11 years old and speaking like a grown man who has experienced a lifetime of trauma. These children are forced to 'grow up' so quickly due to all of the issues circulating in our world. 9 years old and telling his mom he was having suicidal thoughts. He blamed his parents divorce on himself (as kids tend to do). He was so incredibly brave for talking with such honesty and conviction. People always want to blame the generations that follow them, but fail to take responsibility in not trying to mitigate generational trauma they instead leave behind, for others to reckon with.
@@Linda30189 is not a solution, BUT honestly the whole world went thru a pandemic, countries in where kids have to walk to school for 3 hours, only get 2 meals a day, yet some how none of them talk about suicide, so try to figure that out. Is it something in modern advanced society? Is it the lack of parenting?
Extremely well said. That young man is extremely brave, strong and willing to share his story to help other kids. It’s amazing. I pray he is able to overcome his depression and be a beacon of light to others.
@@stephenbrooklyn7945 I am a 70s baby too and I agree these issues existed then but the main issue is the rate that its happening now. It's far more prevalent.
The parents shouldn’t be allowed inside when the kids are being questioned. Sometimes when the parents aren’t there, the kids/teens will open up to another adult willing to listen.
Idk parents need to be informed of what is happening with their kids though. There has to be balance bc generally a therapist won't disclose their patients info from session.
Therapists are required to share information that if not shared, could be harmful to the child or to others. But even if you know your parents will find out about it, sometimes it’s just easier to say it when they aren’t in the room. It makes it less scary in a way.
@@masongreen1385 I can understand that. I was a child too once, so I get it. As a parent though with a child who received therapy I needed more communication. I can say the one therapist im speaking of was terrible and we switched to a better equipped therapist. Balance is everything ❤
Agreed! What if parent or parents are the ones who are traumatizing the child. Especially in the pandemic a lot of kids at home were abused since they weren’t away at school.
I was a mental health therapist at a middle school through the pandemic and those kids had a really tough time BUT they were also vulnerable, brave, resilient and brought so much joy to my life. Kids are so much stronger than they get credit for sometimes! This kid is a great example of what I saw every day. Peace to all!
This kid is extraordinary. To be able to calmly verbalize what he is/was experiencing and to frankly walk through his vulnerability as a child to talk about is simply remarkable. Kudos to him and his mom for turning something this negative to a positive learning experience that will help others who watch this episode. 👏🏾
Austin seems like an awesome kid. And props to his mom for paying attention and being sympathetic to his situation. So many parents just don’t listen to their kids or blow them off when kids tell them they’re struggling.
Kids aren't allowed to be kids anymore. When I was growing up, parents tried to shield their kids from certain things because kids didn't have the mental and emotional ability to handle it. Some of those things are things even adults struggle to handle. Now, we expose our kids to everything, thinking we're doing kids a service. We're not. Some topics just aren't kid appropriate.
True. I’m 21 and I went through a horrible time as a kid. But my parents did their absolute best to shield us from it. The few things that fell through the cracks has had last effects on me and my two siblings. Can only imagine kids who don’t get any shielding.
It's not so much that 'we' are making a deliberate choice to expose kids to things they're not prepared to handle but that the media landscape has changed so much that it's near impossible to keep them shielded. I never would have thought that as I grew up in the '70s and '80s I would now look back on that as a golden age.
You never know what a person is going through. Sometimes a little extra kindness can be a bridge to where a person in crisis needs to be to get real help. Best thoughts to these kids, their families - and the caregivers.
It works for adults as well. Sometimes a simply smile or a kind compliment can be powerful. I love to compliment women when I am out, like "your shoes or purse are so cute." The responses are so sweet and I can often see a smile cross their face(s).
yeah this one girl has been really nice to me asking me how my day is everyday and always being nice to me, im a freshman at my school so its helped alot and i wanna let her know
Indeed! The one that is in place now is like playing Russian roulette. It’s all about “fixing or rehabilitation” not dealing with the actual causes of mental health issues. The system needs a complete overhaul. Mental health has been an issue since the 1990s and the pandemic only showed how ignoring the problem for so many years has consequences. Only now the politicians care because we can no longer hide the problem.
Yes. We need places for people to go short of hospitals. There needs to be centers and drug rehabs and work programs. This could create jobs for peer workers. No need for so many shrinks. Research bears this out. $$$ follow the money. They don’t care about anyone that doesn’t create $$.
I pray so much for the younger generation. They are growing up in a world so so different than even kids born in the 90’s or early 2000’s. Life is so different in a world engulfed in technology and isolation. I understand mental health issues have always been around for any age person on Earth, but the amount you see kids unhappy and depressed these days instead of laughing outside on their bikes and being so extremely innocent is so low anymore. It’s so sad.
Yeah I’m autistic and always had an addiction to electronics and I’m actually anti social so yes I spent all my life in isolation with electronics how did you know! my family is abusive so I have no one and I’m only 19 I had the worst life ever
And a lot of this goes to the school system. I’m a part of gen z, if I had a smaller workload, and less extreme competition, I can guarantee would not be addicted to my phone. Schools say they provide mental health services and that’s enough to pacify peoples concerns. But these “mental health services” are usually just a counselor who doesn’t care, and doesn’t actually help. When I entered high school, I was shocked to see the amount of people I knew who were severely depressed, I’d say about 40%
I’m 27 almost 28 and I’ve been struggling since I was child. Lately I’m in the period where I’m barely holding on. As an adult who can’t seem to handle it I can’t imagine going back to my child self and feeling this way :( I wish I could help these kids
Same, same, same. I'm 27, almost 28 and I've also been struggling since I was a child. Actually, the first time that I told my mother that I wanted to k*** myself, was when I was 8y/o. I have cptsd, and the pandemic just made it worse. The last time that I attempted suicide it was a decade ago, but this year has been so hard that I had to go to the ER multiple times cause I've been extremely suicidal. You're not alone and we're gonna make it through. I send you love and healing💛
@@AppleSofi praying for you Sofi. You are worth living, you are special 🥰🥰🥰🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻. Take time every day and thank God for at least 1 thing. Just breathing is a blessing, believe me!!🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻Thinking of positive thoughts helps, be also careful what you watch, help people in need (That's a great therapy🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻)
I was a community college teacher for nearly 30 years. One of the changes I noted over the years was the increased level of anxiety and mental health problems in my students. There were few resources to help these students. I felt like I was spending more time trying to help these students than I was actually teaching. What,s the cause? What’s the solution? I don’t know. All I know is that it is real and it is growing.
It 100% has to do with the economic shift in the United states. Income has not kept up with inflation, families struggles to provide, this adds on stress, then stress gets passed down to their kids, mental health problems develop.... and that is just the surface cause, there are other factors of course such as the first generation growimg up on social media, the pressure to keep up with trends, family trauma... ect...
