Talking Points: Pandemic's toll on youth mental health

MINNEAPOLIS -- Every three years Minnesota conducts a statewide survey of public school students. The latest survey results which were released in December 2022 straddled the pandemic years. 

The survey, given to 135,000 students in the 5th, 6th, and 11th grades, found the pandemic has left a long shadow over our children. Twenty-nine percent of students reported mental health problems last six months or longer, that's up from 23% in 2019. Forty-three percent of all students say they worried "a lot" over the prior month and 48% report sometimes feeling sad even when they don't know why.

The survey found girls are especially vulnerable with 45% reporting long-term mental health concerns. That was up from 35% in 2019. Female students also reported long term mental health issues at twice the rate of boys. 

Esme Murphy first spoke with Doctor Sarah Jerstad, the medical director of Outpatient Mental Health Services at Children's Minnesota, about the reporting of mental health issues and what resources should be available in schools and the community. 

Professor Jodi Dworkin of the University of Minnesota is a nationally known expert on screen time. She weighed in on the pandemic's impact on screen time and children's exposure online. 

Meanwhile, increased substance abuse issues are closely tied to mental health struggles according to Doctor Sara Polley, the director of the youth continuum at Hazelden Betty Ford.

Each expert provided advice for parents navigating the kid's mental health concerns.

Help is always available through the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can call or text 9-8-8 anytime. 

Talking Points airs every Wednesday and Thursday at 6:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m., live on CBS News Minnesota.