The nation is in the midst of a youth mental health crisis, and there are troubling signs the situation may worsen before it gets better.
“The challenges today’s generation of young people face are unprecedented and uniquely hard to navigate,” U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy wrote in an advisory issued Dec. 7. “The effect these challenges have had on their mental health is devastating.”
Murthy expressed concerns about a simmering crisis affecting many families and communities, particularly in the south and southwest suburbs. The advisory, “Protecting Youth Mental Health,” may help explain everything from increased violence in schools to a shocking report about Chicago police arresting an 11-year-old for suspicion of felony carjacking.
The day after the surgeon general issued his advisory, Illinois lawmakers held a joint hearing of the Senate Behavioral and Mental Health Committee and the House Mental Health and Addiction Committee.
“Children should be able to receive appropriate mental and behavioral health treatment without having to go far from home or stay in a hospital unnecessarily,” said state Sen. Laura Fine, D-Glenview. “We can and must do better by increasing our mental health workforce so children can be placed appropriately and get the right care at the right time.”
Social media, technology, political division, wealth inequality and other factors have strained youth mental health. Like many concerns, the issue more severely affects people of color in lower-income communities.
“No one is surprised that we’re in the middle of a mental health crisis, or I would actually say at the beginning of a mental health crisis that has not yet showed its full force,” said Curt Holderfield, senior vice president of child development and youth services for Chicago-based Ada S. McKinley Community Services.
The agency provided mental health services to about 3,000 youths per year in Chicago and the south and southwest suburbs before the pandemic, he said. But while students experienced increased stress and isolation during remote learning, counselors lost access to pupils.
“We saw that drop dramatically, by almost half, during the pandemic, because most schools were closed,” Holderfield said. “Now that schools have reopened we’re starting to see that uptick in need and more violence at our schools, but we have yet to fully engage with children and youth the same way we were doing before the pandemic.”
Students may have returned to school buildings, but the full range of social services may not be available as before the pandemic.
“Where community services used to be a large part of schools, they’re limiting the number of people who can come into schools,” Holderfield said.
Agencies like Ada S. McKinley are scrambling to find places to provide services, since many families are unwilling or unable to accommodate services in their homes, he said.
Then there is the matter of paying for services. State lawmakers heard testimony last week urging them to change state law to allow federal Medicaid dollars to be used to provide residential youth mental health treatment services.
“When kids don’t get treatment they cycle through hospitalizations and crisis treatments, their behaviors escalate, they lose time in school, or they become involved with the legal system,” Rosecrance Health Network president and CEO David Gomel told lawmakers. “All these options are bad for kids and their families, clinically inappropriate and expensive for the state.”
The need for youth mental health services is greater in the Southland, but families here are less able to afford to pay for treatment.
“The individuals we see are coming from low-income neighborhoods with high rates of poverty, homelessness, unemployment and crime,” Holderfield said. “Those are the same communities getting hit the hardest by COVID, the same communities already seeing huge spikes in mental health needs.”
Improving access to youth mental health treatment programs would save taxpayers money in the long run.
“The best treatment is prevention,” Holderfield said.
This semester’s spike in school violence may be another sign of increased need for youth mental health treatment. The holidays can be stressful for many families, Holderfield said. Parents should pay attention to their child’s moods, eating and sleeping habits and other behavior and look for signs of trouble, he said.
“They need to be letting their children know that having stress right now is normal,” Holderfield said. “Having anxiety is normal.”
While many, if not most, people may be feeling increased stress, anxiety or depression because of the pandemic, some may still be reluctant to talk with a counselor because of a stigma about seeking treatment for mental health.
“That doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you, or that you’re weak,” Holderfield said. “It just means you’re human like everybody else.”
Isolation and other factors may lead to increased need for youth mental health services in upcoming months. Colder temperatures are driving people to spend more time indoors. COVID cases and hospitalizations are increasing. Vaccination rates are generally lower in south suburban communities.
“There are many factors happening at the exact same time,” Holderfield said. “We’re managing well enough right now, but I think in January, February and March we’re going to see a lot more. We want to make sure we’re available and people know about our services.”
Ted Slowik is a columnist at the Daily Southtown.