@@lilymae7516 I am not so sure I would list economic pressures as the top issues causing increased stress. My students were, for the most part, from low economic families where economic struggles were a way of life and had been for a very long time. I am more inclined to look at social media and our American culture as the instigator. A huge factor has to do with safety. Kids no longer felt safe - so many killings in schools and in other places. And they felt pressure from social media to be a certain way… “liked” and popular in a celebrity sort of way. There children were lonely and fearful and insecure. People have been poor throughout history and yet not had this level of anxiety. Lack of money is an issue but it always has been. This is different.
College especially is a hard time. It's a lot of pressure and most of them have to work to support their families and take out loans. It's extra stress to worry about bringing home covid to your parents.
When u confine people and lock them away wtf do you expect.. you take away what they love, you mock them, push their buttons, you don’t allow them to grow on their own, you don’t let them be their own authentic selves. Kids grow up with their parents calling them dumb, and stupid.. this is exactly what you get, a recipe for disaster. Marriage as in mine makes it even worse. What has happened to the world.
Society sucks right now. Kids need to be reassured. Kids need to review what they have learned like reading and math. They need to see they do remember things.
Society has gotten rude, mean, and demanding. People think they’re entitled to say whatever, to whoever, whenever, without hesitation or consequences. We need to teach manners again and a healthy dose of empathy. Social media is part of the problem.
As someone estranged from their mother I would say not just talk but also understand. Like my mom just doesn't get it. There's a reason why socialism (and unfortunately fascism as well) are becoming popular with young people. The system isn't broken. It's rigged. It must be replaced. Most mental health problems can be solved through having having enough money and enough social livelihood. We don't believe in the system. We don't think the system will save us.
I think that’s a big part of the problem… parents are busy because they have to work and don’t have much time to take care of their children and give them attention
Its absolutely SOCIAL MEDIA to blame. Kids are always looking at their peers pages and comparing their own lives to it. Looks, trips, stuff, they're always comparing...
Social media’s been around the last ten years, do that doesn’t explain the crisis that’s been happening in the past two years. Social media has been a life saver for me, because of all the mental health information and connection with people going through the same things as you. It’s not the sole cause of this, believe me.
Austin, if you see this know that you are incredibly brave. Brave for sharing your story, and also brave for letting your mom know you needed help. Also, you seem so charismatic and fun. Glad you’re back in school and finding some of the joy you deserve. Keep working on it. Things will keep getting better!
oh my sweet goodness😇what an angel he is...I've suffered mental illness for more than 3 decades but this intelligent being is wise beyond his years...what a proud mom too, just touches my heart.
Another issue that people face is the cost of getting mental health care. A lot of private mental health therapists don’t accept insurance, and therapy (at least in my area) can be $200 per session. When someone is in crisis, they may need additional sessions each week until they are much more stabilized. Plus, if they have to be hospitalized, the costs can be thousands of dollars per week, and even more if a medical hospital is involved. It sucks.
It’s all social media….things like tik tok where videos are so short and completely reliant on your visual sense, it warps the way you really see things 😢
Thank you for bringing this up! It is ridiculous that there hasn’t been enough overhaul of our medical system to help kids. Parents also need to step up. So many times I see kids with a lack of a support system.
It’s not the “medical system” as you call it (whatever tf that even means) problem! There IS mental health care available EVERYWHERE, however that IS the parents responsibility and the child has some responsibility and accountability as well to the extent that their age dictates. You can’t expect some person to swoop in and find a provider for you and set up the appointment and contact resources etc. MOST mental health disorders don’t need to be and aren’t dx and tx by mental health specialists aka u DONT need to see a specific special therapist. A l these kid’s
These teens are so sweet. It hurts because I see that they are going through what me and my friends went through at the same ages. I want them to continue to heal. I think we need to find more ways to help people who can't wait for or afford therapy.
Austin you are my hero! I wish I had your courage when I was your age, I could have saved myself 20 years of emotional pain. Your mom is pretty incredible as well, for really listening to you and supporting you in such a meaningful way. This is an inspirational story of truth, hope, trust and community support - everything we need to be healthy. Thank you for sharing your journey with us - you are a star!
Austin, you're such a intelligent, sensitive and brave young person. Thanks for having courage to sepak about your depression and wanting to help others. You're a hero!❤️
My son homeschools and doesn’t suffer because of lack of socialization. He loves homeschool. He doesn’t want involvement with kids that bully or to chance it. What I’ve seen, it’s a lack of parental involvement. People would rather pay for their big cars and homes instead of taking care of their children. I teach my son about mental health and different mental issues humans impose on other or endure themselves, such as narcissism and more. Educate your kids!!! They need to know that they can face things when educated. Austin is awesome!!
Both immensely saddened and impressed by the emotional intelligence and intuition of this 11 year old boy. I identify with his experiences in ways. When he answered the question, "Why did you agree to tell us about [your experiences]?" I was shaken with emotion. How devastating it is that we live in a country where a 9 year old has thoughts of suicide. This young boy talks as if he's lived lifetimes of pain.
I was fortunate to come out of the lockdowns without any mental health issues, despite the fact that my school was torn down in the summer of 2020 and I wasn't able to work or do things with my family or friends. Unfortunately, many of my friends and relatives had a very hard time with their mental and physical health during 2020 and 2021, and some of them didn't survive. I think the best thing anyone can do to improve their mental health is to find a hobby or activity that you love and keep doing it every day, because when you have something that makes you look forward to waking up the next day, you've found something worth living for.
After my son died from chronic alcohol abuse I read a book called "The Hacking of the American Mind". Depression can be caused by a combination of a low nutrient diet, and being introverted combined with too much screen time. Plus he refused all help.
I speak at high schools in all different areas and you feel it in the air. They need support they feel so much pressure and stress plus the threat of school shootings are a looming presence that grows with constant threats at each schools.
Thank you to all the kids and parents who were brave enough to educate us. Austin thank you SO much for your honesty, bravery, and intelligent insights so that the rest of us can be educated. The fact that you were willing to risk speaking up, both to your Mom initially and to the rest of us later speaks to your emotional intelligence. Someone , maybe many people will see this and feel less alone and that can relieve a huge burden as you know.
Kids are seeing real stressed out parents at home, struggling financial, emotionally disconnected children who are dealing with divorced parent who probably might need mental services thenselves putting stress adding extra burst on a kids bubble...I feel if kids happines is priority, One must compromise with significant other to offer a healthy, loving, solid up bringing to the children who's happines is ours.
I had just turned 16 when lockdown began. I remember my lockdown experience quite fondly. I had all of this free time to do whatever I wanted. I created my own fitness routine and got into the best shape of my life. I decided I wanted to learn danish and I did that for 6 months. I became more politically conscious because BLM was happening at the same time. I experienced a lot of positive growth during that time. It helped that I was also introvert so it was enough for me to text my friends a few times a week and spend time with my family. My pandemic depression actually began when I got long haul covid symptoms last year. I was dealing with these bizarre and maybe even debilitating physical symptoms for several months during my senior year. It wrecked my mental health so bad that I'm still dealing with the effects to this day.
