Group provides guidance for advising teen athletes facing mental health challenges
SAN FRANCISCO -- With teenage children facing an escalating crisis in mental health, sports teams offer unique opportunities to create spaces where teens feel safe, seen, heard, and valued.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one third of high school students experienced persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness in 2019. Nearly 20% of all high school students had serious thoughts of suicide in the past year, a percentage that rises significantly for LGBTQ students and students of color.
Coaches are ideally positioned to provide support to teen athletes, and can be the first to notice when an athlete is struggling emotionally, They also can be the first person an athlete trusts enough to reach out to.
Casey U'Ren from Oakland-based Positive Coaching Alliance discussed mental health and young athletes during an interview on CBS News Bay Area Tuesday afternoon. The organization offers a Coaches' Guide to Supporting High School Athlete Mental Health as a resource for coaches that is available online.