CDC says teen girls are caught in an extreme wave of sadness and violence

[Morrison71]

CDC says teen girls are caught in an extreme wave of sadness and violence

A new report finds an "overwhelming wave of violence and trauma" and never-before-seen levels of hopelessness and suicidal thoughts among high school students in the U.S.

www.nbcnews.com

Sexual attacks and other traumatic experiences have led to an unprecedented level of hopelessness and suicidal thoughts among America's young women, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Monday.

"Our teenage girls are suffering through an overwhelming wave of violence and trauma, and it's affecting their mental health," said Kathleen Ethier, director of the CDC's Division of Adolescent and School Health.


Results from the CDC's 2021 Youth Risk Behavior Survey show startling trends. Nearly 3 in 5 teen girls (57%) said they felt "persistently sad or hopeless." That's the highest rate in a decade. And 30% said they have seriously considered dying by suicide — a percentage that's risen by nearly 60% over the past 10 years.
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"As a parent to a teenage girl, I am heartbroken. As a public health leader, I'm driven to act," the CDC's chief medical officer, Dr. Debra Houry, said at an unusually emotional briefing Monday.

The survey, which has been conducted every other year for three decades, includes responses from 17,232 U.S. high school students.

Overall, more than 40% of boys and girls said that they'd felt so sad or hopeless within the past year that they were unable to do their regular activities, such as schoolwork or sports, for at least two weeks. When researchers looked at gender differences, girls were far more likely to report such feelings than boys.
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LGBT teens are even more susceptible to poorer mental health outcomes. Not a shocker to those who have followed the research over the years, but the research shows the growing anti-LGBT sentiment, especially boosted by right wing demagogues, is having a massive effect here.

"It was so striking to us, the consistency with which girls were faring more poorly than boys," Ethier said.

At least 52% of teenagers who identified as gay, lesbian, bisexual or questioning said they struggled with mental health. (The survey did not ask whether a person was transgender.)

LGBTQ kids "experience much more interpersonal stress from schools, from peers and from home, unfortunately," Julie Cerel, a licensed psychologist and director of the Suicide Prevention & Exposure Lab at the University of Kentucky, told NBC News.

The CDC survey found that more than 1 in 5 such youth — 22% — had attempted suicide within the past year. Stigma and violence toward LGBTQ teenagers largely contributed to their poor mental health.
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Indeed, a dramatic rise in violent behavior, targeting girls in particular, was a stark finding in the CDC report. One such assault received national attention this month when Adriana Kuch, 14, was attacked as she walked down a high school hallway in New Jersey. Video of the incident was posted online in an attempt to "make fun" of her, Kuch's father said.

Kuch died by suicide days later.

Sexual violence, too, has risen among girls, with 1 in 5 saying they'd experienced it within the past year, the CDC said. Fourteen percent said they had been forced into having sex. That's a jump from 11% of teen girls who said they'd been sexually assaulted in 2019.

"For every 10 teenage girls you know, at least one of them, and probably more, has been raped," Ethier said at the briefing.
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[HawkOptimist]

Maybe I’m just being too level headed here, but perhaps it’s social media that drives a lot of this. It’s a constant race to see who can “one up” the next person’s latest TikTok … or Instagram picture … or whatever. We’re programmed to live in 10-15 second bursts like a TikTok. Girls are programmed to believe they’re nothing unless they look like a fake, over filtered Instagram pic. Kids get bullied on SnapChat and elsewhere. Being glued to an iPhone 24/7 causes restlessness, anxiety and shortened attention spans. It all adds up to a lack of identity and purpose… not to mention frustration and angst.

But yes. Let’s blame this on the right. (Eye roll.)

 

[Hawki97]

Social media is the scourge of humanity.