Austin, you are an empath highly sensitive and you're feeling the world's anxiety. And there are ways to deal with your sensitivity so you don't go to those places. Always remember there is a divine plan and you came here for a special purpose. You are lovely young man and you remind me of my grandson. Many blessings to you
The emotional intelligence of this young kiddo! As a social work student this both breaks my heart but also gives me hope that at such a young age he was still able to verbalize his depression so clearly.
It’s a lack of cominity and friendship. Tech brings us further apart. Helicopter parenting keeps kids from playing outside and at each others house. This was starting to happen when I was a kid in the 90’s/00’s. My mom was as extreme as normal parents are today. Keep kids locked inside and watch mental health decline.
I admire and am in awe of the bravery and authenticity of these young people! Opening up some of the most vulnerable parts of themselves takes real courage! I work as a mental health clinician with young people, and the situation is truly desperate. And with no improving end in sight. Lack of trained clinicians, working with less that number of recommended staff/ratio per shift, and increasing pressure from management are real contributing factors to less than best care of young people. And staff are burnt out from the workload, vicarious trauma, and working extra shifts and overtime. Because we do care. And want to make a difference. I continue to work in this area because I know that our young people need experienced clinicians to be there for them. To sit with them, listen, and ask the tough questions. And to provide them with some more tools to add to their toolkit. To show them that they are not alone. And they are worthy, valued, encouraged and supported.
my boyfriend is a teacher, kids are definitely struggling. imagine being 2 years behind socially and educationally and still being expected to meet standards, behave your age, etc. we need to do better for our youth 😣
God bless young Austin. What an incredibly bright and articulate young man, and a very courageous one at that! Best wishes to him and all children going through challenging times. We adults are all pulling for you to be your best and happiest selves and to lead wonderfully happy, joyful, and productive lives.
As a 13 year old. I'll tell you that there's many kids here in this hospital, but there's many who don't. There's families who know their kid is suicidal and and others who don't. I do know it's sure is a common problem, not just for me that parents will tell their kid not to say things just so the doctor doesn't think the parents is harmful. It's something my parents taught me since I was young. To be honest I wish I told them, or a adult because I would've been freed. I do wonder if doctors can tell if a child is depressed, I really wish they can. Even if it's against how they work because it might be their opinion. I have so much questions that I want answered and to be honest.... I honestly don't know if I'll make it because I'm going through a lot right now maybe I'll be able to finish highschool. I just wish my parents were understanding and I could get therapy, if I did then maybe I can be happy and free and confident to do things. But I don't feel like doing anything now, I feel so tired to
It’s definitely hard to make it some days but remember there is so much life you haven’t lived yet to enjoy and discover moments, people, and places of peace. There is so much left for you start writing down what you want in your future and keep going from there
Please hang in there. I was depressed at your age as well and my parents also didn’t help me. Now I’m 27. I’ve had to seek out help on my own through the years to survive. I would recommend finding whatever resources you can such as joining a sport, seeking out the school counselor, tell your teachers, talk to other kids about it, go for walks, express your feelings through writing, art or music. Try guided meditations and baths and treat yourself well. Every person is deserving of their life and people love you even if they don’t express it in the way you want them to. God bless you!
@@helenareneedawson5187 I apologize but something happened today so I lowered the message. I just really needed to vent because I'm not in the right state of mind so I apologize. Speaking of the sport that'll seem cool, I like badminton and it's really fun. I hope my school has it. I also have a question, do you still have thoughts about stuff from your childhood, does it go away? Just know my vent paragraph is below so if you don't wanna read it's ok you don't have to. It's only there if you want to At the moment something bad happened, my mom got angry at me and threatened to hurt me. Then sent me to my dad, now I'm with him and I don't know when I'm going back or if I'm going to. I want to because it's my home too. But I don't because of the things my mom said, and my sister didn't say anything knowing she's the reason why I was angry in the first place. I'm so tired. At the end of the day both of my parents are the bad guys. I don't wanna be like my siblings who end up staying with my mom. The situation I'm currently in all happened to them, but they still stayed with my mom when they know and even told me myself that she isn't ok. I don't wanna be like them.
This mental health crisis among kids is a failure of the US Education system. It's time for schools to be preventative toward kids' mental health by instituting medicinal-free methods that enhance mental stability. Some methods include: - Bringing back both recess and physical education - Healthy foods - (Dare I say it) Counselors - Less screen use - Financial savings courses - Options to study in the library during lunch
The problem 100% is social media and isolation. Kids in previous generations who didn't have sm and spent lots of time outside didn't have these levels of depressed kids prone to self-harm. Parents need to put their foot down and tell their kids to get away from the screen and go outside to play with other kids.
No, because is they hit by economical on technically, they should learn how to live and spend without father.maybe doing part-time job after school time and on school holidays
I’m so glad that he has such a supportive mom to help him out. He’s so brave to share what he went through as well. I’m glad we’re all opening up and talking about these things more. It’s critically important
I would love to see a program whereby people who were teenagers during WWII (now senior citizens) pair up with the pandemic teenagers. The have shared experiences of loss, worry, anxiety. What are the lessons learned? How did they learn resiliency?
Does anyone know of any studies, about the “Greatest Generation “, that look into how they coped with the Great Depression as children and WWII as young adults?
That generation, while they had challenges, also had much much much better economic prospects with the economic-boom of the war and post war eras. Most people my age feel like we'll never be able to own a home or attain what once were normal economic prospects.
@@feathersky860 Wait, what? How are our troops IN Ukraine? That would be seen as an act of war, something the USA is trying to avoid. We cannot officially be in that country until the UN sends in ‘peacekeepers’ (quite useless), or Ukraine becomes a member of NATO.
These kids are truly struggling. My daughter taught the on line middle school kids with almost no support from parents . Now she is back into the schools teaching 7th/8th and these kids are so struggling with everything when it comes to their grades , behavior and attendance. It’s heartbreaking and I wish they had the help with their mental health issues sooner than weeks or months down the road . 😢 .
May God bless all those children and families dealing with this. May God judge accordingly all those responsible for unnecessarily putting our youth through this.
There's also a big problem with parents or guardian not supporting their child in the time of need and usually discredit the symptoms leading up to depression, anxiety, Ed etc.
My heart breaks for Austin. My son, same age, was also devastated by the isolation of Covid and constant conflict in the home, especially between him and his dad. I think my son might be on the Autism spectrum - very smart, but struggles socially despite LOVING people and wanting to interact constantly. We’re lucky to live in a district that returned to in-person learning for the 2020-2021 school year, but it was still an odd year with masks, social distancing, and shorter days. Things were more “normal” for the 21-22 year. He’s now adjusting to middle school (6th grade). I’ve done my best to keep open communication with him, and I took him to counseling and group therapy at a nearby clinic (thank God we qualified for Medicaid, as it’s a Medicaid-only clinic) but I really do feel like his life and mental health were permanently changed in Spring 2020 when everything shut down for several months. We are all doing the best we can with the information we have in the moment, but by golly, life is HARD 😢
We need love, and this social media driven world puts people in isolation, even though we are “connected”. Love happens person to person, real friendship, in families, in communities. Without love, there’s only pain & suffering & division. This is the great suffering of our time & it’s far worse than what’s said here & will get worse
Psychedelic’s definitely have potential to deal with mental health symptoms like anxiety and depression, I would like to try them again but it’s just so hard to source here
Psychedelics are the reason why i didn’t take my life when i was at my end. I was stripped of my ego and saw the beauty of life and interconnectivity and even though i still battle anxiety and depression, I’m doing better everyday and will never think in such a self destructive way again.
