NAMI's brief highlights state legislation passed in 2023 that helps improve youth mental health care and support

Christina Watkins   

In 2023, more than 1 in 5 high school students seriously considered suicide, and 1 in 10 attempted suicide — rates that are even higher for at-risk communities like LGBTQ+ youth.

Experts say when mental health conditions are treated early, it can save lives and vastly improve outcomes for individuals.

In September, the National Alliance on Mental Illness released its Trends in State Policy: Youth Mental Health brief.

It highlights state legislation passed in 2023 that helps improve youth mental health care and support and includes policy recommendations that may be implemented in states across the country in the following key categories:

- Access to care

- Mental health workforce in schools

- Mental health and suicide prevention training

- School policies

- System coordination and planning

This brief is the fourth in a larger series — NAMI’s 2023 State Legislation Issue Brief Series — which examines new mental health from 2023 addressing, criminal justice, access to care, and 988 and crisis response.

Read NAMI Trends in State Policy: Youth Mental Health.

Funding was also a big topic in the brief, and one Central Florida family is working to fill that gap.

Joe Meeske and his wife, Rose Meeske, live in Port Orange. Their daughter, Madeline, died in December 2021 after a battle with her mental health.

But before the unexpected loss, the Meeske family went on a journey in 2019 to get Maddie help. They traveled more than 1,000 miles away outside of Florida.

WESH 2 asked the family why they felt it was necessary to seek care outside of the state.

"The particular help that she needed was not available anywhere locally that we could find. After we exhausted everything here, we found McLean Hospital in Boston. And that's where everything kind of changed for us." Rose said.

Doctors suggested Maddie get Dialectical Behavior Therapy, or DBT.

First developed in the 1970s, doctors say it's especially effective for people who have difficulty managing and regulating their emotions. Rose says it worked for Maddie until she came back to Florida during the pandemic.

On Dec. 14, 2021, at 21 years old, the Father Lopez High School graduate and National Honor Society member passed away.

"She just — she lost. She lost her struggle with this. She just, you know, the care wasn't there. She tried. She had a toolbox of skills, and she just. She lost her struggle," Rose said.

RELATED: Volusia County family helps train therapists through mental health organization

Maddie's life lives on through a nonprofit she helped her mom start, called Youth Emotional Support.

YES provides DBT training to therapists in Central Florida. At least 50 received it so far.

Dr. Amy Hall, a licensed mental health counselor for more than 25 years, serves as a board member.

"It's like that old adage, you know, if you can give someone fish or you can teach them how to fish. We are teaching people how to fish using DBT. We're training therapists so they can continue the work for decades to come," she says.

Access to care, such as DBT, is one of five key points highlighted in NAMI's brief.

#James Donaldson notes:Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space.  #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticleFind out more about the work I do on my 501c3 non-profit foundationwebsite www.yourgiftoflife.org Order your copy of James Donaldson's latest book,#CelebratingYourGiftofLife: From The Verge of Suicide to a Life of Purpose and Joy

www.celebratingyourgiftoflife.com

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NAMI focused on legislation passed last year to help improve youth mental health care and different policy recommendations for states to consider.

Hall says while Florida has done a good job erasing the stigma, it's time to put more money into resources and organizations working to save lives.

"We need to see funding that provides training to our students and training to our families, our parents. We're starting to see money being placed into places that it needs to help, fund research, fund counseling, do all of those great things. But there still needs to be work done here," Hall said.

For now, Hall says the work YES is doing is helping to fill that gap.

And Rose says Maddie would be proud.

"It just feels really good to be able to carry on something that she felt so strongly about, to help others and keep her memory alive," Rose said. https://standingabovethecrowd.com/james-donaldson-on-mental-health-study-reveals-how-many-students-consider-suicide-and-whats-being-done-to-help/