 

[Hawk_82]

CDC releases new data on mental health and suicide rates.

https://www.cdc.gov/nchhstp/newsroom/fact-sheets/healthy-youth/sadness-and-violence-among-teen-girls-and-LGBQ-youth-factsheet.html 3 out of 5 girls reported feeling persistently sad or hopeless. This is a 60% increase from 2011. I in 4 girls reported seriously considering suicide in 2021, up...

iowa.forums.rivals.com

Thread from last week.

Social media is really bad for a kids mental health.

New age affirmative gender care is not working for the lgbtq. This is not about the right attacking gender stuff, this is about presenting horrible ideas that they can be whoever they want by taking hormones and surgery. Neither of these will fix mental illness or hopelessness.

 

[Colonoscopy]

CDC says teen girls are caught in an extreme wave of sadness and violence

A new report finds an "overwhelming wave of violence and trauma" and never-before-seen levels of hopelessness and suicidal thoughts among high school students in the U.S.

www.nbcnews.com

LGBT teens are even more susceptible to poorer mental health outcomes. Not a shocker to those who have followed the research over the years, but the research shows the growing anti-LGBT sentiment, especially boosted by right wing demagogues, is having a massive effect here.

Really questionable, at best, take there.

LGBTQ acceptance is undoubtedly at an all time high. Yes, it's much more a mainstream topic than before, but generally the debate and angst is focused on fringe topics. (various trans issues seem to dominate -- but general acceptance of gay or bi kids couldn't have been any better before this point in time, I'm imagining)

You'd need to look at these rates of depression, anxiety, etc year by year and then contrast them with the same rates amongst hetero.

I also question whether or not girls are being sexually assaulted at a higher rate. In general kids aren't having as many sexual encounters. And certainly there is more openness around assault and the reporting thereof. As well as more of a watchful eye -- and public condemnation -- where assaults are concerned. We'd also need to look and see what qualifies as an assault by year when you look over this data over a period of time.

There was an uptick in physical violence (roughly) during the pandemic era. At least with murder. Did sexual assaults follow suit? And amongst youth? I don't know, and I don't know that this data is capturing that.

 

[Colonoscopy]

Adults Are Letting Teen Girls Down

Readers weigh in on the causes, and potential solutions, for teen girls’ worsening mental health.

www.theatlantic.com

 

[Morrison71]

CDC releases new data on mental health and suicide rates.

https://www.cdc.gov/nchhstp/newsroom/fact-sheets/healthy-youth/sadness-and-violence-among-teen-girls-and-LGBQ-youth-factsheet.html 3 out of 5 girls reported feeling persistently sad or hopeless. This is a 60% increase from 2011. I in 4 girls reported seriously considering suicide in 2021, up...

iowa.forums.rivals.com

Thread from last week.

Social media is really bad for a kids mental health.

New age affirmative gender care is not working for the lgbtq. This is not about the right attacking gender stuff, this is about presenting horrible ideas that they can be whoever they want by taking hormones and surgery. Neither of these will fix mental illness or hopelessness.

Mental illness with trans people comes from not fitting into society. When you are not allowed to take puberty blockers, you will never fit in as a trans individual.

Do you think it’s easier to fit into society as a 6 foot 2 woman with broad shoulders, or a 5 foot 8 woman who has been taking puberty blockers?

But people like you won’t even entertain the idea that transgender people exist.

 

[CLUB215]

My wife deals with college kids and their families. Parents are much more involved in adult kids lives. I'm sure that translates to high school. There's a big shift in the last ten years with the type of parenting going on

 

[onlyTheObvious]

It’s social media. It’s not helping by allowing body mutilation before adulthood.

 

[JupiterHawk]

 

[Hawk_82]

Mental illness with trans people comes from not fitting into society. When you are not allowed to take puberty blockers, you will never fit in as a trans individual.

Do you think it’s easier to fit into society as a 6 foot 2 woman with broad shoulders, or a 5 foot 8 woman who has been taking puberty blockers?

But people like you won’t even entertain the idea that transgender people exist.

