New data show that the risk of mental health challenges increases in adolescence. Take action to address these trends.
Many internal and external factors can impact teen mental health. These include academic pressure, socioeconomic status, and exposure to violence and trauma. Exposome research has also uncovered windows of developmental sensitivity to social media.
Prevention
Supporting the mental health of youth requires prevention strategies. These include promoting healthy relationships, providing social and emotional learning opportunities in educational settings, and expanding programming that supports a healthy lifestyle.
Adolescents are vulnerable to developing mental disorders, which account for 45% of the global burden of disease in this age group. Identifying and intervening early can modify psychopathological trajectories, reduce the risk of poor outcomes and improve life quality.
Addressing the mental health needs of at-risk youth, such as racial and ethnic minorities, foster youth, and those involved in the juvenile justice system, is critical. Additionally, data collection and linkages need to be strengthened in order to enable more timely surveillance of trends and risks. Furthermore, there is a need to promote public-private research partnerships that bring together researchers, community organizations, technology companies, and health care providers. This can enable new ways of identifying and measuring risk and protective factors for youth mental health.
Early Intervention
Adolescence is a period of both vulnerability and opportunity, but untreated mental health conditions can lead to serious and lasting consequences. Youth need access to comprehensive, affordable, and age-appropriate mental health care. They deserve to be supported in positive and healthy relationships with family and peers, and to have access to safe environments, including online communities.
Evidence shows that when well designed, early intervention services can prevent or delay the onset of disorders. While the development of sound conceptual frameworks, scaling up of early psychosis services, and more specialised youth-specific services provide a beachhead, there is still much work to be done.
To address these challenges, funders must make sustained investments in equitable prevention, promotion, and early intervention. This requires elevating the voices of youth and families throughout all stages of funding and evaluation. It also demands investing in innovative approaches and technologies, and prioritizing those that are culturally and linguistically responsive to the unique needs of marginalized groups (e.g., youth with disabilities, racial and ethnic minorities, LBGTQ+ people).
Treatment
Child and adolescent mental health care includes addressing a range of symptoms and diagnoses, including depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, ADHD, autism, and personality disorders. The treatment of these conditions often involves medication and therapy.
A variety of factors can contribute to youth mental health challenges, from personal stressors like bullying and social isolation to external events such as poverty, climate change, globalization, and conflict. Many of these challenges are complex and difficult to address, but solutions exist.
For example, community groups can help educate the public about mental illness and reduce negative stereotypes and biases. Additionally, educators, health care professionals, religious leaders, juvenile justice officials, and online influencers can play a role in encouraging open dialogue about mental health and reducing stigma. It is also important to develop integrated models of youth mental healthcare that incorporate prevention and early intervention strategies. This may involve a shift to a clinical staging framework beyond the limited ultra-high risk paradigm for psychosis, and incorporating trans-diagnostic prevention and early interventions into extended primary care services.
Support
Having strong connections with friends and family, and feeling supported by school and community can help promote mental health. These types of relationships can also protect youth from a variety of negative experiences, including drug use and violence.
DYCD’s Runaway and Homeless Youth drop-in centers and other programs provide comprehensive mental health services in a safe, centralized location with a licensed behavioral health provider. Many of these services are free of charge.
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline can be a critical resource for individuals seeking help or information on suicide. Learn how you can get involved and help spread the word about suicide prevention.
Thousands of Compass Virtual providers are state-licensed and can treat adolescents for a wide range of conditions, including anxiety, depression, substance use disorders, trauma, psychosis and disruptive behavior disorder. Many of these services are available at no cost, and most insurance is accepted. Find a program in your area.