A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
More than 600 schools have been closed, and some damaged, in recent days as bushfires rage across Queensland and New South Wales. Some students have been urgently evacuated while in school. People have lost homes and animals and are experiencing significant distress. Research shows somewhere between 7% and 45% of children suffer depression after experiencing [...]
When we think about support for anxiety, as with most mental health conditions, we're most likely to think of therapy and other fairly cerebral measures. But when someone is in the midst of an anxious situation, their ability to think and reason is severely impaired because their brain is being flooded with adrenaline. This is [...]
The argument has raged back and forth in recent years on the presence and nature of a link between youth social media use and mental health outcomes. In an eight-year longitudinal study recently conducted by Brigham Young University, one finding stood out: the sheer amount of time spent using social media did not correlate to [...]
Some Australian students are reportedly shunning Year 12 exams in favour of more favourable, and less stressful, pathways to finishing school. These reports come amid warnings of rising rates of anxiety and depression among young people, with psychologists calling for better mental health support services in schools. Experts say exam stress could be making depression [...]
Two-thirds of young people experience levels of exam stress that mental health organisation ReachOut describes as “worrying”. Research shows high levels of exam stress can interfere with attention and reduce working memory, leading to lower performance. Early experiences of anxiety and stress can also set a precedent for mental-health problems in adulthood. But how we [...]
According to the NHS, as many as one in eight children aged five to 19 faces a mental health challenge. And a significant number of these cases are related to some form of anxiety. Of course, a degree of anxiety or worry may be a normal state of affairs for young people – particularly when [...]
The Australian Medical Association (AMA) recently declared climate change a health emergency, reflecting similar positions taken by a growing list of peak medical bodies around the world. The AMA’s statement highlights the significant impacts climate change is having on physical health, including an increase in climate-related deaths. The World Health Organisation regards climate change as [...]
This story is part of Covering Climate Now, a global collaboration of more than 250 news outlets to strengthen coverage of the climate story. Thousands of school students across Australia are expected to join in the global protest today calling for action on climate change. This isn’t the first time students in Australia have rallied [...]
Spending time in outdoors, taking time out of the everyday to surround yourself with greenery and living things can be one of life’s great joys – and recent research also suggest it’s good for your body and your brain. Scientists have found that spending two hours a week in nature is linked to better health [...]
This information from Parentline helps carers of children suffering from the most common form of the most common mental health condition: social anxiety disorder. Although highly treatable, the article acknowledges that SAD can be difficult to diagnose in children given that young kids are often shy. However, it's also important to help kids with an [...]