LSD and mushrooms completely changed my whole outlook on life. I became a better version of myself This experience gave me a lot of confidence about my self and my body. A bunch of bad thought / behavior patterns were broken. One of these was pretty bad OCD that made me wash my hands a lot. It gave me a lot of hope that things will be fine, this is the one thing that I heard throughout the trip: Everything is alright. The main reason for the trip was my severe depression and it definitely helped me (although it's not gone). Before all I could do was lay in bed. Now I am trying to rebuild my life one step at a time which wasn't possible before."
Excellent coverage of a vital issue. I teach 5 to 12 yo and see each day the troubled youths coming in the door. Great suggestions to arm parents with strategies to win back their children's hearts and minds. Well done!
I think kids have always had these kinds of mental health problems, they were just stigmatized and it wasn't talked about. My mom has an anxiety disorder and always has, which is part of why I have an anxiety disorder.
When you go through mental health treatment, you learn the vocabulary to talk about things. I was 15 when I was trying to describe suicidal feelings to my psychiatrist and not having the words -- he gave me the vocabulary I needed to be able to express what was going on.
Excellent point. Younger and younger children have access to the internet with no boundaries or limits to what they are viewing. Video games are babysitters for Moms of boys. Adult games. Adult words. Anxiety and suicide are not words an 8 or 9 yr old should know and use regularly. Breakdown of family.
The top two moments in this video where I got teary-eyed was when the woman asked the two girls what did you guys lose in the pandemic, and the girl on the left said, “myself”, and when the 11 year old boy expressed that with his parents’ divorce and the pandemic running alongside each other almost made him *unalive* himself because he felt like he wasn’t wanted. I’m 17, and I can relate to both of em so much and I’m so proud of them for using their voice to spread awareness🙌🙌🙌
In addition to Covid and the impacts of social media, in the USA, I think this phenomenon also has to do with the lack of urban planning in the country. Suburban sprawl causes people to be isolated from each other. Kids can't just walk to the park, they have to be driven. In places like the Netherlands, where city infrastructure is purposely built in a more condensed manner, people have more of a sense of community, and you will see kids outside playing.
I’m proud of these kids for speaking out but it’s so unfortunate there’s many still unable to put into words how we can help bc often they don’t even know what’s wrong, we need more research to be done to find better ways to treat & help these generations going forward, hopefully ppl will keep seeking to improve their mental health as we should all also be trying to push for resources+research+funding or other help ? Etc. Please don’t give up💔
I feel so bad for the children who suffer mental instability for any reason. The pandemic made it worse as does the sickening adult behavior they see on TV. I feel like adults too are suffering from these effects. It's a sad and terrifying world now that we're not used to.
Austin-you are a wonderful, admirable, intelligent, dear boy with courage, wisdom, and eloquence beyond your years. You deserve a lifetime of happiness and joy. The world is your oyster, and I know you will continue to do great things.
This my come across poorly but I'm happy that people are finally talking about how isolation can impact you. Prior to the pandemic I was in a violent relationship ship and lost everything, material, friends, family, work. I was in hiding and started again. I felt so incredibly isolated and as I started to speak about it when I reestablished contact with everyone after my ex ended up passing and it was safe to return to my home state, people ignored it. I told them the isolation messed with me, I even took an online course at the time before the pandemic and while I was in hiding because I wanted to keep a low profile. Nobody, I mean nobody listened. I knew though, I was educated on ground zero, I went through it. But alas it takes a pandemic for people to start caring and understanding. Part of me is still angry about it. But I do my best.
We are so concerned about treating the symptoms but we never make the hard changes to tackle the root causes, barely even mentioned in this piece. But hey that goes for the entire U.S medical system
Apart from the mental health crisis, I feel another issue on the rise for teenagers is self destructive behaviors, which can ultimately lead to death. I feel like the medical health system is not equipped to deal with the issues are youth are dealing with today and it's really sad. But my prayers go to all the adolescents going through hard moments rn.
11 years old and speaking like a grown man who has experienced a lifetime of trauma. These children are forced to 'grow up' so quickly due to all of the issues circulating in our world. 9 years old and telling his mom he was having suicidal thoughts. He blamed his parents divorce on himself (as kids tend to do). He was so incredibly brave for talking with such honesty and conviction. People always want to blame the generations that follow them, but fail to take responsibility in not trying to mitigate generational trauma they instead leave behind, for others to reckon with.
Its been happening since i was born in the 70s so its nothing new
@@stephenbrooklyn7945 So that's the solution?
@@Linda30189 is not a solution, BUT honestly the whole world went thru a pandemic, countries in where kids have to walk to school for 3 hours, only get 2 meals a day, yet some how none of them talk about suicide, so try to figure that out. Is it something in modern advanced society? Is it the lack of parenting?
Extremely well said. That young man is extremely brave, strong and willing to share his story to help other kids. It’s amazing. I pray he is able to overcome his depression and be a beacon of light to others.
@@stephenbrooklyn7945 I am a 70s baby too and I agree these issues existed then but the main issue is the rate that its happening now. It's far more prevalent.
The parents shouldn’t be allowed inside when the kids are being questioned. Sometimes when the parents aren’t there, the kids/teens will open up to another adult willing to listen.
I agree, there’s probably countless more children who didn’t answer truthfully because their parents were right there. It’s tough
Idk parents need to be informed of what is happening with their kids though. There has to be balance bc generally a therapist won't disclose their patients info from session.
Therapists are required to share information that if not shared, could be harmful to the child or to others. But even if you know your parents will find out about it, sometimes it’s just easier to say it when they aren’t in the room. It makes it less scary in a way.
@@masongreen1385 I can understand that. I was a child too once, so I get it. As a parent though with a child who received therapy I needed more communication. I can say the one therapist im speaking of was terrible and we switched to a better equipped therapist.
Balance is everything ❤
Agreed! What if parent or parents are the ones who are traumatizing the child. Especially in the pandemic a lot of kids at home were abused since they weren’t away at school.
It’s not just kids, the pandemic has had a profound effect on everyone’s mental health.
Agreed
sthu with this dumb “mental health” bs
@@TravisTheMaximus your mental health is clearly not okay.
@@TravisTheMaximus well aren’t you just a delight
True, but children always take priority.
I was a mental health therapist at a middle school through the pandemic and those kids had a really tough time BUT they were also vulnerable, brave, resilient and brought so much joy to my life. Kids are so much stronger than they get credit for sometimes! This kid is a great example of what I saw every day. Peace to all!
