Destigmatizing the need for mental health support
Local college student opens up to Anthony Everett about her journey to seek help
Updated: 8:00 PM EDT Jun 16, 2023
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AT NIGHT ON CHRONICLE. GOOD EVENING, EVERYONE. IMAGINE HAVING A MEDICAL EMERGENCY, A BROKEN BONE, DEEP CUT OR A HEART ATTACK. BUT WHEN YOU GO TO THE HOSPITAL, YOU ARE TOLD YOU’LL HAVE TO WAIT FOR CARE FOR A DAY, A WEEK OR EVEN A MONTH. THAT WOULD BE TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE. BUT THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT IS HAPPENING TO THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE IN DESPERATE NEED OF MENTAL HEALTH CARE, WHETHER THEY END UP IN THE EMERGENCY ROOM OR ARE LOOKING FOR A THERAPIST, THEY ARE FACING A SHORTAGE OF ACCESSIBLE AND AFFORDABLE CARE THAT IS IMPACTING ALL OF US, ESPECIALLY OUR YOUNG PEOPLE. WE DO CAUTION YOU THAT TONIGHT’S SHOW DEALS WITH ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, SUICIDAL IDEATION AND OTHER ISSUES THAT MAY BE DIFFICULT FOR SOME VIEWERS. IT’S ALSO HAVING SOME SEVERE ANXIETY. I WAS HAVING PANIC ATTACKS LIKE TEN TIMES A DAY. WELL, NOT ABLE TO BREATHE. I WOULD OFTEN BE IN CLASSROOMS AND I WOULD BE TRYING TO SILENTLY HAVE THE PANIC ATTACK AND LEAVE THE CLASSROOM. SO THEN I DIDN’T DRAW ATTENTION TO MYSELF. SO IT WAS DEFINITELY BECOMING UNMANAGEABLE ON MANAGEABLE, INTOLERABLE LEVEL, UNRELENTING. SOPHIE CARLETON WAS A HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR WHEN SHE HAD HER FIRST STRUGGLES WITH MENTAL HEALTH, A SITUATION THAT ESCALATED QUICKLY. THE DEPRESSION JUST KEPT GETTING WORSE AND WORSE. THE PANIC DISORDER KEPT GETTING WORSE AND IT GOT TO THE POINT WHERE I WAS SEVERELY SUICIDAL AND I DIDN’T KNOW HOW TO LIVE ANYMORE. SOPHIE IS NOT ALONE IN HER STRUGGLE. AMERICAN IS IN THE GRIPS OF A MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS AND ARE CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULTS ARE ESPECIALLY HARD HIT. THE MAIN AREAS WHERE WE’RE VERY CONCERNED ARE SIGNIFICANT INCREASES IN THE RATES OF DEPRESSION, ANXIETY, EATING DISORDERS AND EVEN THINGS LIKE SUICIDAL IDEATION OR KIDS AND TEENS ACTUALLY TRIED TO HARM THEMSELVES. NATIONALLY, 20% OF CHILDREN AGES 3 TO 17 WILL EXPERIENCE A MENTAL HEALTH CONDITION EACH YEAR FROM 2007 TO 2018. BEFORE THE PANDEMIC, THE SUICIDE RATE AMONG 10 TO 24 YEAR OLDS ROSE 630% IN AMERICA AND MASSACHUSETTS IS HIGHER THAN THE NATIONAL AVERAGE IN CHILDHOOD RATES OF ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, ALCOHOL USE AND ILLICIT DRUG USE. THE PANDEMIC SCHOOL SHOOTINGS, POLITICAL AND SOCIAL UNREST. CLIMATE CHANGE, WAR. THE WORLD OFTEN SEEMS LIKE A DANGEROUS AND UNSETTLING PLACE. DR. ERICA LEE IS A PSYCHOLOGY AT BOSTON CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL. KIDS JUST REALLY ARE OUT IN THE WORLD RECOGNIZING THERE’S A LOT LESS SAFETY AND THEY’RE REALLY NOT SURE WHERE IS THE WORLD GOING? WHO DO I LOOK THROUGH TO BE SAFE? CAN I BE SAFE IN REGULAR, EVERYDAY PLACES LIKE SCHOOL OR AT HOME OR WITH MY FRIENDS? ALL OF THIS JUST REALLY ADDS TO KIDS SENSE THAT I’M NOT QUITE SURE WHAT’S HAPPENING IN THE WORLD, AND I’M NOT QUITE SURE WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT. GIRLS AND YOUNG WOMEN ARE ESPECIALLY HARD HIT BY THE TIME THEY REACH THEIR TEEN YEARS. THEY