get sick.”
The second thing D’Amour wants families to know is to respect teens’ ability to support them, while also teaching adults how to ask for help.
“Whether teens feel comfortable getting adult’s attention, what gets in the way, and how adults feel closer to themselves when teens are worried about their friends. We have some work to discuss about what we can do to help,” she added.
Cook looked over the church parking lot to see the last salsa being scraped from the bowl and the students loading into their parents’ cars.
One of the girls who attended the session seemed quieter than usual, he said. He later decided to personally check with her and ask how she was feeling.
Cook returned to speak to Thomas Bush, who had closed the church.
