YMCA and Coastal Horizon to hold teen mental health workshops

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and a special collaboration in New Hanover County is trying to provide mental health resources for local teens this summer.

The YMCA of Southeastern North Carolina and Coastal Horizons will be hosting 3 mental illness workshops and will provide other resources to help with mental health.

This is the second year these workshops for teens aged 13 to 17 will be held.

Last year, so many students took part, around 70, that a third workshop had to be held to accommodate them all.

Kylee Maarschalk, the Y’s teen programming specialist, said the workshops help students realize they’re not alone by connecting with others facing similar challenges.

“For kids to be able to come into a space and maybe find a common ground with their peers and be coached and see like “Oh, you feel that way too?” That’s, that’s so impactful and it’s not somebody that’s on a screen,” Maarschalk said. “It’s somebody that’s right beside them and so they can see that they are not alone and that they can work through the hard times together.”

According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, around 13% of teens aged 12 to 17 deal with depression.

Kelly Purcell is a prevention specialist with Coastal Horizons.

She said the workshops teach teens ways to manage stress and calm themselves.

“Some of these very basic tools that they can use in their everyday lives,” Purcell said. “We know it’s an issue. We know that it’s, it’s something that we are wanting to address in this educational way. And what I found is after the workshops, I’ve actually had a high school student come up to me and say “This is so important, we need this.”

Every teen who completes the workshop will also get a free summer membership to the YMCA.

The first workshop will be held on May 17th.