ARE TWICE AS LIKELY AS THEIR MALE COUNTERPARTS TO EXPERIENCE ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION. SOPHIE CARLTON STRUGGLES EVENTUALLY LED HER TO A HOSPITAL EMERGENCY ROOM CROWDED WITH PEOPLE JUST LIKE HER. I HAD LIKE A ONE ON ONE WATCHDOG TYPE OF PERSON, SOMEONE WHO WAS SUPPOSED TO MAKE SURE I DIDN’T HURT MYSELF AND AND I NOTICED THAT ALMOST THE ENTIRE PEDIATRIC EMERGENCY ROOM WAS PSYCH PATIENTS. WE ALSO WERE GREEN SCRUBS. SO YOU COULD DIFFERENTI US AND WE ALL WERE SUPPOSED TO HAVE ONE ON ONE PEOPLE, BUT THERE WEREN’T ENOUGH. SO SOMETIMES IT WAS ONE FOR TWO PATIENTS AND IT JUST WAS VERY CLEAR THAT THE EMERGENCY ROOM WAS COMPLETELY OVERLOADED. IT WAS 16 HOURS BEFORE SHE SAW A SOCIAL WORKER, FOUR DAYS BEFORE SHE WAS FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO GET A BED AT MCLEAN PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL. MANY WAIT WEEKS OR EVEN MONTHS KEPT IN EMERGENCY ROOMS ILL EQUIPPED TO DEAL WITH SEVERE MENTAL HEALTH CONDITIONS. IT’S A PROCESS KNOWN AS BOARDING. IF I HAD DIABETES OR ANY OTHER ILLNESS, THEY WOULD NOT BE LEAVING ME IN A BED UNTREATED BECAUSE THEN I COULD GET WORSE OR AT LEAST STAY THE SAME. AND THAT’S THE SAME WITH MENTAL HEALTH. I WAS GETTING WORSE, OR AT THE VERY LEAST STAYING THE SAME BECAUSE I WASN’T GETTING ANY HELP. AND I DON’T BLAME THE HEALTH CARE WORKERS WHO ARE DOING THEIR BEST. I BLAME A BROKEN SYSTEM. WE DEFINITELY NEED MORE BEDS AT MENTAL HOSPITALS. WE NEED MORE SOCIAL WORKERS, MORE CLINICIANS, JUST MORE OF EVERYTHING. THERE ARE ABSOLUTELY NOT ENOUGH PROGRAMS FOR WHAT WE CAN SEND THESE KIDS TO KEEP THEM SAFE. AND REALLY, IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, IF THERE’S A CERTAIN NUMBER, SAY X NUMBER OF PSYCHOLOGISTS OR THERAPISTS OR SOCIAL WORKERS OR EVEN PSYCHIATRISTS IN THE COUNTRY, THE NUMBER WHO ARE ACTUALLY SPECIALIZED TO TREAT CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS GOES DOWN. AND SO THERE REALLY JUST ARE NOT ENOUGH OF US TO MEET THE NEED. IT REALLY IS TREMENDOUSLY HEARTBREAKING FOR EVERYONE. SOPHIE SPENT THREE WEEKS AT MCLEAN, THEN MORE TIME IN OUTPATIENT TREATMENT, EVENTUALLY DIAGNOSED WITH BIPOLAR DEPRESSION, MEDICATION AND THERAPY HAVE HELPED HER TREMENDOUSLY. NOW. NOW, A SOPHOMORE AT SIMMONS UNIVERSITY, SHE IS INTERESTED IN JOURNALISM AND IS ALREADY BROADCASTING A MESSAGE TO HER PEERS. REACH OUT TO ANYONE WHO WILL LISTEN BECAUSE YOU MAY NOT WANT TO LIVE TODAY, BUT YOU’RE GOING TO THANK YOURSELF. AND TOMORROW OR IN TEN YEARS, WHEN YOU DID KEEP GOING BECAUSE YOU HAVE LITERALLY NO IDEA WHAT YOUR LIFE IS GOING TO BRING YOU IF YOU JUST KEEP FIGHTING AND KEEP LIVING, IT. A BRAVE YOUNG WOMAN. WE DISCUSSED ACCESS IN THIS SEGMENT, BUT THE OTHER BARRIER TO CARE IS REALLY AFFORDABILITY, RIGHT? SERVICES EITHER AREN’T COVERED BY INSURANCE OR THE REIMBURSED RATES ARE SO LOW THE PROVIDERS DON’T WANT TO TAKE IT AND PROVIDERS DON’T HAVE TO TAKE INSURANCE. THE DEMAND IS SO HIGH AS WE’VE HEARD, THAT SO MANY PEOPLE ARE WILLING TO PAY OUT OF POCKET JUST TO GET CARE. BUT THEN THAT, OF COURSE, ELIMINATES A WHOLE GROUP OF PEOPLE THAT CAN’T AFFORD TO DO THAT. WE NEED TO COME UP WITH A SOLUTION. ALL RIGHT. UP NEXT, A SHORTAGE OF PROVIDERS. THERE’S NO WAY THAT THE THE PATIENT IS GETTING THE SUPPORT THAT THEY NEED WHEN HER CASELOAD IS MORE THAN TRIPLE WHAT IT SHOULD BE.
