Youth Depression Thrives on Silence - California Data Show Shocking Impact of Mental Disorders

[Photo: Zoe Kaiser]

When Amber Cavarlez was in high school and her mother died of colon cancer, she and her Filipino Catholic family went to church and lit candles every day. But, she says, “After she passed, nothing was said about it. No one talked about it.”
In her home, she says, sadness was an “invisible subject.” And when she cried at school and sought help, she received an anonymous message through Facebook that said, “Don’t cry at school because no one cares.”
She learned to keep her feelings to herself, but her family’s struggles weren’t over – her brother was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and attempted suicide several times in the following years. By then attending college in San Francisco, she often found herself emotionally unable to go to class, and was told by the administration that she’d have to improve academically or drop out. 

Cavarlez spoke with other young people at a media forum organized by New America Media in San Francisco last week on challenging stigmas around youth depression. Alongside the youth storytellers, a panel of experts in the mental health field weighed in on the views of depression across different cultures and a fractured system for delivering mental health services. They agreed that youth depression is more widespread than many people realize, and that it thrives on silence. 

http://newamericamedia.org/2014/07/youth-depression-thrives-on-silence---california-data-show-shocking-impact-of-mental-disorders.php