Thousands upon thousands of teens struggle with their mental health, but they rarely speak up. This is a major problem in the world right now, especially in teens, but thankfully, Elkhorn High School’s Hope Squad is up to the challenge. They are filling a week in suicide prevention month with stickers, chalk, therapy dogs, fidget toys, and inspirational messages.
Many people think it is a scary topic or something that should be kept to oneself, but it doesn’t have to be like that. Hope Squad believes that they can have an impact on reducing the stigma behind suicide.
“I think when you help anyone with improving their mental health, then they go and help another person, and they help another person, and I think it has a ripple effect,” school counselor and Hope Squad director Theresa Crnkovich said.
As the month goes on, it’s important to remember the reason behind it. Many individuals in the community struggle behind closed doors, and aren’t sure what to do about it.
“School is a really important time to recognize mental health because it’s probably the most stressful time of anyone’s life,” junior Hope Squad member Carson Deprez said. “I think just offering resources and a helping hand and letting people know that they’re not alone, because there’s, especially as we get older and push more expectations, a sense of isolation.”
There have been multiple losses due to suicide in our community recently, which calls for reform. Changes are being made as schools recognize the importance of speaking up.
“We are continuing to train staff on suicide prevention, specifically QPR [question, persuade, refer]. We are in our second year of having a Hope Squad, which is a peer-to-peer suicide prevention program, and we are doing our best to talk about it,” Crnkovich said.
Some might say that suicide is one of the biggest problem in the United States, considering its affect on our society.
“We should express it more as a major problem and make people not feel like just because they have mental health, it’s bad, and rather make it a positive thing,” junior Hope Squad member Parker Stevens said.
Hope Squad members are always available to give advice or simply just listen to you. Their biggest goal is to reach out to everyone possible and provide an outlet for support, as shown through the week of activities.
“Suicide is the second leading cause of death in this particular age group, high school students, so we’re basically trying to prevent unnecessary death or loss,” Crnkovich said.
