The theme of World Mental Health Day 2022 is ‘Make Mental Health and Well-Being for all a Global Priority’
Growing up is a positive time for many children and young people across the world. However, for those young individuals who experience mental health difficulties the impact is significant. Prior to the pandemic in 2019, 1 in 8 children and young people were estimated by NHS digital to have a probable mental health disorder. The COVID-19 pandemic has created significant effect globally on people’s mental health with estimates of rising anxiety and depressive disorders. Last year, NHS data placed 1 in 6 children and young people as estimated to have a probable mental health disorder. Coinciding with increasing need, mental health services have been significantly disrupted and as a result the treatment gap for mental health conditions continues to widen. Growing world political socioeconomic changes will, no doubt, continue to also have an impact on the mental health of the world’s population.
A major barrier to young people receiving the mental health services they need is not only a problem of resource, stigma continues to existing, particularly when it comes to young people’s, mental health, and their voice and cries for help are often dismissed. We cannot and must not dismiss young people’s experiences or pain as invalid or as ‘being soft’ because they are young or because they are assumed to have not experienced life’s hardships. Each experience of mental health difficulty is deeply personal, and no set criteria or threshold can accurately evaluate the realities of the challenges faced by anyone except themselves. We cannot feel or measure someone else’s pain and gauge if it’s small or large based on another’s, but we can listen, not patronise, or dismiss, and work together towards building resilience through providing both existing known measures of help as well as developing new and targeted ones.
Young people tell us they need to be listened to. In a recent 2000 young person survey for stem4, they commented:
“Adults underestimate how lonely young people can feel at times. There needs to be improvements in picking up signs and supporting each other.”
“The state of life these days makes it so difficult to carry on, I’m barely scraping through. Young people shouldn’t be scared to do so.”
“Everyone needs to get better when dealing with young people who have mental illness’. Not pity, instead show support and let them know there is a help.”
“I feel like everyone should be able to talk to someone about how they feel and what’s going on, without being told ‘It will go away by itself’ ‘stop being silly’ ‘your fine’.”
To make mental health and wellbeing for all a global priority we need to start from making listening to young people a priority, challenging stigma to offer relevant and timely support that is inclusive.