You are assuming being trans causes mental health issues. in reality it is the other way around. If you follow the history of most trans people, they suffer from depression, anxiety, physical or psychological trauma, or other mental health issues long before they identify as trans.

You are correct in that trans people as a group do not fit into society well, but, this is not due to being trans. It is more likely due to other factors such as autism, depression, anxiety, mental health problems, bad home, bad parents, lack of support system, odd personality, etc.

Would you support treating a trans patient with psychotherapy? Because this is the recommended treatment for depression and anxiety according to the cdc. Yet if a Dr suggests this treatment for a trans person (with depression and anxiety) the dr would be subject to being called transphobic with possible legal action.

Our medical community is actually making trans kids mental health worse because they just start them on meds and then move forward with the trans diagnosis and treatment, without actually addressing the underlying mental health problems first. But that is what you get when medicine is directed by affirmation care at the hands of the patient.

 

[hawkeyetraveler]

I have two no pic daughters aged 20 and 18. At least among their admittedly affluent and well educated friend group being gay or bi is not a stigma at all. If anything it is cool. This is a remarkable difference from my gen x upbringing in Iowa where gay kids would definitely get bullied. As for trans kids, sure I get that and it is sad we can’t just accept or at least tolerate them without bullying and derision. But, the trans population is only 0.6% of the US. So this is not driving the numbers at all. Devolving this to a trans discussion is putting your heads in the sand on other factors.

I agree with some posters above - this is much more likely social media than it is gender identity.

 

[Hawk_82]

Do you think it’s easier to fit into society as a 6 foot 2 woman with broad shoulders, or a 5 foot 8 woman who has been taking puberty blockers?

You imply that becoming trans may create a whole new set of problems for the individual. such as looking different than others. I would assume you would want to be pretty sure you are actually trans before hormones, or surgery. but nope, instead they have gone with affirmation therapy (because obviously an untrained child is more well versed in gender than a professional who has gone to school and taken tests). Affirmation takes the decision making out of the hands of the provider and hands it over to the patient. This never turns out well.

I know trans people exist. But these are anomalies. They should be treated normally, but their condition should not be normalized like it has been.

 

[hawkdave007]

My wife deals with college kids and their families. Parents are much more involved in adult kids lives. I'm sure that translates to high school. There's a big shift in the last ten years with the type of parenting going on

I want to do this. I see lots of friends just older than me who have been very involved and they know everything about their kids, no secrets. The kids are sorta like friends and get more leeway, but there's no secret drug, booze, or sex parties. The daughters and their friends all hang out with the parents and tell them everything.

My wife (no pics) and I want to do this, and I'm looking for a good book or video or seminar on how to use this approach with our daughter once she's older. Any suggestions?

 

[Hawk_82]

I have two no pic daughters aged 20 and 18. At least among their admittedly affluent and well educated friend group being gay or bi is not a stigma at all. If anything it is cool. This is a remarkable difference from my gen x upbringing in Iowa where gay kids would definitely get bullied. As for trans kids, sure I get that and it is sad we can’t just accept or at least tolerate them without bullying and derision. But, the trans population is only 0.6% of the US. So this is not driving the numbers at all. Devolving this to a trans discussion is putting your heads in the sand on other factors.

I agree with some posters above - this is much more likely social media than it is gender identity.

I agree with you. trans is a sub category that deserves its own separate discussion because of the social contagion it has become. I think it is worth investigating how this has been allowed to happen and if this is due to broader problems.

 

[binsfeldcyhawk2]

I want to do this. I see lots of friends just older than me who have been very involved and they know everything about their kids, no secrets.

Kids never tell their parents "everything". Pretty good rule to live by for a parent.

If you actually think they're telling you everything you're setting yourself up for failure.

Simple question to ask yourself....did you tell your parents "everything"?

