Globally, one in seven teenagers will have experienced some mental disorder. It’s a delicate period as most discover who they are and what they want to become. So, emotional disorders tend to be the most common. This is an alarming statistic and what is concerning is the approach we are taking to solving it.

I’m noticing the methodology is a little unorthodox. For example, we seem to think we should be happy all the time; that sounds great in theory, but that’s not reality. Don’t get me wrong, we should be striving to be in a state of bliss. However, we will have to face adversity from time to time because that’s life. It is all about how we process and interpret and manage those thoughts.   

Well, I have learned over time being involved in healthcare that if you never fix the underlying problem, you are not doing anyone any good. We continue to shape people into wanting a quick fix so they can move on with life. That doesn’t help people in the long-term; it only sets them up for developing mental disease disorders. If you get to the root of the issue, you can devise a good action plan. For instance, let’s say you have anxiety from time to time. A good evaluation is finding a connection as to why that feeling develops. You discover that it stems from being in specific settings. Then you ask yourself, why do you think that is?  The link is because you don’t trust certain types of people. Well, that makes sense. In some ways, isn’t that normal? I would say so. So, why would you lead someone to think they have an anxiety disorder in this case?

Broadening the picture, looking at teenagers, one of the biggest problems I see is the way they treat each other. It’s brutal. Their socialization skills could be better, and they need to understand how to build proper relationships. This is one of the reasons the COVID shutdowns deeply affected our youth and exploited their social issues. People desire to be in a social setting in which they feel safe and that is done when you feel accepted and respected. Yes, some people will be more sensitive, and they are more susceptible to developing problems. However, if schools start incorporating a bullying curriculum, teaching social skills, and promoting a safe mental environment, they can fix many feelings of anxiety in children. Anxiety is one of the most common feelings exhibited by our youth today. If they start being in a constant state of anxiety, then yes, they need further assessment, but most of these kids, if fixed correctly, won’t.  

It doesn’t help to label those children with mental disorders. You then just threw gasoline on the fire. By labeling them in this fashion, they now think they are broken. This leads to more unpleasant feelings and now you have a mind game. Start engaging with this population and you will start seeing dialogue wrapped around mental health and terms being thrown out. They don’t have the maturity to understand what they are saying and labeling them with a disorder without a professional is dangerous.

Social media is another variable adding to the problem giving us the ideology that life is supposed to be perfect. Most people don’t show the ugly sides of their lives. Look who grew up with the platform and what generation is predominately on it – teenagers. If parents only give guidance and rules for use, we would be in a much better position. We are kidding ourselves if we don’t acknowledge how unhealthy social media can be on our minds—again, fixing the problem where it lies.

On that front, children need boundaries, structure, and discipline. Our children will never stand a chance if we don’t start putting these measures back into place. Yes, there is a balance to this because you can have extremism which is why you see non-disciplinary environments. Balance is vital to everything; you can have too little or too much of anything. The bottom line, poor parenting can cause poor growth mentally and physically. Kids need to be nurtured ultimately to achieve their maximum potential.

Lastly, part of a physical anymore includes a mental assessment. This is another thing that puzzles me. Do you think asking a child if they feel depressed or anxious will give you a proper valuation? The answer is NO! Asking how they like school or if they are involved in sports is a better way to assess that. I’m seeing a lot of this approach. Thinking about it, we need to train clinicians and counselors better if we want to discover what is really happening in teenagers’ minds.

So, when we say we have a rise in mental health, it is more of an increase in unhealthy thinking. We must empower our youth to recognize, manage, and learn from difficult emotions. Life is not a fairytale; we are all trying to find our place. Most of these feelings are normal and hard to digest, but practicing techniques and building healthy relationships with peers and family can help prevent these feelings from being our enemy. Taking care of body and mind, being attentive to the use of social media, and seeking help when needed are all measures to help combat mental health. Identifying the issues at the core is critical to tackling the rise and preventing further complications; our kids deserve that.