Our Voices

Perhaps you’ve seen the headlines that youth mental health is at risk and while reports show poor mental health is increasing in adolescents, there are also schools of research and psychologists focusing on prevention strategies. This is important information as you likely have youth in your wider circle, or in your own household. Supporting the next generation as they become adults who will be responsible for future society is a shared purpose. As the Centers for Disease Control states, “There is a role for everyone in supporting teen mental health.”

I have collected several reports and resources to share with the PTS community as mental health support has been an initiative of not only our congregation but also the greater Jewish community. Just this past fall, new research was unveiled about a first ever study of Jewish teens and the results make a compelling case for being involved in Jewish community.

“If we seize this moment, step up for our children and their families in their moment of need, and lead with inclusion, kindness, and respect, we can lay the foundation for a healthier, more resilient, and more fulfilled nation.” —Dr. Vivek H. Murthy, Surgeon General of the United States

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reports adolescent mental health continues to worsen.

The Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University has been researching the effects of adversity and toxic stress on young children. Their reports includes the science behind resiliency:

Jewish Response to Youth Mental Health

In 2022, Jewish Federations of North America launched BeWell, a first-of-its-kind mental health initiative to equip the Jewish community with tools, resources and training to support the mental health and overall well-being of teens and young adults. BeWell conducted the first-ever national study on Jewish teen well-being in the spring of 2024. The team used a theory of flourishing to measure of adolescent well-being, EPOCH:

• Engagement
• Perseverance
• Optimism
• Connectedness
• Happiness

BeWell and the Stanford University researchers behind the report just recently released their findings from 2,490 teen respondents in 49 states.

What is PTS doing?

We are participating in a year-long cohort of Jewish professionals who sit at the intersection of adolescent well-being and Jewish education. The Bay Area Jewish Youth Resilience Roundtable has been designed by Jewish LearningWorks as a learning network for those working with Jewish adolescents. Our monthly meetings enable opportunities to share trends, challenges and opportunities; learn from experts; apply learnings to the spaces we facilitate; and co-create resources. One of the projects that will be coming this spring is a Teen Resilience Roundtable Parent Series - including 4 online sessions: Risky Behaviors; Difficult Conversations; Raising Teens in an Age of Antisemitism; and Supportive Environment for Teens During Divorce.

What can you do?

Youth Mental Health First Aid training teaches you how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental health and substance use challenges among children and adolescents. The training includes common signs and symptoms of mental health and substance use challenges, how to interact with a child or adolescent in crisis and how to connect the youth with help.

Just for Fun

I highly recommend watching the Pixar animated films Inside Out and Inside Out 2, which takes “audiences on a journey through the mind of a young girl named Riley, personifying her emotions as characters inside her head.” (If you came to Tots and Torah on Yom Kippur this might sound familiar!) The filmmakers consulted with scientists from UC Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center who shared their expertise on teen emotions. Shortly after the second film was released last summer, I was able to catch a fascinating webinar about the science behind the emotions added to the second film. As the parent of a tween and a teen, it definitely helps to imagine what might be going on in teen brains!