EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Over the past six years, rates of anxiety and depression among California kids have skyrocketed by 70%.
Between 2019 and 2021, one-third of California adolescents experienced serious psychological distress, including a 20% increase in suicides.
California’s First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom recently sat down with “Inside the Issues” host Alex Cohen to discuss statewide initiatives to ease mental health struggles among young adults.
She noted her own experience with trauma at a young age influenced her decision to lead on this issue. When she was nearly 7 years old, her older sister died in a tragic accident, which had a profound impact upon Siebel Newsom’s childhood.
“I channeled all the pain and guilt into trying to perfect, trying to be two kids instead of one, but found myself looking for support and ways to heal my own anxiety and sadness and pain and hopelessness,” she said.
Siebel Newsom found that time outside, surrounded by animals and nature, helped her grieve and heal after her family’s loss. She said this inspired her to make these resources more accessible to children across the state.
Late last summer, the governor announced a $4.7 billion investment so that all Californians from infants to 25-year-olds could have increased access to resources such as early interventions, assessments and crisis response hotlines.
“I wanted to raise my kids with these mental health tools, way of life best practices, and I wanted to bring that to all California children, and that’s really been the impetus of my work as First Partner,” Siebel Newsom added.
The governor and First Partner also launched California for All Kids. The initiative connects children to nature and the community to help foster good mental health and well-being. It focuses on providing universal meals, creating farm-to-school programs and improving equity to the outdoors and physical fitness.
Siebel Newsom hopes these efforts will help California kids escape the pressures of school, sports and social media that have contributed to skyrocketing mental health issues among youth.
Her California Partner’s Project recently joined UCLA’s Chicano Research Center on a newly released study which looks at the impact of social media on young lives.
“Too much time online is dangerous for children, especially when it encourages disconnection, anti-social behavior, unkindness, othering, dehumanization and when it reinforces this comparison culture, which is again saying you’re not enough,” she said.
Siebel Newsom recommends parents closely monitor kids’ social media use during early adolescence and not allow devices in the bedroom. These are just a few antidotes her office is offering to improve digital wellness and develop healthier online habits.
For more on this topic, watch our town hall discussion at 8 p.m. Thursday that is dedicated to the mental health crisis facing so many young people in California.
Let Inside the Issues know your thoughts and watch Monday through Friday at 8 and 11 p.m. on Spectrum News 1.