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In addition to the statistics below, many of our Board and staff personally know families that have been seriously affected by mental health struggles, but it’s not something we often feel comfortable sharing. 

• 1 in 3 (30.6%) young adults between the ages of 18 and 25 experienced a mental, behavioral, or emotional health issue in the past year ().
• 36.7% of high school students reported feelings of sadness or hopelessness in the past year. This percentage is higher for females (46.6%), Hispanic students (40.0%), and lesbian, gay or bisexual students (66.3%) ().
• Suicide is the second-leading cause of death for teens and young adults, ages 10-34 ().
• 25.5% of adults ages 18-24 reported having seriously considered suicide in the past month. This is a higher percentage than any other adult age group ().

Source:
 

Torrance Unified has TONS of resources to help students, but the tough thing is that due to stigma and other obstacles, so many students and families are still not aware of them!

1. Every high school has a Wellness Center and Therapists available to speak with students. Some Wellness Centers have drop-in hours during late start or lunch times. Our middle schools also have therapists and our elementary schools have counselors available. 
2. We have a district-wide Virtual Wellness Center with great online resources for students and families.
3. Some of our high schools have wellness clubs, and North High School has an ASB position for health and wellness. 
4. Our elementary students have access to Social and Emotional learning through our Second Step lessons. 
5. Our students have reminders on the back of their ID Cards for .
6. Our entire district has a partnership with the that students can use to report a serious mental health concern for either themselves or another student. 

Wellness Week is a nationally recognized week focused on wellness during National Mental Health Month. (May) This will be Torrance Unified 5th Annual Wellness Week that we are observing May 11-15. , and district wide activities that you can join.

Sometimes it can be hard to know when to bring in extra support or professional help. Sometimes families believe that they should be able to solve issues within the family and keep things a secret. Here are some easy signs from our partners at : 

The offers 7 Expert Tips for Talking with Teens

1. Control Reactions - Learning to monitor our own actions can lead to our teens either opening up, or clamming up. When we act as a sounding board, allowing our teens to bounce ideas off us, they often allow us to help them consider what is happening in their lives. If we react strongly to every thought they share, naturally our teens are likely to share less.
2. Be A Good Listener - Active listening is about giving someone our full attention, but reflective listening is about hearing beyond the words and connecting with their feelings. Try to listen reflectively, with responses such as “I think I heard you say…” or “Would I be correct to think you mean…?”.
3. React Little - When we are quick to judge, share our concerns, or become accusatory, our teens stop talking. Do your best to remain calm and listen first
4. Turn Off The Parent Alarm - We often jump to the rescue before we have even heard the whole story! While we might hear something that sets off alarm bells, if we follow up with clarifying questions, we may often find ourselves with an open door to guide our children through peer pressure and other uncomfortable topics.
5. Don’t Catastrophize - Bumps in the road often lead to a new road, not completely wipe out our children’s future. Teen often won’t share with us if it means they will have to deal with drama.
6. Avoid Over-Empathizing - "Parents can often prevent further sharing when they over-empathize and take on their children’s pain as their own." Teen feelings frequently shift, and your teen may be embarrassed to come back to you when their feelings and opinion have changed, again.
7. Offer Constructive Feedback - Teens want us to listen to them, hear what they have to say, even offer some encouragement and guidance in small doses. They don’t want to disappoint us. We need to guard against coming across as dismissive.

There are lots of fantastic guides to help you prepare for talking to your student about tough issues such as mental health. .

Your first step is to listen without judgment and ensure the safety of everyone involved. Connect your student with resources.  On the back of each student ID card are emergency hotline numbers you can utilize as well. They are listed here for you with some additional resources:

Suicide Prevention Lifeline: (800) 273-8255
Crisis Text Line: Text “HOME” to 741-741 
Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services: (877) 727-4747
LA County Mental Health Services: (800) 854-7771
The Trevor Project: (866) 488-7386

You can make a referral to the school counselor or therapist and ask the school for resources in your community that may be able to help. If your student or your student’s friend is in immediate crisis, call 911 and use the following tips for Psychological First Aid.

