News Highlights

• Over 35% of students have experienced high levels of stress and over 25% reported feeling sad or hopeless for two or more weeks in a row.
• Fairfax County has launched a new initiative to help children, youth and families access mental health and substance abuse services called Healthy Minds Fairfax.
• Healthy Minds Fairfax is a community collaborative that strives to build meaningful partnerships to ensure that all youth are socially, emotionally, mentally healthy and resilient.

The teen years can be tough.

With new choices, increased responsibilities from school and planning for the college or the future, teens and young adults are feeling the pressures. According to Fairfax County’s most recent youth survey, over 35% of students experienced high levels of stress and over 25% reported feeling sad or hopeless for two or more weeks in a row. More than 13% reported that they had considered suicide.

But help is here.

Fairfax County has launched a new initiative and expanded services to help children, youth and families access mental health and substance abuse services through a coordinated network of county agencies, schools and private providers.

Healthy Minds Fairfax is working to identify high quality resources, supports and opportunities for families to help further social, emotional and healthy growth for all children, youth and young adults across Fairfax County. According to James Gillespie, director of Healthy Minds Fairfax, elevating awareness and helping families navigate access to care is a major component of the initiative. “When people are seeking help - it may be during a crisis, or, at least extremely stressful circumstances - we’re trying to make it easier for families to find, use and pay for mental health and substance abuse services in our community.”

Healthy Minds Fairfax’s new website identifies services for people experiencing mental health and substance abuse issues; offers prevention resources to enhance awareness and help reduce the stigma that can discourage people from seeking help for mental health conditions; as well as intervention services and supports.

Healthy Minds Fairfax is a community collaborative that strives to build meaningful partnerships to ensure that all youth are socially, emotionally, mentally healthy and resilient in Fairfax County communities. Its public partners include:

• Fairfax County Public Schools;
• Falls Church City Public Schools;
• Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board;
• Fairfax County Departments of Health, Family Services, Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court and Neighborhood and Community Services; and the cities of Fairfax and Falls Church.

Private partners include: 

• NAMI-Northern Virginia (National Alliance on Mental Illness in Northern Virginia);
• the Autism Society of Northern Virginia;
• Formed Families Forward;
• Inova Kellar Center;
• Dominion Hospital;
• For Children’s Sake of Virginia;
• Northern Virginia Family Service;
• and many other behavioral health providers in the Fairfax-Falls Church community.

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