First aid for youth

At a time when youth depression is on the rise, teenage suicide is spiking, and many who work with adolescents are despairing, counselors at a Henrico nonprofit have not been inclined to sit by idly wringing their hands.

Just over two years ago, in fact, Virginia Home for Boys and Girls began offering a free monthly workshop that has educated more than 700 participants about issues of youth mental health, while providing them a tool box of resources. Participants in the one-day Youth Mental Health First Aid workshop have come from as far away as Farmville and North Carolina to learn how to sharpen their listening skills and to identify youth in need of help – whether the help is a sympathetic ear or full-fledged professional treatment.

While the VHBG campus – a therapeutic community for youth in crisis – would seem the natural site for such a course, the idea of hosting First Aid workshops took a bit of time to germinate back in 2017.

VHBG Therapeutic Resources Director Karen Rice, who is certified in mental health first aid, happened to mention to her colleague Joan Marable that she was taking time off to head out of town and train a group.

It was a "what's-wrong-with-this-picture" moment for Marable, who thought, "Wait a minute. Why should she go away? We have the space, parking, and expertise [to train] right here."

In addition, as Marable explained to the January group, there could hardly be a better fit with VHBG's mission than a class that educates the community about youth mental health.

"We care about the well-being of all children," she said. "And the more we can address these issues, the fewer will need these services.

"It’s the right thing to do."

Popularity ‘astonished’ organizers
From the very first class, it was clear that VHBG had tapped a nerve, and that counselors, parents and others involved with young people had been waiting for just such a chance to address their concerns.

"We were astonished at how popular it was," said Marable, who pointed out that thousands have expressed interest in the class and registration tends to fill quickly each month.

At the January session, introductions included a description of each participant's connection to youth – and the descriptions varied from foster parents and social workers to sisters, parents, volunteers, grandparents, teachers, counselors, and coaches.

A second question asked of each participant was to reflect on someone who had connected with them in their own youth, and to think about how that relationship aided them in their growth.

Led by Rice, the class went on to engage in role play, consulting the class workbook to bone up on various mental health issues such as anxiety, eating disorders and substance abuse, and to then practice listening techniques with a teen or young adult (played by Rice) exhibiting signs of that disorder.

Among other exercises were breaking into small groups to collaborate on drawing "a picture of adolescence." Some drawings depicted teens bombarded with worries, pressures, contradictory impulses, and hormones, while others illustrations portrayed a balancing act among sports, school, friends, social media and other activities.

Throughout the day, the group also watched videos of Kevin Hines, a nationally-known speaker who survived a suicide attempt after suffering from untreated bipolar disorder as a teen.

On the video, Kevin described himself as an adolescent who was suspicious of everyone and often tormented by delusions, hallucinations, and conflicting impulses. He suffered from episodes of debilitating depression that would lead him to hide in the men's room to cry – alternating with periods of manic activity where he would "run up and down the hall, full of energy, like the Energizer Bunny."

But if he came out of the bathroom with tears on his face, and someone asked, "What's wrong?", Hines had no idea how to answer. And some would respond to his tears by implying that he was weak and needed to "man up."

Being undiagnosed, Hines said, "I was afraid to tell people how I felt, because they might lock me up." He would often drink to excess in an effort to get away from the pain and "drown my brain."

‘Would you only do CPR for someone you know?’
Workshop participants also heard from Lionel Bacon, vice president of philanthropy for VHBG, who provided an overview of the organization's history as a home for youth – beginning with its days an an orphanage in 1846. "If we were still an orphanage," he pointed out, "we'd be the second oldest orphanage in country."

Today, while the emphasis is still on helping youth in crisis, VHBG's housing and support services take the form of group homes with family-style living for younger teens, as well as independent living for older youth.

"We know there's no such thing as a bad kid; just good kids that bad things have happened to," Bacon said. "Kids live here, go to school here, and are healed here, through counseling and therapy services."

As the January workshop drew to a close, Karen Rice reminded the class that each participant would receive a certificate from the National Council on Behavioral Health saying that they had been trained in mental health first aid. But while they were now equipped with knowledge that would help them better assess situations and determine what level of intervention might be needed, she cautioned them, they should not hesitate to call 911 or steer a person to a hotline when needed.

"You will leave here today with a certificate," said Rice, "but not a cape."

Participants were encouraged to spread the word about the VHBG workshop and about organization speakers who can address the topic at neighborhood meetings, or with civic and church groups.

"We know the community is hungry for this," Rice said. "They are sick and tired of hearing about mass shootings, and how people thought something was wrong [with the shooter] – but they didn't know what to do. Or they worried, 'What if I make it worse?'"

Yet mental health first aid can be just as essential in saving lives as the physical kind, Rice noted, comparing the response to that of seeing a stranger drop to the ground after a hard attack. "Would you only do CPR for someone you know?" she asked pointedly.

But even if those who take the workshop never prevent a suicide or a shooting, Rice noted, the people around them are sure to benefit.

She urged the group to think of the skills they had acquired that day as something "to add to your human being tool belt," and noted that a good listener can help coworkers, friends and family members with stresses and concerns ranging from the everyday to the tragic.

"You do not have to be a therapist," Rice concluded, "to play a therapeutic role."

* * *

For workshop details, visit vhbg.org/youth-mental-health-first-aid-workshops.