Destigmatizing the need for mental health support
Local college student opens up to Anthony Everett about her journey to seek help
Updated: 8:00 PM EDT Jun 16, 2023
If you are struggling with your mental health, or have a loved one who needs help, you can get connected with resources through the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health’s 24/7 helpline. Call or text 833-773-2445 or access their online chat here.If you need to talk about suicide, you can call or text 988 from anywhere in the country to be connected to the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.The Massachusetts Department of Mental Health has launched a new way of responding to an increased need for help with mental health access. The tools include a 24/7 phone helpline and a network of community behavioral help centers. Commissioner Brooke Doyle described the community behavioral help centers as urgent care for mental health and substance use needs.The helpline can be accessed through an online chat or by calling or texting 833-773-2445. It is free and available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, year-round. Callers will be connected with a clinician who can guide them to the support they need.Long-time suicide prevention organization Samaritans is offering a dedicated service to reach young adults who are struggling with their mental health. Hey Sam is a text service that connects teens and young adults with peer volunteers to talk about the tough parts of life. People can text 439-726 any time of the day to get support. From 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., teenage and young adult volunteers are on standby to support their peers.Sophie, a student at Simmons University, shares her mental health struggles and works to destigmatize seeking help.Boston Children’s Hospital Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences works to help children and families create and achieve a healthy development and lifestyle. The program has a mission of providing excellence and innovation in care, education, research, and advocacy for mental health within families.Sophie Nystuen is the founder of Breathe, a resource designed to help people heal and move on from traumatic and life-altering events. Users can write their thoughts in any form they prefer, whether it may be a poem, an essay, or even a simple statement. The site maintains users’ anonymity and offers the choice of publishing stories with or without a name attached.
NEEDHAM, Mass. —
If you are struggling with your mental health, or have a loved one who needs help, you can get connected with resources through the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health’s 24/7 helpline. Call or text 833-773-2445 or access their online chat here.
If you need to talk about suicide, you can call or text 988 from anywhere in the country to be connected to the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
The Massachusetts Department of Mental Health has launched a new way of responding to an increased need for help with mental health access. The tools include a 24/7 phone helpline and a network of community behavioral help centers. Commissioner Brooke Doyle described the community behavioral help centers as urgent care for mental health and substance use needs.
The helpline can be accessed through an online chat or by calling or texting 833-773-2445. It is free and available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, year-round. Callers will be connected with a clinician who can guide them to the support they need.
Long-time suicide prevention organization Samaritans is offering a dedicated service to reach young adults who are struggling with their mental health. Hey Sam is a text service that connects teens and young adults with peer volunteers to talk about the tough parts of life. People can text 439-726 any time of the day to get support. From 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., teenage and young adult volunteers are on standby to support their peers.
Sophie, a student at Simmons University, shares her mental health struggles and works to destigmatize seeking help.
Boston Children’s Hospital Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences works to help children and families create and achieve a healthy development and lifestyle. The program has a mission of providing excellence and innovation in care, education, research, and advocacy for mental health within families.
Sophie Nystuen is the founder of Breathe, a resource designed to help people heal and move on from traumatic and life-altering events. Users can write their thoughts in any form they prefer, whether it may be a poem, an essay, or even a simple statement. The site maintains users’ anonymity and offers the choice of publishing stories with or without a name attached.
