Special population health series – Mental health solutions for LGBTQ+ youth

3. Tackling the youth mental health crisis

In the face of mounting mental health issues, organizations across the country are mobilizing to promote young people’s mental wellbeing. We profile 3 groups below.

Building student resiliency: The Jed Foundation partners with high schools and colleges to promote emotional health and prevent suicide. Through its JED High School program, the Foundation helps schools build a positive climate, recognize and respond to students at risk, and connect students to mental health resources. JED also provides resources for young people to promote social connectedness, encourage them to seek help, and bolster their emotional health. And, the Healing Centered Engagement initiative in New Jersey offers training and coaching for a whole school — teachers, bus drivers, janitors, and other staff — on how to support young people’s mental wellbeing. Since launching in 2021, the program has served 60 New Jersey schools and trained more than 3,500 school staff and community members.

✅Lesson learned:

• Promote school-based support: Schools are uniquely positioned to identify mental health concerns and support students early on. But they often lack the resources, leaving school staff and administration overwhelmed. Such programs as JED High School provides personalized guidance on how to support students.

Supporting mental health of the Black community: The Loveland Foundation Therapy Fund supports the mental wellbeing of Black women, girls, and gender nonbinary people through continuing education workshops and resources for therapists, group support sessions, and financial assistance.

✅Lesson learned:

• Increase access to care – Mental healthcare is expensive. In the US, the average therapy session fee ranges from $135 in Idaho to $213 in New York. And many therapists don’t accept insurance. The Loveland Therapy Fund addresses this problem by paying for up to 12 therapy sessions. The Foundation also partners with the National Queer and Trans Therapists of Color Network, Black Female Therapists, Therapy for Black Girls, and other organizations to provide high-quality, culturally-competent care. In 2021, Loveland Therapy Fund served over 5,000 people and paid for over 51,900 hours of therapy.

Speaking through music: The Sound It Out campaign helps parents and caregivers speak with middle schoolers about emotional wellbeing through music and interviews from artists including KAMAUU and Empress Of. The campaign gives caregivers guides on how to have conversations on mental health with children.

✅Lesson learned:

• Support caregivers – Children’s mental health is strongly connected to that of their caregivers, and vice versa. Parents and caregivers can help model healthy coping skills and promote development. But many caregivers of young children lack resources and support to help their kids and themselves. Sound It Out encourages open communication with children and shares resources to do so.