I’m also a licensed therapist. I am definitely seeing the ripple affect occurring after the pandemic 😢
This kid is extraordinary. To be able to calmly verbalize what he is/was experiencing and to frankly walk through his vulnerability as a child to talk about is simply remarkable. Kudos to him and his mom for turning something this negative to a positive learning experience that will help others who watch this episode. 👏🏾
He is somone I would want on my team. He's very mature and intelligent but also personable and a great communicator.
This young man is amazing.
Austin seems like an awesome kid. And props to his mom for paying attention and being sympathetic to his situation. So many parents just don’t listen to their kids or blow them off when kids tell them they’re struggling.
fr, and thats the real reason why so many kids want to off themselves because no one will listen or even see them when they have issues 😔
Kids aren't allowed to be kids anymore. When I was growing up, parents tried to shield their kids from certain things because kids didn't have the mental and emotional ability to handle it. Some of those things are things even adults struggle to handle. Now, we expose our kids to everything, thinking we're doing kids a service. We're not. Some topics just aren't kid appropriate.
I absolutely agree with you.
True. I’m 21 and I went through a horrible time as a kid. But my parents did their absolute best to shield us from it. The few things that fell through the cracks has had last effects on me and my two siblings. Can only imagine kids who don’t get any shielding.
Completely agree. I feel like kids now a days r far too exposed and this is y they rn’t ok mentally or emotionally.
It's not so much that 'we' are making a deliberate choice to expose kids to things they're not prepared to handle but that the media landscape has changed so much that it's near impossible to keep them shielded. I never would have thought that as I grew up in the '70s and '80s I would now look back on that as a golden age.
You never know what a person is going through. Sometimes a little extra kindness can be a bridge to where a person in crisis needs to be to get real help. Best thoughts to these kids, their families - and the caregivers.
It works for adults as well. Sometimes a simply smile or a kind compliment can be powerful. I love to compliment women when I am out, like "your shoes or purse are so cute." The responses are so sweet and I can often see a smile cross their face(s).
yeah this one girl has been really nice to me asking me how my day is everyday and always being nice to me, im a freshman at my school so its helped alot and i wanna let her know
America needs a mental health system.
Indeed! The one that is in place now is like playing Russian roulette. It’s all about “fixing or rehabilitation” not dealing with the actual causes of mental health issues.
The system needs a complete overhaul. Mental health has been an issue since the 1990s and the pandemic only showed how ignoring the problem for so many years has consequences. Only now the politicians care because we can no longer hide the problem.
Yes. We need places for people to go short of hospitals. There needs to be centers and drug rehabs and work programs. This could create jobs for peer workers. No need for so many shrinks. Research bears this out. $$$ follow the money. They don’t care about anyone that doesn’t create $$.
I pray so much for the younger generation. They are growing up in a world so so different than even kids born in the 90’s or early 2000’s. Life is so different in a world engulfed in technology and isolation. I understand mental health issues have always been around for any age person on Earth, but the amount you see kids unhappy and depressed these days instead of laughing outside on their bikes and being so extremely innocent is so low anymore. It’s so sad.
Prayer won't do anything. Prayer didn't stop a pandemic happening
Yeah I’m autistic and always had an addiction to electronics and I’m actually anti social so yes I spent all my life in isolation with electronics how did you know! my family is abusive so I have no one and I’m only 19 I had the worst life ever
And a lot of this goes to the school system. I’m a part of gen z, if I had a smaller workload, and less extreme competition, I can guarantee would not be addicted to my phone. Schools say they provide mental health services and that’s enough to pacify peoples concerns. But these “mental health services” are usually just a counselor who doesn’t care, and doesn’t actually help. When I entered high school, I was shocked to see the amount of people I knew who were severely depressed, I’d say about 40%
I’m 27 almost 28 and I’ve been struggling since I was child. Lately I’m in the period where I’m barely holding on. As an adult who can’t seem to handle it I can’t imagine going back to my child self and feeling this way :( I wish I could help these kids
I think you could have cptsd
Same, same, same.
I'm 27, almost 28 and I've also been struggling since I was a child. Actually, the first time that I told my mother that I wanted to k*** myself, was when I was 8y/o.
I have cptsd, and the pandemic just made it worse. The last time that I attempted suicide it was a decade ago, but this year has been so hard that I had to go to the ER multiple times cause I've been extremely suicidal.
You're not alone and we're gonna make it through.
I send you love and healing💛
Same Emily, I'm 31 now. I've never seen a mental health professional because it's just not accessible.
@@AppleSofi praying for you Sofi. You are worth living, you are special 🥰🥰🥰🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻. Take time every day and thank God for at least 1 thing. Just breathing is a blessing, believe me!!🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻Thinking of positive thoughts helps, be also careful what you watch, help people in need (That's a great therapy🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻)
I was a community college teacher for nearly 30 years. One of the changes I noted over the years was the increased level of anxiety and mental health problems in my students. There were few resources to help these students. I felt like I was spending more time trying to help these students than I was actually teaching. What,s the cause? What’s the solution? I don’t know. All I know is that it is real and it is growing.
It 100% has to do with the economic shift in the United states. Income has not kept up with inflation, families struggles to provide, this adds on stress, then stress gets passed down to their kids, mental health problems develop.... and that is just the surface cause, there are other factors of course such as the first generation growimg up on social media, the pressure to keep up with trends, family trauma... ect...
@@lilymae7516 I am not so sure I would list economic pressures as the top issues causing increased stress. My students were, for the most part, from low economic families where economic struggles were a way of life and had been for a very long time. I am more inclined to look at social media and our American culture as the instigator. A huge factor has to do with safety. Kids no longer felt safe - so many killings in schools and in other places. And they felt pressure from social media to be a certain way… “liked” and popular in a celebrity sort of way. There children were lonely and fearful and insecure. People have been poor throughout history and yet not had this level of anxiety. Lack of money is an issue but it always has been. This is different.
College especially is a hard time. It's a lot of pressure and most of them have to work to support their families and take out loans. It's extra stress to worry about bringing home covid to your parents.
It’s the economy
It’s because society shifted to only teach kids how to be good employees … women aren’t having children and no one is happy with this situation
When u confine people and lock them away wtf do you expect.. you take away what they love, you mock them, push their buttons, you don’t allow them to grow on their own, you don’t let them be their own authentic selves. Kids grow up with their parents calling them dumb, and stupid.. this is exactly what you get, a recipe for disaster. Marriage as in mine makes it even worse. What has happened to the world.
What does this say about our society as a whole? This is not good.
Society sucks right now. Kids need to be reassured. Kids need to review what they have learned like reading and math. They need to see they do remember things.
Society has gotten rude, mean, and demanding. People think they’re entitled to say whatever, to whoever, whenever, without hesitation or consequences. We need to teach manners again and a healthy dose of empathy. Social media is part of the problem.
We need to talk to our kids more…this is too sad 😢😭
This ☝🏻
As someone estranged from their mother I would say not just talk but also understand. Like my mom just doesn't get it. There's a reason why socialism (and unfortunately fascism as well) are becoming popular with young people. The system isn't broken. It's rigged. It must be replaced. Most mental health problems can be solved through having having enough money and enough social livelihood. We don't believe in the system. We don't think the system will save us.