 

[Hawk_82]

I want to do this. I see lots of friends just older than me who have been very involved and they know everything about their kids, no secrets. The kids are sorta like friends and get more leeway, but there's no secret drug, booze, or sex parties. The daughters and their friends all hang out with the parents and tell them everything.

My wife (no pics) and I want to do this, and I'm looking for a good book or video or seminar on how to use this approach with our daughter once she's older. Any suggestions?

Be a parent, not their friend. Kids need independence to feel good about themselves. While this parenting method may not be inherently wrong, there could be unintended consequences.

 

[DooBi]

"Growing anti-LGBTQ sentiment"

I question if that is true. I don't believe it is.

 

[Bank of Hawk]

I blame Avril Lavine

 

[alaskanseminole]

It's not just teens, but elementary aged kids too...the sadness, the bullying, it's all still happening at alarming rates. After the PTA meeting I mentioned in the other thread my wife spent an hour talking to a neighbor/friend.

Apparently her 5th grade daughter is being bullied by 3 girls in the neighborhood. The mom logged into her social media profile (not sure what app) and the girl from across the street messaged her with, "You're dumb, your dumb, [about 20 more times]" Sure, that's lame, but it's pretty detrimental to an 11 year old. Not to mention she's being excluded and often picked on at school.

I still say that the number 1 culprit to the issues with kids today is too much screen, including social media! ...not to mention kids are being exposed to way too many adult themes at a young age. I'm not sure why parents are in such a hurry to have their little ones all grown up. Let them be naïve and innocent as long as you can. There's really no reason a 4th grader should be watching Squid Games and then teaching said games to their classmates at recess.

 

[alaskanseminole]

Be a parent, not their friend. Kids need independence to feel good about themselves. While this parenting method may not be inherently wrong, there could be unintended consequences.

Yup. Be their parent, NOT their friend. My oldest (now 24) is a Middle School teacher and after her first year she thanked me for setting boundaries and enforcing rules when she was a kid. She literally said, "Thanks for being my dad and not my friend".

People think they can't have fun with their kids if they're in the parent role. I'm not sure where that comes from.
I played soccer with my son in the back yard yesterday (I even coach his team), then we came inside and fired up Jurrassic World on my Playstation. Before bed, though, I had him take out the trash, take a bath (and had to get on to him about washing his hair), "BRUSH YOUR DARN TEETHE!", etc...all the parenty stuff.

 

[Herky T Hawk]

Best thing I did was buy my kids an Apple Watch with cell service. There’s your phone. No camera, no video, no social media. A phone with the ability to do gps, weather, calculator, etc.

My wife (no pics) and I are going to have a talk about no social media for the kids. Keeping them away from that is just going to be healthier in the long run. Once you’re an adult it is a bit different, but I know people that cut themselves off from social media after years of being addicted and are much happier.

 

[Titanhawk2]

Good thing the Center for Disease Control is on top of emotional distress in the country

 

[hawkedoff]

Great article about an important issue

Meanwhile the rate of male suicide dwarfs female suicide. No concerns given

 

[WDSMHAWK]

"Growing anti-LGBTQ sentiment"

I question if that is true. I don't believe it is.

You must not pay attention to the laws being passed by state legislatures across the country.

 

[alaskanseminole]

Best thing I did was buy my kids an Apple Watch with cell service. There’s your phone. No camera, no video, no social media. A phone with the ability to do gps, weather, calculator, etc.

My wife (no pics) and I are going to have a talk about no social media for the kids. Keeping them away from that is just going to be healthier in the long run. Once you’re an adult it is a bit different, but I know people that cut themselves off from social media after years of being addicted and are much happier.

We have something similar--Gabb Watch. It has all the features above. When he's at home, he has an iPad which he uses for his video games. Kids Messenger is on there (he almost never uses it), but that's it.

 

[hawkedoff]

You must not pay attention to the laws being passed by state legislatures across the country.

