Experts urge parents to check in on teens' mental health

MINNEAPOLIS — Between back-to-school shopping and last-minute cabin getaways, now might be the perfect opportunity to check in with your child about their mental health.

The statistics are unsettling.

"We've seen a lot more anxiety, a lot more social anxiety, a significant increase in school refusal and that's been a really hard thing," Dr. Joshua Stein, PrairieCare child and adolescent psychiatrist and clinical director, said.

According to the latest youth risk behavior survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 40% of teenagers say they constantly feel sad or hopeless.

"That's a lot of our teenage population. So we want to make sure they are getting help and they are getting support and that they are being seen," Stein said.

It's why experts in the field, like Stein, say now is the time to check in with your teen.

"When the school year starts and the foot gets on the gas again and the stressors come back, whether they're social, academic, being back in school, everything just kicks right back up," Stein said.

It's a sentiment NAMI Minnesota Director Sue Abderholden echoes.

"If you don't talk about it, right, then you're not getting the help that you need," Abderholden said.

She urges parents to looks for changes in their teens, such as shifts in sleep patterns or appetite or lack of interest in things that typically excite them.

"I'd love to see that number come way, way down," she said.

The survey does show a slight improvement from a few years ago, but it's still roughly 10 percentage points higher than a decade ago.

"Forty percent, that is a huge percentage of kids who are just not feeling great about the world, right, and are depressed," Abderholden said.

She credits that progress to conversation, but she doesn't want it to stop there.

"It shouldn't be a secret, right? We should be able to talk about it openly, so that kids are really aware of what to do," she said.

NAMI offers free classes and support groups for parents of children struggling with mental health.

If you or someone you know is in emotional distress, get help from the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988. Trained crisis counselors are available 24 hours a day to talk about anything.

In addition, help is available from the National Alliance on Mental Illness, or NAMI. Call the NAMI Helpline at 800-950-6264 or text "HelpLine" to 62640. There are more than 600 local NAMI organizations and affiliates across the country, many of which offer free support and education programs.