Over the past decade, Mental Health Care has been brought to the forefront due to a public shift in perception. Through increased coverage about the importance of mental health, more and more Americans have leaned into taking care of their brain, and healing themselves in new ways. For KVNF Matt Horn spoke to one local mental health care provider about what she's doing to help teens in our area.
Matt Horn: Recent reports in the U.S have shown that suicide rates are on the rise in the 10 to 24 age range. Nina Clouse, a professional from Whole Human Healing in Paonia Colorado, talked about this increased risk and its visible effects in Delta County, and what she plans to do about it.
Nina, before we talk about Delta County, what efforts have been made in the state when it comes to the high suicide rate?
Nina: There are efforts being made across the state to improve mental health. And some of those things that we're seeing are improved social emotional curriculum and then schools we're seeing on site, mental health counselors in schools And that's an initiative created by the state to reduce suicide rates.
Matt: Is there a specific age group that you're most concerned about when it comes to suicide?
Nina: Suicide rates since 2018 have gone up across the board. And this is in all age groups. But the most concerning age group that we were looking at is 10 to 24 year olds. So we're seeing younger and younger individuals attempting and committing suicide.
Matt: What do you think are some of the factors leading younger kids to attempt suicide? What are the leading societal factors that you see locally?
Nina: When we look at what is causing suicide and why was there such a stark increase in such a small period of time, we're kind of looking at what are the changes that happen culturally. Part of the changes are, we shifted into this age of information where we have smartphones now and those smartphones are in the hands of kids and we're creating a culture of isolation. So even though we feel more connected than ever, this connection is really superficial.
Matt: Tell us about what you’re doing here in Delta County to help teens who may be struggling with mental health issues?
Nina: So the one of the things that I do is I have a team or a club that I work with at the Blue Stage Center for the Arts . We try and create a space where teens can connect in a safe way. We're seeing a lot of drug and alcohol use. We see a lot of poverty. The poverty rates in Delta County, for example, are higher than state and national averages.
Matt: What are some of the mental health challenges around not having enough money in families?
Nina: With poverty comes problems with transportation or problems with housing or food insecurity and all of these problems trickle down to the kids. If we can support the families to get out of poverty, if we get the kids to feel more connected to each other, then I think we could start seeing some real changes as far as mental health in general.