All Torrance Unfied staff members are encouraged to access our within the Human Resources Department on our Staff Internal Portal.

One of our favorite resources, The JED Foundation, answers this question .

It is important to note that there may be waiting lists or delays in accessing services due to higher demand.

1. If it is for your student, have your students start seeing the therapist at school (Middle and high school) or a counselor for elementary. Many families aren’t aware that our schools have available therapists/counselors, and the student can see them several times while they are waiting for an appointment with a longer-term, external therapist. 
2. Call your insurance. Ask your insurance which therapists are available in your network and which have open availability. You might just get an online list, and then you will have to call around to find out who is accepting new patients. 
3. Contact . Care Solace is a free resource that our Torrance Unified District pays for. After filling out a confidential online questionnaire, a service rep will call you and ask similar questions, and then over the next few days, they will do a search and contact therapists on your behalf to see if they take your insurance and have openings and then they will text or call you with the answer depending on your preferences. 
4. If you have MediCal or don’t have insurance: You can ask your student's counselor to fill out a Building Bridges counseling referral. Our team will then connect your child with a TUSD partner who will follow up you to sepak with you and assign a therapist that your child can see either outside of school at a clinic, via telehealth, or at school. You can also email Building Bridges directly for a Building Bridges counseling referral. 
5. Consider Support Groups such as . These anonymous groups use the proven 12 step process and are often available at all times and days. Your student can speak to other students going through the same things
    

Great question! It can be confusing. Counselors are a great resource to start with. They can talk with students about stress, grades, graduation requirements, plans for after high school and more. They can then refer students to one of the more specialized counseling team members: 

• School Counselors are certified educators who help each and every student by implementing a comprehensive school counseling program that supports students’ academic, social-emotional and career development. They are members of the educational team and employ the use of leadership, advocacy and collaboration to help students navigate school-related problems. School Counselors provide proactive, preventative, short-term support as well as crisis support. School counselors help make school communities a safe and respectful place to learn and grow.
• College and Career Coordinators are a resource for students with questions on college applications, financial aid, scholarships, and career and major exploration.
• School Psychologists work with administrators and teachers, mainly in Special Education, to foster the best possible learning environment for students based on their individualized special needs. They identify students through assessments for behavior problems , developmental differences, and other learning roadblocks that may cause academic difficulties. Most schools do not have a full-time school psychologist. If you have a child with special needs, it is best to reach out to their teacher. Or, if you think your child may need an assessment, it is best to start with your child's School Counselor.
• School Therapists We contract with an outside mental health non-profit agency for therapists who are all AMFT, APCC or ACSW Associates. Students can be referred to the therapist by the school counselor for more intensive mental health support. Therapists see students individually or in groups to help with issues like depression, anxiety, self-harm, suicidal thoughts, addiction, and more. Therapy is more long term than school counseling, more intensive with a broader scope of diagnosis and treatment.

After COVID, there was a significant rise in the number of people who need to speak with someone about mental health. Unfortunately, there is a shortage of available mental health professionals especially those serving youth. You often have to get creative, be open to tele-health appointments with therapists from other areas and be very persistent to advocate for yourself or your child. It’s important to keep at it!

Take any appointment that is available, as the time will pass and then your student will have an “in” on a consistent basis going forward. Then you can use some of these ideas while you wait: 

1. Get put on a waitlist for a cancellation, keep calling and checking as well. You may be able to get in sooner. 
2. Consider for students to text with as they are waiting for their appointment and the link to the South Bay Families Connected to explore.
3. Consider Support Groups such as . These anonymous groups use the proven 12 step process and are often available at all times and days. Students can speak to other students going through the same things.
4. Remind them that they aren’t alone, and you love them. If they talk to you about the issues, listen compassionately without discounting, reacting negatively or trying to solve their problems. 

In some cases, your behavioral health/ mental health benefits might be through a secondary group and not your main insurance. For example, some Blue Cross subgroups outsource their mental health benefits to companies like “Behavioral Health.” It’s important to know that, because in that case you have to call the mental health company to find the doctors you can use, not the Blue Cross doctors.