As concerns over the youth mental health crisis continue to dominate headlines, a less-discussed but equally pressing issue emerges: the mental health struggles of parents. Michelle Gonzales-Reed, a licensed marriage and family therapist near Fresno, California, found herself confronting this often-overlooked issue when she noticed her son, Dajon, experiencing severe mental health challenges in high school.
Gonzales-Reed observed her son’s dwindling interest in friendships and activities, coupled with days spent in bed. As she dedicated herself to caring for Dajon, she unwittingly began to grapple with her mental health struggles for the first time in her life. “I don’t think I really realized that was what was happening to me because I was too focused on him,” she said.
While working full-time, being a single mother to two children, and supporting Dajon’s mental health, she neglected her own well-being. Tragically, Dajon passed away in 2019, and Gonzales-Reed believes his mental health struggles played a role. Following his death, she developed post-traumatic stress disorder and prolonged grief. It took her nearly a year after her son’s passing to seek professional mental health assistance for herself.
Gonzales-Reed’s story sheds light on a widely prevalent but often unspoken issue. Recent research reveals that parents are grappling with anxiety and depression at rates similar to their teenage children. Dr. Richard Weissbourd, a psychotherapist at Harvard’s Graduate School of Education, emphasized this correlation, stating, “If you’re a depressed teen, you’re about five times more likely to have a depressed parent. If you’re an anxious teen, you’re about three times more likely to have an anxious parent.”
In 2021, a report by U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek H. Murthy warned of a mounting mental health crisis among young people. It cited statistics, including a 51% increase in emergency room visits for suspected suicide attempts among girls and a doubling of anxiety and depression symptoms reported across genders.
Data collected by the Making Caring Common Project in 2021 revealed that almost 40% of surveyed teenagers were “somewhat worried” about the mental health of at least one of their parents. Over one-third of teens had at least one parent reporting anxiety or depression. Additionally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data indicated that one in 14 children in the U.S. has a caregiver with poor mental health.
Dr. Weissbourd emphasized the need to address the mental health crisis affecting parents alongside that of teenagers, underscoring the biological risk factors for mental health struggles. The National Institute of Mental Health highlights that having a close relative with a mental disorder heightens the risk of mental health challenges.
