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Preventing Youth Suicide: Intervention Strategies and Community Resources
The national suicide rate among adolescent youth has risen significantly over the years, surpassing other causes of youth fatalities. Suicide during childhood and adolescence is ranked as the second leading cause of death among these age groups. A 2022 study found that suicide was the...
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How to Talk to Your Kids About Cyberbullying
While bullying is an act of intentional aggression carried out repeatedly over time and occurring within a relationship characterized by an imbalance of power (Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, 2008), cyberbullying is threatening or hurtful messages or images being sent using an...
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The Impact of Social Media on Youth Mental Health: Risks, Benefits, and Family Approaches
In recent years, the conversation around social media and youth mental health has become urgent and deeply personal for many families. Parents are increasingly wary of the role smartphones and social media play in their children’s lives, fueled by the spotlight on growing evidence linking...
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Beyond Moral Panic: The Untold Stories of Harm Reduction and Care on Social Media
When the topic of social media inevitably arises in my conversations about youth suicide with clinicians, policymakers, researchers, parents, and other concerned adults, it is often framed as exacerbating. There is a widespread understanding among older generations that social media is worsening...
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Protecting Youth Mental Health: The Role of Families in Addressing Social Media’s Impact on Self-Harm and Suicide
Emma was a 14-year-old high school freshman, a creative and outgoing student with a passion for photography. She had no prior mental health concerns and was thriving academically and socially. When she received her first smartphone, social media quickly became a way for her to connect with friends...
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Navigating the Digital Minefield: Cyberbullying, Catfishing, and Vulnerability Among Neurodivergent Populations
Sometimes, I think about the 90s when I was in elementary school, and I’m glad that tablets and smartphones were not yet in the world. I had faced a significant amount of bullying in person, but being bullied online can be a different kind of struggle. Cyberbullying is just as prevalent as...
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Technology is Always Evolving – So Should Our Approach to Youth Mental Health
From smartphones and watches to social media platforms, the world we live in today is much different than the one from twenty or even ten years ago. Technology continues to grow at a rapid pace as do the impacts these new devices are having on our mental wellbeing. Specifically, we are...
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How to Counter TikTok’s Mental Health Misinformation
KEY POINTS: During the pandemic, TikTok served as a way for teens to connect with others over sharing a mental health illness. Predatory advertising and popularity incentives drove creation of content that promoted self-diagnosis and misinformation. Parents and clinicians can assist...
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Breaking Down Barriers: The STAR Program’s “Stop Mental Health Stigma” Campaign
In an era where mental health discussions are often shrouded in misunderstandings and misconceptions, the “Stop Mental Health Stigma” campaign emerges as a beacon of hope and enlightenment. Spearheaded by the STAR Program at SUNY Downstate Health and Sciences University and...
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Analysis of Social Media Language Using AI Models Predicts Depression Severity for White Americans, but Not Black Americans
Researchers were able to predict depression severity for white people, but not for Black people using standard language-based computer models to analyze Facebook posts. Words and phrases associated with depression, such as first-person pronouns and negative emotion words, were around three times...