I think that’s a big part of the problem… parents are busy because they have to work and don’t have much time to take care of their children and give them attention
Too many bad people getting together having babies without plans or money for a family. The kids suffer most.
Its absolutely SOCIAL MEDIA to blame. Kids are always looking at their peers pages and comparing their own lives to it. Looks, trips, stuff, they're always comparing...
That and social media shows us all the horrors of the world 24/7 and makes us want to just burn everything down.
totally agree
Social media’s been around the last ten years, do that doesn’t explain the crisis that’s been happening in the past two years. Social media has been a life saver for me, because of all the mental health information and connection with people going through the same things as you. It’s not the sole cause of this, believe me.
@@laurenj6771 yes its not the entire cause but it definitely does contribute to this.
Austin, if you see this know that you are incredibly brave. Brave for sharing your story, and also brave for letting your mom know you needed help.
Also, you seem so charismatic and fun. Glad you’re back in school and finding some of the joy you deserve. Keep working on it. Things will keep getting better!
oh my sweet goodness😇what an angel he is...I've suffered mental illness for more than 3 decades but this intelligent being is wise beyond his years...what a proud mom too, just touches my heart.
Such a brave kid! He is correct and super brave for sharing it publicly. I just hope we can end the social stigma to it and employers can do the same.
Another issue that people face is the cost of getting mental health care. A lot of private mental health therapists don’t accept insurance, and therapy (at least in my area) can be $200 per session. When someone is in crisis, they may need additional sessions each week until they are much more stabilized. Plus, if they have to be hospitalized, the costs can be thousands of dollars per week, and even more if a medical hospital is involved. It sucks.
It’s all social media….things like tik tok where videos are so short and completely reliant on your visual sense, it warps the way you really see things 😢
Austin is so awesome for sharing this. He is very articulate. It would be a treasure lost to have lost him! Thanks Austin!
If he was not coached in what to say.
@@ramiroacosta7529 Austin is super bright and insightful. He could talk circles around most adults. I can see this, can’t you?!
@@ramiroacosta7529 It doesn't sound like he was coached as much as he was paraphrasing the advice he has been given through therapy.
It would be a TREASURE???
That's beyond flat-out rude.
Most of us think that it would be a TRAGEDY!!
@@ramiroacosta7529 Stop projecting
Thank you for bringing this up! It is ridiculous that there hasn’t been enough overhaul of our medical system to help kids. Parents also need to step up. So many times I see kids with a lack of a support system.
Yes, I do agree that parents need to mature themselves and then step up in parenting thier kids first. Then look to health professionals.
It’s not the “medical system” as you call it (whatever tf that even means) problem! There IS mental health care available EVERYWHERE, however that IS the parents responsibility and the child has some responsibility and accountability as well to the extent that their age dictates. You can’t expect some person to swoop in and find a provider for you and set up the appointment and contact resources etc. MOST mental health disorders don’t need to be and aren’t dx and tx by mental health specialists aka u DONT need to see a specific special therapist. A l these kid’s
These teens are so sweet. It hurts because I see that they are going through what me and my friends went through at the same ages. I want them to continue to heal. I think we need to find more ways to help people who can't wait for or afford therapy.
Austin you are my hero! I wish I had your courage when I was your age, I could have saved myself 20 years of emotional pain. Your mom is pretty incredible as well, for really listening to you and supporting you in such a meaningful way. This is an inspirational story of truth, hope, trust and community support - everything we need to be healthy. Thank you for sharing your journey with us - you are a star!
Austin, you're such a intelligent, sensitive and brave young person. Thanks for having courage to sepak about your depression and wanting to help others. You're a hero!❤️
My son homeschools and doesn’t suffer because of lack of socialization. He loves homeschool. He doesn’t want involvement with kids that bully or to chance it. What I’ve seen, it’s a lack of parental involvement. People would rather pay for their big cars and homes instead of taking care of their children. I teach my son about mental health and different mental issues humans impose on other or endure themselves, such as narcissism and more. Educate your kids!!! They need to know that they can face things when educated. Austin is awesome!!
What curriculum are you using for him?
@@snowps1 I use K12 and it’s been fantastic!!
Can we all take a moment to appreciate how well these children express themselves?
Both immensely saddened and impressed by the emotional intelligence and intuition of this 11 year old boy. I identify with his experiences in ways. When he answered the question, "Why did you agree to tell us about [your experiences]?" I was shaken with emotion. How devastating it is that we live in a country where a 9 year old has thoughts of suicide. This young boy talks as if he's lived lifetimes of pain.
That young boy will save countless lives. No ego
I was fortunate to come out of the lockdowns without any mental health issues, despite the fact that my school was torn down in the summer of 2020 and I wasn't able to work or do things with my family or friends. Unfortunately, many of my friends and relatives had a very hard time with their mental and physical health during 2020 and 2021, and some of them didn't survive. I think the best thing anyone can do to improve their mental health is to find a hobby or activity that you love and keep doing it every day, because when you have something that makes you look forward to waking up the next day, you've found something worth living for.
Austin, you are a very courageous young man and I’m so glad you were comfortable enough to talk to your mom. Thanks for being an example to others.
That young man is so brave talking about things that make us feel weak
After my son died from chronic alcohol abuse I read a book called "The Hacking of the American Mind". Depression can be caused by a combination of a low nutrient diet, and being introverted combined with too much screen time. Plus he refused all help.
Sorry for your loss
I speak at high schools in all different areas and you feel it in the air. They need support they feel so much pressure and stress plus the threat of school shootings are a looming presence that grows with constant threats at each schools.
What an amazing young man! His mom is incredible because she is raising such an emotionally mature son. God bless their family.
Thank you to all the kids and parents who were brave enough to educate us. Austin thank you SO much for your honesty, bravery, and intelligent insights so that the rest of us can be educated. The fact that you were willing to risk speaking up, both to your Mom initially and to the rest of us later speaks to your emotional intelligence. Someone , maybe many people will see this and feel less alone and that can relieve a huge burden as you know.
What an insightful, articulate, young man so glad his mom listened and more importantly acted not stuck her head in the sand
School should never be about grades or exams. It's more about learning and enjoying the knowledge.
It’s not just the kids and teens .
It’s the adults too. I’m now in therapy ( I never will quit it because it’s my life line ) and my life is better.
Kids are seeing real stressed out parents at home, struggling financial, emotionally disconnected children who are dealing with divorced parent who probably might need mental services thenselves putting stress adding extra burst on a kids bubble...I feel if kids happines is priority, One must compromise with significant other to offer a healthy, loving, solid up bringing to the children who's happines is ours.
I had just turned 16 when lockdown began. I remember my lockdown experience quite fondly. I had all of this free time to do whatever I wanted. I created my own fitness routine and got into the best shape of my life. I decided I wanted to learn danish and I did that for 6 months. I became more politically conscious because BLM was happening at the same time. I experienced a lot of positive growth during that time. It helped that I was also introvert so it was enough for me to text my friends a few times a week and spend time with my family.
