North Star Mental Health was inspired by our research with youth.
Below are 2 key messages that we heard in our research with high school students that inspired these resources.
Our goal is to amplify youth voices.
Youth described a lack of knowledge about:
What support is available
How to access appropriate support
Where and how to find accurate information
They felt there was a need for more outreach about the mental health supports available to them in both the school and community.
Youth want better access to accurate information about the mental health support available to them.
1.
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Ajay
Regarding school guidance counsellors
“I feel like it's more that people don't know that that resource is really there, more than that, people don't know that that resource is able to provide that support.”
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Alli
Regarding the school counsellor
“I just think it’s not that widely advertised… some people forget she’s there.”
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Dominic
“… not well broadcast whatsoever. If you didn't know specifically where you would be going or what you needed, you wouldn't be able to get it.”
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Monique
“Maybe the school has some resources, but I never had the courage to go speak with the secretary… I am not sure who to talk to in school.”
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Tariq
“… like professional wise, I have no idea who to call…”.
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Gurbani
Regarding Kids Help Phone
“ I don't think many people know about these organizations. I didn't know about them before.… I didn't know you could just talk to someone or text someone through an organization… I don't think really anyone knows about these organizations are actually open to help us.”
Youth want direct communication and a voice in decisions that impact them.
2.
Youth felt overlooked due to the lack of direct communication with them, and this limited their autonomy. They felt left out of the conversation and decision-making related to school policies.
When we asked about their recommendations for adults, the overwhelming response was to: Talk to youth.
Meet youth where they are. They want accurate information in spaces they access most often: social media and in schools.
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Ahmed
“Usually, youths want to … be part of the decision-making… we had to sit and listen to suggestions without being able to speak.”
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Harper
“If it’s a matter that is affecting us, it’s important that we have input on it.”
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Yvonne
“I would have loved to receive emails about school… I always had to ask my parents. Sometimes they don’t read the emails.”
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Jaelynn
“They will send an email out to teachers … or they'll send emails out to parents, but they won't send emails to students or anything.”
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Namid
“I also wish[ed] that [the school] would have told [the students] a little more… it would have been nice to get information a little earlier in order to be ready to prepare for things.”
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Lai
“I wished they (adults) would stop making decisions on adults’ minds, because they are different than what we think. I wish that they could just see what we want as the youth, not what they want.”
Want to learn more?
Downloads
Barriers to Accessing Mental Health Support among Youth
Study report
One page summary
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Links
Article in The Conversation
Qualitative Research Paper
