Kamala Harris: An Innovative Energy in the Democratic Contest

For the past few years, the essential nature of the mental health epidemic among today’s youth has been brought into sharper focus than ever before. The World Health Organization has reported that 1 in 6 adolescents experience a mental disorder, while the National Institute of Mental Health has stated that the most common occur in the college-age years. And the COVID-19 pandemic seems to have worsened the situation, with one recent study finding that 41.5% of college students had seriously considered suicide during the past year.

In this article, I will contend that the mental health crisis affecting the young people of today has many different facets and calls for the urgent attention of not just policymakers and educators but society at large as well. I will explain the many different factors that go into what is now being seen as the National Youth Mental Health Emergency, the threat it poses to not just the individuals directly involved but the whole of society, and what can and should be done to try to alleviate it.

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The mental health crisis is serious. In one of the most recent and comprehensive studies on the subject, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that adolescent emergency room visits for mental health issues jumped 31% in this pandemic year (2020) compared to the previous year (2019). Dr. Vivek Murthy, our current U.S. Surgeon General, has stated that “our nation’s youth are facing a mental health crisis that has been exacerbated by the pandemic.” And the societal costs of ignoring this issue are nothing to scoff at. Estimates suggest that untreated mental health problems lead to healthcare costs that are 2.5 times greater than those for people who are mentally healthy.

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For a long time, there has been a stigma surrounding mental health, especially among youth. Many adolescents do not feel comfortable seeking help because of fear related to judgment or misunderstanding. The advent of social media has complicated the landscape even further, in two very different ways. On one hand, social media can provide support and a sense of community when it is most needed. On the other, it can and does serve as a platform for people to make comparisons between themselves and the seemingly perfect lives of others. These curated lives can lead one to feel as if they are just not good enough, and the appearance of such can also breed a kind of bullying that is specific to this generation.

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There are several interrelated factors contributing to the mental health crisis among youth. First, the pandemic has intensified mental health issues among young people. A recent JAMA publication found that social isolation is linked to rising depression and anxiety among youth. Moreover, secluded young people are not in a position to boost their mental health through the kinds of friendships that are so important to developing happy, stable, and well-adjusted personalities.

Second, the pressure to excel is not something that young people can shake off. They feel it all the time, and they are not even allowed a break between semesters. A recent survey by the Pew Research Center found that an overwhelming 61% of teens said they feel a lot of pressure to get good grades. To them, it’s clear that the friendship phone calls that used to come Friday afternoons have been largely replaced by relentless demands for academic achievement. Finally, there is a sizable gap between appreciation of the problem and access to mental health resources. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, only half of the young people living with a mental illness get treated.

The sharpened attention on mental health among today’s youth may be seen by some as just that—a focus. The argument is a familiar one: Young people today are just better at expressing their mental health struggles, and that’s fine but really nothing new. But the uptick in reported mental health conditions among youth is hard to explain if looked at purely through the lens of “just better at expressing.” And the pandemic hit this generation especially hard when it comes to mental health, with serious lasting consequences.

It is very important for the typical reader to comprehend the mental health emergency affecting young people. This state of affairs is currently very widespread and requires understanding and empathy that our population is currently not rendering. I am not asking you to feel sympathy for people who are mentally ill. I am asking you to feel sympathy for people who are mentally ill and are also going through a very hard time because they are young and are stuck in a mentally ill state when they really should be in a happier, more mentally healthy time. Understanding, conversation, and action are what I am asking you for—not just mental health resources in schools, but a more engaged way of living with young people going through this tough time.

The pressing problem of poor mental health among young people is one that simply cannot be ignored. Contributing to the high rates of suicide and other mental health crises among today’s youth are four intertwined and intricate factors: we’ve got an epidemic of social isolation, huge amounts of space pressure, next to no resources, and a ton of stigma. We need an in-depth, nuanced approach to tackle this set of problems, starting with the appearance of the first factor, in the next auditorium.

As we embark on the path toward a new era, it is essential to recognize that our young people’s mental health is no trifling matter. It is not merely a personal concern but one that implicates our entire society. We must work concertedly and with urgency to put in place an array of strategies and services that will protect and promote the mental health of our youth and young adults.