New counseling center Rockbridge hopes to help clients 12 and older treat anxiety and depression

MINNEAPOLIS -- All week, we're looking out for the mental health of our children with a special series called "Kids in Crisis."  We're talking about how it relates to addiction.

According to the National Institute of Health's website, more than 60% of adolescents who are in treatment are also diagnosed with a mental health condition like depression, ADHD or PTSD to name a few. WCCO looks at what a well-known local organization is doing to try and intercept kids, so they don't end up in rehab.

From the rigors of academics to the competition on the field to the pressure online. And for Zach, who grew up in rural Minnesota, it was extra tough. 

"A lot of poverty where I grew up, broken homes, drug addiction, it's almost like this unspoken thing that was passed down, that's how you deal with it is using drugs, using substances, that's how you address the thing, that's how you make it end," he said.

But it was just the beginning of his problems, "For me, I got in a lot of trouble, adolescent, middle school, a lot of fights, outbursts, not being able to stay in the classroom."

MORE: Kids in Crisis - Youth mental health resources

His marijuana use turned to fentanyl. His acting up in class turned into trouble with the law.

"When I look back at my childhood I wish I would have had someone to walk me through, especially the mental health, anxiety, all these frustrations. It would have helped me have some sort of outlet or help me to help navigate and process all these things I was feeling," he said.

And that is exactly why Adult and Teen Challenge is trying something new, "Before COVID, severe mental health challenges were two, three out of 10, now it is seven or eight out of 10."

The CEO of the treatment center is also a survivor. Tom Truszinski says, "I struggled personally with drug and alcohol abuse for 18 years, it nearly took my life little did I know I was self-medicating for abuse and abandonment I got as a child.  What if I could have gotten help earlier I could have avoided the suffering I experienced and caused others."

So Teen Challenge is opening a new counseling center for clients 12 and older, focused on treating anxiety and depression - it's called Rockbridge. Tom says the goal is to, "Get to the issues earlier.  If we can help people earlier before they ever adopt drugs and alcohol to solve their problems then everybody wins, everybody wins."

They have virtual services and in-person around the Metro - staffed with counselors like Anna Ramos who says, "The desire is whoever comes to our services, that they will grow, they will find freedom, hope that they will better themselves."

And freedom is what Zach found - he graduated from a 13-month program and is going on staff with Teen Challenge, "I feel like I have been given a new mind, my perspective, my thoughts, it's just a blessing to be where I'm at."

And that's exactly what he hopes for other kids, that they can feel the good stuff - and avoid the bad stuff.

For more information on Rock Bridge Counseling, click here.