Mental Health Group Helps Colorado Children Overcome Struggles

DENVER (CBS4) - The pandemic has taken a toll on people's mental health including children. There's a new place for them to turn for help, and it launched just in time.

Raya Patel, 17, has struggled with severe depression and anxiety. After 21 months in treatment centers in Utah and Arizona, the teen came back to Colorado. Eight months ago, she started weekly coaching with Noble One, a youth personal development organization to deal with the mental health effects of COVID-19.

"I was just kind of falling down a little bit of a hole, and it was just getting worse and worse," Patel said of her mental health journey.

Noble One co-founders Kristen Rupprecht and Veronica Shoultz are helping students, parents, coaches and organizations open up in one-on-one meetings and small group settings.

"We know kids are struggling, and we just wanted to be an alternative approach as coaches, instead of therapists," Rupprecht said.

Noble One hopes to connect with families and teach them how to cope with issues together.

"What we're seeing right now is parents noticing their kids acting out, and acting in ways that they normally wouldn't," said Shoultz. "Kids are getting frustrated, they're pulling back, they're more isolated, and a lot of parents don't really have the coping mechanisms to teach their kids, and kids don't have the coping mechanism to process emotions."

With constant changes in kids' lives due to COVID-19, Noble one says mental health wellness is needed now more than ever.

"Don't wait," Rupprecht said. "It's just like you would hire a coach to help a kid hit a baseball, or to dribble better, or to do a back handspring. Help them through this time."

Raya started Girls in Real Life, a global platform that allows girls to share their stories and overcome their struggles.

"Had I not gone through those dark periods, I wouldn't be the person I am today," said Raya.

LINK: Noble One