Max Hatzoglou
Young Australians are facing a mental health crisis as figures reveal a spike in numbers involving psychological distress and suicidal thoughts.
The data gathered by youth service organisation Reach reveals four out of five young Australians have experienced mental health issues over the past two years and seven out of ten high school pupils have reported high psychological distress.
Among the alarming data was reported suicidal thoughts at one in four young people.
Reach, an organisation aiming to unlock the power of young people so they can shape their own lives by connecting young people, is fighting the crisis through its efforts to raise $200,000 to deliver workshops to schools.
Founded by Jim Stynes and Paul Currie in 1994, Reach endeavors to create a sense of social belonging, have breakthrough conversations and build emotional resilience/courage through its workshops.
Reach chief executive Fergus Watts said the organisation was hoping to raise money to tackle the issue.
“We have an EOFY campaign with a focus to raise $200,000 to be able to deliver 200 workshops for schools that can’t afford the work,” Mr Watts said.
“That is 12,000 young people that otherwise would not be able to experience the social and emotional development the Reach works brings.
“There are a number of public schools in this country that don’t have the funds to afford this investment in their students. We want to make sure we can deliver work in these schools regardless.”
Mr Watts said he was not surprised by the statistics.
“We see them playing out in real life everyday, as we work with thousands of young people every month,” he said.
“In reality these statistics have been a long time coming, through the lack of funding nationally in the preventative mental health of young people.
“A woeful lack of investment from all angles in the prevention and development of social and emotional resilience skills in young people.
“Only 1% of all health funding is invested in preventing issues from happening in the first place. 99% of investment is made after something has already gone wrong.”
Mr Watts a former AFL player for the Adelaide and St Kilda encouraged people to seek support from people they trusted and could let them know what was going on.
“You don’t have to do it on your own and we can get through these things as a community,” he said
“There are dedicated mental health services for those with mental Ill health. We recommend calling those and seeking support.”
If you need someone to talk to, call:
Lifeline on 13 11 14
Kids Helpline on 1800 551 800
MensLine Australia on 1300 789 978
Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467
Beyond Blue on 1300 22 46 36
Headspace on 1800 650 890
