ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – In the latest data from the U.S. Department of Health, more than a quarter of children in America are depressed, and more than 20% deal with anxiety.
Albuquerque Public Schools Counselor Leia Viscarra says the pandemic is putting more kids on social media.
“They’re going through a lot coming back from the pandemic. The trauma that our young people are facing, a lot of upheavals through social media,” Viscarra said.
The most recent insights from our state fitness branch show that two in five students at New Mexico’s top schools reported feeling unhappy or hopeless, and one in six experienced severe depression.
And, with New Mexico having the fourth-highest suicide rate in 2020, more resources are being allocated to schools to combat the stigma around intellectual fitness and make communication about it more widespread.
“Recently, I took our suicide prevention courses. I took courses on bullying. And so on, providing resources,” Vicarra said.
Help is as undeniable as dialing 988, an intellectual fitness helpline that will connect a child with a peer or companion trained to provide the necessary necessities in whatever form they need.
“Many times, we know that our youth will communicate with their peers before communicating with an adult. That’s why peer helpers are trained in a way that encourages scholars to communicate with them,” Viscarra said.
One of the biggest forms of trauma among teens is gun violence. Top 6% of school students reported using a gun in school in the past year, and 44% of students reported living in a home with a gun.
That’s why Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller needs to expand a program to control the number of teens experiencing gun violence, called VIPs in each and every top metropolitan school.
“I think we have it in every single one of the best schools in our city,” Keller said.
This will be discussed at the next legislative consultation in January.
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