My pandemic depression actually began when I got long haul covid symptoms last year. I was dealing with these bizarre and maybe even debilitating physical symptoms for several months during my senior year. It wrecked my mental health so bad that I'm still dealing with the effects to this day.
I really appreciate you guys showing that you actually care. Show that you want to help
Austin, you are an empath highly sensitive and you're feeling the world's anxiety. And there are ways to deal with your sensitivity so you don't go to those places. Always remember there is a divine plan and you came here for a special purpose. You are lovely young man and you remind me of my grandson. Many blessings to you
So hard to watch kids go through something like this, it’s amazing to see Austin recognizing his own personal achievement through a tough family time.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart 60 minutes
The emotional intelligence of this young kiddo! As a social work student this both breaks my heart but also gives me hope that at such a young age he was still able to verbalize his depression so clearly.
It’s a lack of cominity and friendship. Tech brings us further apart. Helicopter parenting keeps kids from playing outside and at each others house. This was starting to happen when I was a kid in the 90’s/00’s. My mom was as extreme as normal parents are today. Keep kids locked inside and watch mental health decline.
I admire and am in awe of the bravery and authenticity of these young people! Opening up some of the most vulnerable parts of themselves takes real courage! I work as a mental health clinician with young people, and the situation is truly desperate. And with no improving end in sight. Lack of trained clinicians, working with less that number of recommended staff/ratio per shift, and increasing pressure from management are real contributing factors to less than best care of young people. And staff are burnt out from the workload, vicarious trauma, and working extra shifts and overtime. Because we do care. And want to make a difference. I continue to work in this area because I know that our young people need experienced clinicians to be there for them. To sit with them, listen, and ask the tough questions. And to provide them with some more tools to add to their toolkit. To show them that they are not alone. And they are worthy, valued, encouraged and supported.
Austin is a fighter and courageous!!! Thank you for sharing! It helps to save lives 🙏.
my boyfriend is a teacher, kids are definitely struggling. imagine being 2 years behind socially and educationally and still being expected to meet standards, behave your age, etc. we need to do better for our youth 😣
This last part! 😭
As a person who turned 18 last week thank you for seeing that!
How can you help the children without helping the parents who are responsible for them? Seriously get a clue
God bless young Austin. What an incredibly bright and articulate young man, and a very courageous one at that! Best wishes to him and all children going through challenging times. We adults are all pulling for you to be your best and happiest selves and to lead wonderfully happy, joyful, and productive lives.
Thank you so much for this necessary report.
As a 13 year old. I'll tell you that there's many kids here in this hospital, but there's many who don't. There's families who know their kid is suicidal and and others who don't. I do know it's sure is a common problem, not just for me that parents will tell their kid not to say things just so the doctor doesn't think the parents is harmful. It's something my parents taught me since I was young. To be honest I wish I told them, or a adult because I would've been freed. I do wonder if doctors can tell if a child is depressed, I really wish they can. Even if it's against how they work because it might be their opinion. I have so much questions that I want answered and to be honest....
I honestly don't know if I'll make it because I'm going through a lot right now maybe I'll be able to finish highschool. I just wish my parents were understanding and I could get therapy, if I did then maybe I can be happy and free and confident to do things. But I don't feel like doing anything now, I feel so tired to
It’s definitely hard to make it some days but remember there is so much life you haven’t lived yet to enjoy and discover moments, people, and places of peace. There is so much left for you start writing down what you want in your future and keep going from there
Please hang in there. I was depressed at your age as well and my parents also didn’t help me. Now I’m 27. I’ve had to seek out help on my own through the years to survive. I would recommend finding whatever resources you can such as joining a sport, seeking out the school counselor, tell your teachers, talk to other kids about it, go for walks, express your feelings through writing, art or music. Try guided meditations and baths and treat yourself well. Every person is deserving of their life and people love you even if they don’t express it in the way you want them to. God bless you!
@@helenareneedawson5187 I apologize but something happened today so I lowered the message. I just really needed to vent because I'm not in the right state of mind so I apologize. Speaking of the sport that'll seem cool, I like badminton and it's really fun. I hope my school has it. I also have a question, do you still have thoughts about stuff from your childhood, does it go away?
Just know my vent paragraph is below so if you don't wanna read it's ok you don't have to. It's only there if you want to
At the moment something bad happened, my mom got angry at me and threatened to hurt me. Then sent me to my dad, now I'm with him and I don't know when I'm going back or if I'm going to. I want to because it's my home too. But I don't because of the things my mom said, and my sister didn't say anything knowing she's the reason why I was angry in the first place. I'm so tired. At the end of the day both of my parents are the bad guys. I don't wanna be like my siblings who end up staying with my mom. The situation I'm currently in all happened to them, but they still stayed with my mom when they know and even told me myself that she isn't ok. I don't wanna be like them.
Thank you Austin for sharing. You are an inspiration
This mental health crisis among kids is a failure of the US Education system.
It's time for schools to be preventative toward kids' mental health by instituting medicinal-free methods that enhance mental stability. Some methods include:
- Bringing back both recess and physical education
- Healthy foods
- (Dare I say it) Counselors
- Less screen use
- Financial savings courses
- Options to study in the library during lunch
The problem 100% is social media and isolation. Kids in previous generations who didn't have sm and spent lots of time outside didn't have these levels of depressed kids prone to self-harm.
Parents need to put their foot down and tell their kids to get away from the screen and go outside to play with other kids.
No, because is they hit by economical on technically, they should learn how to live and spend without father.maybe doing part-time job after school time and on school holidays
Thank you, this is very important
I’m so glad that he has such a supportive mom to help him out. He’s so brave to share what he went through as well. I’m glad we’re all opening up and talking about these things more. It’s critically important
I would love to see a program whereby people who were teenagers during WWII (now senior citizens) pair up with the pandemic teenagers. The have shared experiences of loss, worry, anxiety. What are the lessons learned? How did they learn resiliency?
Those people would all be in their 90’s. There aren’t many of them around.
@@Me-sq9ol That’s true. There’s so much to be learned though.
Does anyone know of any studies, about the “Greatest Generation “, that look into how they coped with the Great Depression as children and WWII as young adults?
@@ec6965 Exactly! There are so many coping methods from which we can pass into our kids. Times change, people don’t.
That generation, while they had challenges, also had much much much better economic prospects with the economic-boom of the war and post war eras. Most people my age feel like we'll never be able to own a home or attain what once were normal economic prospects.
God Bless this brave boy for sharing his story to help save the world
What a great kid, that Austin is. Wow. G.d bless him.
I hate to type it but its going to get worse. These systems need major buffs. But all our money goes to endless wars both ours and others.
U.S.A. Don’t NEED to 🐝Over in Ukraine…..Bring our MEN BACK NOW !
@@feathersky860 Wait, what? How are our troops IN Ukraine? That would be seen as an act of war, something the USA is trying to avoid. We cannot officially be in that country until the UN sends in ‘peacekeepers’ (quite useless), or Ukraine becomes a member of NATO.
