CW: This week’s essay includes the topic of suicide. If you or someone you know may be considering suicide, contact the National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741.
It’s been almost two years since pediatricians have declared the youth mental health crisis a national emergency and U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy released an advisory calling the crisis an “urgent public health issue.”
At the time, suicide was the second-leading cause of death for people between the ages of 10 and 34. Since then, it has remained one of the most common causes of death for people in the 10-14, 15-24 and 25-34 age groups, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
But statistics, even deeply concerning ones like these, can only tell you so much, which is why I was so moved when reading URL Media partner Scalawag’s new series focusing on youth mental health.
“This project isn’t giving young people a voice. Their voices are all their own,” writer and youth journalism advocate Rainesford Stauffer, who curated the series, wrote. “Instead, it seeks to offer a platform, resources, and support to capture what’s on their minds in their own words.”
The writers — Mira Ugwuadu, Marrow Woods, Lauren Barton and Ray Loux — are all young people from the South. Although each piece explores different facets of the crisis, from how schools are failing students to systemic changes needed to better support youth to the mental health impacts of being an LGBTQ+ youth in the South, the common thread is that adults in positions of power are failing them.
Ugwuadu, a recent high school graduate, writes in her piece that she has lost at least four “friends or friends of friends” to suicide throughout her education.
“Though I’ve seen some people’s mindsets about mental health change, I have yet to see any structural change within our schooling to prevent these deaths or even reduce the stresses that school creates,” she writes.
In their piece, Woods describes their experiences navigating Georgia’s healthcare system while living with a chronic illness, emphasizing the barriers young people with disabilities face when accessing healthcare in the state while offering a path forward.
“We can expand Medicaid, so more young people have access to health insurance,” they write. “We can work toward a more just and equitable education system—one that embraces diversity and uplifts the voices of disabled individuals.”
Barton, an early-career journalist who covers local LGBTQ+ legislation in Tennessee, writes about the constant fear queer youth experience as the state passes a record number of anti-LGBTQ+ bills attacking their rights.
“Despite the seen and unseen efforts to make Tennessee and its schools a safer place for the LGBTQ+ community, it still isn’t enough,” she writes in her piece. “Local youth can’t help but feel they’ve been left behind, terrified for their futures in a state that seemingly hates their very existence.”
I hope that the bravery these young people exhibited in sharing their stories will spur those in positions of power to step up and make the changes necessary for them to get the support they and their peers need.
And, for those who are struggling with their mental health, I want to end with some words of wisdom that have been shared with me over the years. First, you are not a burden. Second, while it may be difficult, admitting you need help is always worth it. And, finally, the world is a better place with you in it. I really hope you choose to stay. —Alicia Ramirez
Uplift. Respect. Love.
