Pandemic Raises Awareness Of Mental Health Crisis Among American Young People

The AP (8/17) reports, “The pandemic magnified the fragility of mental health among American youth, who had been experiencing a rise in depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts for years, experts say,” but the pandemic also “raised awareness of the crisis and helped de-stigmatize talking about mental health, while also bringing attention to schools’ shortcomings in handling it.” Recently, “President Joe Biden’s administration…announced over $500 million to expand mental health services in the country’s schools, adding to federal and state money that has poured into schools to cope with pandemic-era needs.” Nevertheless, “despite the unprecedented funding, schools are having trouble hiring counselors, mirroring the shortages in other American industries,” and some parents wish to have no school involvement at all in children’s mental health.