These kids are truly struggling. My daughter taught the on line middle school kids with almost no support from parents . Now she is back into the schools teaching 7th/8th and these kids are so struggling with everything when it comes to their
grades , behavior and attendance.
It’s heartbreaking and I wish they had the help with their mental health issues sooner than weeks or months down the road . 😢
.
May God bless all those children and families dealing with this. May God judge accordingly all those responsible for unnecessarily putting our youth through this.
There's also a big problem with parents or guardian not supporting their child in the time of need and usually discredit the symptoms leading up to depression, anxiety, Ed etc.
We love you, kid. You're not alone.
My heart breaks for Austin. My son, same age, was also devastated by the isolation of Covid and constant conflict in the home, especially between him and his dad. I think my son might be on the Autism spectrum - very smart, but struggles socially despite LOVING people and wanting to interact constantly. We’re lucky to live in a district that returned to in-person learning for the 2020-2021 school year, but it was still an odd year with masks, social distancing, and shorter days. Things were more “normal” for the 21-22 year. He’s now adjusting to middle school (6th grade). I’ve done my best to keep open communication with him, and I took him to counseling and group therapy at a nearby clinic (thank God we qualified for Medicaid, as it’s a Medicaid-only clinic) but I really do feel like his life and mental health were permanently changed in Spring 2020 when everything shut down for several months.
We are all doing the best we can with the information we have in the moment, but by golly, life is HARD 😢
Mental health is very important at any age. Great video.
We need love, and this social media driven world puts people in isolation, even though we are “connected”. Love happens person to person, real friendship, in families, in communities. Without love, there’s only pain & suffering & division. This is the great suffering of our time & it’s far worse than what’s said here & will get worse
What A brave young man he is 💪 he's the kind of person that can step forward and speak up about this crisis, as he said, before it's too late.
Its something more to this story trust that
Psychedelic’s definitely have potential to deal with mental health symptoms like anxiety and depression, I would like to try them again but it’s just so hard to source here
Psychedelics are the reason why i didn’t take my life when i was at my end. I was stripped of my ego and saw the beauty of life and interconnectivity and even though i still battle anxiety and depression, I’m doing better everyday and will never think in such a self destructive way again.
LSD and mushrooms completely changed my whole outlook on life. I became a better version of myself
This experience gave me a lot of confidence about my self and my body. A bunch of bad thought / behavior patterns were broken. One of these was pretty bad OCD that made me wash my hands a lot. It gave me a lot of hope that things will be fine, this is the one thing that I heard throughout the trip: Everything is alright. The main reason for the trip was my severe depression and it definitely helped me (although it's not gone). Before all I could do was lay in bed. Now I am trying to rebuild my life one step at a time which wasn't possible before."
[_James_tray]
Got psychs
@@sarahh321 Where to search?? Is it IG?
@@Jerryberger9235 Yes
Excellent coverage of a vital issue. I teach 5 to 12 yo and see each day the troubled youths coming in the door. Great suggestions to arm parents with strategies to win back their children's hearts and minds. Well done!
I think kids have always had these kinds of mental health problems, they were just stigmatized and it wasn't talked about. My mom has an anxiety disorder and always has, which is part of why I have an anxiety disorder.
Real though the phenomenon may be, these children are speaking with the vocabulary of adults.
When you go through mental health treatment, you learn the vocabulary to talk about things. I was 15 when I was trying to describe suicidal feelings to my psychiatrist and not having the words -- he gave me the vocabulary I needed to be able to express what was going on.
Excellent point. Younger and younger children have access to the internet with no boundaries or limits to what they are viewing. Video games are babysitters for Moms of boys. Adult games. Adult words. Anxiety and suicide are not words an 8 or 9 yr old should know and use regularly. Breakdown of family.
we are living in the broken world
The top two moments in this video where I got teary-eyed was when the woman asked the two girls what did you guys lose in the pandemic, and the girl on the left said, “myself”, and when the 11 year old boy expressed that with his parents’ divorce and the pandemic running alongside each other almost made him *unalive* himself because he felt like he wasn’t wanted. I’m 17, and I can relate to both of em so much and I’m so proud of them for using their voice to spread awareness🙌🙌🙌
Dear Austin,
What a champion you are! :)
In addition to Covid and the impacts of social media, in the USA, I think this phenomenon also has to do with the lack of urban planning in the country. Suburban sprawl causes people to be isolated from each other. Kids can't just walk to the park, they have to be driven. In places like the Netherlands, where city infrastructure is purposely built in a more condensed manner, people have more of a sense of community, and you will see kids outside playing.
I’m proud of these kids for speaking out but it’s so unfortunate there’s many still unable to put into words how we can help bc often they don’t even know what’s wrong, we need more research to be done to find better ways to treat & help these generations going forward, hopefully ppl will keep seeking to improve their mental health as we should all also be trying to push for resources+research+funding or other help ? Etc. Please don’t give up💔
Austin you deserve the world
Great to see kids who are taking control of their health and supportive parents!!!
I feel so bad for the children who suffer mental instability for any reason. The pandemic made it worse as does the sickening adult behavior they see on TV. I feel like adults too are suffering from these effects. It's a sad and terrifying world now that we're not used to.
Austin-you are a wonderful, admirable, intelligent, dear boy with courage, wisdom, and eloquence beyond your years. You deserve a lifetime of happiness and joy. The world is your oyster, and I know you will continue to do great things.
Amazingly brave. I wish him
All
The best
Brave kids! I wish them the best.
Austin is such an amazing and intelligent young man. 1000 👏🏽!
This my come across poorly but I'm happy that people are finally talking about how isolation can impact you. Prior to the pandemic I was in a violent relationship ship and lost everything, material, friends, family, work. I was in hiding and started again. I felt so incredibly isolated and as I started to speak about it when I reestablished contact with everyone after my ex ended up passing and it was safe to return to my home state, people ignored it. I told them the isolation messed with me, I even took an online course at the time before the pandemic and while I was in hiding because I wanted to keep a low profile. Nobody, I mean nobody listened. I knew though, I was educated on ground zero, I went through it. But alas it takes a pandemic for people to start caring and understanding. Part of me is still angry about it. But I do my best.
I understand these young ladies because I’ve watched first hand my granddaughter go through this. It broke my heart.
Social media is squarely to blame.
We are so concerned about treating the symptoms but we never make the hard changes to tackle the root causes, barely even mentioned in this piece. But hey that goes for the entire U.S medical system
Austin - what an intelligent young fellow !
How horrific.. so sad these young folks go through this.😰😰😰😰😰😰😰😰❤️❤️
Austin is such a strong brave kid. ❤
Thee kids are so brave to share there experiences with us we I really appreciate them making a big difference in this world 🌍 💖🙏🏽
Austin definitely has an old soul he’s so articulate and well spoken
This is why I dont want kids
Apart from the mental health crisis, I feel another issue on the rise for teenagers is self destructive behaviors, which can ultimately lead to death. I feel like the medical health system is not equipped to deal with the issues are youth are dealing with today and it's really sad. But my prayers go to all the adolescents going through hard moments rn.