Protect kids from adults with an agenda that doesn't include best interest if the child and exclusion of parental knowledge or involvement? With the statement that of course parents will hurt their children and the kids need to be protected from them. Some really good laws being passed ensuring that nonsense doesn't happen

 

[alaskanseminole]

You must not pay attention to the laws being passed by state legislatures across the country.

But why is this effecting teen girls? My thoughts are 2-fold. LGBTQ+ is still a very small percentage of society and why are teens following state legislatures? I'm a kid from the 80s and early 90s and I can't recall ever knowing, much less giving a crap, about government. Seriously, my days were spent going to school, chasing girls, planning where we were going to throw our next party, listening to music and stocking shelves at Publix.

I wasn't scrolling twitter getting pissed off that some 'X' policy was being proposed and I certainly wasn't paying much attention to Dan Rather on the 6-o-clock news.

I can't figure out what part of 'a child's brain isn't fully developed until 24-26' people can't figure out. It's like the auto insurance companies are the only people to grasp the science of this.

Let our kids be kids for as long as humanly possible!

 

[onlyTheObvious]

You must not pay attention to the laws being passed by state legislatures across the country.

I don’t want boys/girls using open locker rooms or restrooms of the opposite gender.

I don’t think body modification should take place before adulthood.

If that means some want to label me a hater/bigot/Ahole I can live with that.

 

[Menace Sockeyes]

Best thing I did was buy my kids an Apple Watch with cell service. There’s your phone. No camera, no video, no social media. A phone with the ability to do gps, weather, calculator, etc.

My wife (no pics) and I are going to have a talk about no social media for the kids. Keeping them away from that is just going to be healthier in the long run. Once you’re an adult it is a bit different, but I know people that cut themselves off from social media after years of being addicted and are much happier.

Great idea. We won’t be buying our daughter a smart phone until she’s done with HS. Thought of a “dumb phone” of the old flip phone variety, but those may be few and far between in a few years.

 

[binsfeldcyhawk2]

Great idea. We won’t be buying our daughter a smart phone until she’s done with HS. Thought of a “dumb phone” of the old flip phone variety, but those may be few and far between in a few years.

Stay strong....your daughter will hate you

I think you're doing the right thing though. If you have to get her a smart phone there are ways to monitor it....

 

[FAUlty Gator]

Mental illness with trans people comes from not fitting into society. When you are not allowed to take puberty blockers, you will never fit in as a trans individual.

Do you think it’s easier to fit into society as a 6 foot 2 woman with broad shoulders, or a 5 foot 8 woman who has been taking puberty blockers?

But people like you won’t even entertain the idea that transgender people exist.

Maybe if people like you entertained the possibility that a person who wants to mutilate their genitals, might have been mentally ill for a while, and allow that mental illness to be treated as such, they wouldn't be depressed at all. And might avoid chopping their dicks off.

But instead you take issue with the word "normal" when it's aimed at people who don't want to mutilate their genitals, making it harder for them to get help and putting them in a defensive posture.

 

[Hawk_82]

But why is this effecting teen girls?

You nailed it.

Adults are putting a lot of pressure on kids to make decisions they are not capable or knowledgeable enough to make. Boys and girls used to be a given, kids didn't have to think about it.

Gender, sex, white privilege, crt, wokeness are all things kids have to spend time thinking about now. That is stressful for anyone, much less a child. they are not mature enough to make these decisions.

I'm sure everyone here who has gone through a divorce can attest to how challenging and stressful this is. We are asking out children to make these decisions and then deal with the lifelong consequences of those decisions.

 

[WDSMHAWK]

If that means some want to label me a hater/bigot/Ahole.

Will do.

 

[hawkbirch]

I want to do this. I see lots of friends just older than me who have been very involved and they know everything about their kids, no secrets. The kids are sorta like friends and get more leeway, but there's no secret drug, booze, or sex parties. The daughters and their friends all hang out with the parents and tell them everything.

My wife (no pics) and I want to do this, and I'm looking for a good book or video or seminar on how to use this approach with our daughter once she's older. Any suggestions?

I don't think there is a secret to how to do it. It starts the day they are born and continues as they grow up. It's about creating an environment where your child is comfortable asking you questions. We were always truthful at the age appropriate level with our kids. I know they don't tell me everything but they both share things I don't think I would have told my mom when I was their age.

 

[WDSMHAWK]

But why is this effecting teen girls? My thoughts are 2-fold. LGBTQ+ is still a very small percentage of society and why are teens following state legislatures? I'm a kid from the 80s and early 90s and I can't recall ever knowing, much less giving a crap, about government. Seriously, my days were spent going to school, chasing girls, planning where we were going to throw our next party, listening to music and stocking shelves at Publix.

I wasn't scrolling twitter getting pissed off that some 'X' policy was being proposed and I certainly wasn't paying much attention to Dan Rather on the 6-o-clock news.

I can't figure out what part of 'a child's brain isn't fully developed until 24-26' people can't figure out. It's like the auto insurance companies are the only people to grasp the science of this.

Let our kids be kids for as long as humanly possible!

I was just pointing out that there has been a wave of anti-lgbtq laws passed by states over the last 2-3 years. If you don't think teens are seeing these proposed/passed laws on social media and the hateful rhetoric that goes along with them then you are mistaken.

 

[Herky T Hawk]

Someone else made a comment about kids getting exposed to stuff they shouldn’t. My oldest is in 5th grade. He loves playing Minecraft with friends, Madden offline, and Civilization. He has friends that play Fortnite, CoD, or other shooter games all the time. Friends that watched Squid Game and other shows that are inappropriate for 10-11 year olds. Friends with iPhones. And probably other stuff I don’t know about.

It just seems like such a cop out in parenting to do that to elementary aged kids. But that is where society is going. And that only is going to lead to more of the problems that the OP posted about.

 

[alaskanseminole]

I was just pointing out that there has been a wave of anti-lgbtq laws passed by states over the last 2-3 years. If you don't think teens are seeing these proposed/passed laws on social media and the hateful rhetoric that goes along with them then you are mistaken.

Oh, I know they are which is the exact point of my post. Kids having 24/7 access to the slew of information that adults have isn't healthy. Hell, look as us "adults" on here and how much stress is clearly conveyed through this forum.

There are numerous adult posters that can't handle the info, so why would we expect kids to be able to? I'm so greatful my daughters made it out of high school before smart phones really became a thing. All they did was text. There is no way in hell my son is going to have access to Twitter, FB, Instagram, etc.

We have a friend whose daughter is in the 6th grade. She's an aspiring actress with an agent based out of New York. She stars in many local theatre productions. She has ALL the social media platforms, a YouTube channel, head shots, the works. The kid is frack'n miserable. She has to sift through the mire of positive negative comments, reviews, etc. She gets ostracized by jealous classmates, etc. What a damn mess and she's 11 (and a sweet kid).

 

[CarolinaHawkeye]

Simple question to ask yourself....did you tell your parents "everything"?

I'm still here, am I not?

 

[Colonoscopy]

"Growing anti-LGBTQ sentiment"

I question if that is true. I don't believe it is.

I think people are confusing the bickering over trans kids and hormones (or sports) or how early to start talking to kids about LGBTQ stuff in schools with the actual level of acceptance of LGBTQ people.

They're confusing political bickering vs the on the ground reality.

A decade ago lots of people on the left were weary of voicing support for gay marriage. Today the needle has moved to debate over whether or not MtF should be able to compete in girls sports in HS.

Most republicans actually support gay marriage.

I don't doubt that kids still get picked on for being LGBTQ -- it's well documented kids are dickwads and you need only be sufficiently "different" to incur their wrath. But the amount of broad social acceptance and support for these kids is radically different from what it used to be.