Gen Z Is Changing Mental Health For The Better

Mental health is at the forefront of many conversations in today’s landscape, a step up from what it used to be, with younger generations speaking up more than ever when they’re not okay.

In 2008, July was nationally declared as Bebe Moore Campbell Minority Mental Health Awareness Month, two years after the prominent author and mental health advocate’s passing.

Moore, known for her tireless work in championing the erasure of the stigma associated with mental health and the Black community, walked so that individuals like Dr. Gina Newsome Duncan could run.

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As a board-certified adult psychiatrist and the lead mental health expert for The Steve Fund’s Family Initiative and Family Corner platform, an organization dedicated specifically to the mental health and emotional well-being of young people of color, Newsome Duncan opened up about whether or not she subscribes to the sentiment that the society we live in is currently experiencing a mental health crisis.

“I say opportunity,” Newsome Duncan told Madamenoire. “We have some tremendous opportunity to guide in mental health. In terms of what the average person sees when they see crisis, I think that they are seeing that there are higher rates of being reported, like depression, anxiety disorders, concerning rates of certain groups. People are vocal about their mental health, and to some degree, we are seeing higher mental health [diagnoses], but at the same time, we’re also seeing people be more vocal about that, which, if it means that stigma is to be reduced and mental health help-seeking is starting to be more normalized.”

On Gen-Z and mental health

According to McKinsey & Company, Generation Z (or Gen-Z) refers to individuals born between 1996 and 2010. They are classified as the second-youngest generation between millennials and Generation Alpha.

In a study conducted by the American Psychological Association (APA), more than 9 in 10 Gen Z adults reported experiencing at least one physical or emotional symptom due to stress.

More significantly, 75 percent of Gen Z said that mass shootings are a significant source of stress. The report also states that members of this generation are “more stressed than adults overall about other issues in news, such as the separation and deportation of immigrant and migrant families (57 percent of Gen Z versus 45 percent of all adults reported the issue is a significant source of stress) and sexual harassment and assault reports (53 percent versus 39 percent).”

They are also more likely than other generations to report their mental health as fair or poor.

As a psychiatrist and therapist, as well as the mother of two daughters, one of whom falls into the Gen Z category, this subject is dear to Newsome Duncan’s heart.

“Some of the things that stand out to me about Gen Z is that I don’t know that they are by large experiencing things from teh standpoint of anxiety and depression that other generations haven’t experienced, because anxiety, depression, other things like that, first of all, they’re normal human emotions, and we could also get into liek the spectrum, it’s a lot,” Newsome Duncan explained. “I think that Gen Z, again, not necessarily experiencing depression that nobody else ever experienced, but I do think there are some really unique factors that have intensified their experience, and they are experiencing some pressure and things that we did not.”

She added, “On top of that, being paired with being able to say, ‘I need a mental health day. I need a break.’ They are, and I think this is such a wonderful thing. They are vocal about their mental health and their needs. So, when I think about some of the pressures that they have faced, I know one of the things we’re probably going to talk about today is college students. My oldest daughter- these are the kids who experienced the COVID pandemic during their kind of early to late middle school or early high school years, really formative parts of their education, their development might have been in college or a little bit beyond college, so they experience what was once in like a 100-year kind of worldwide pandemic that significantly altered things.”

Moreover, Newsome Duncan says that this generation also had a first hand glimpse at other issues like school shooting, level of political violence, the resurgance of racism, coupled with political stress, trauma, and a lot of instability that while previous generations may have experienced the same things, Gen Z is experiencing it all at once — in addition to living through it all as the first generation who has had social media around since birth.

Once it’s identified, how does Gen Z cope with mental health challenges?

In her profession, Newsome Duncan works with college students, and through her work with The Steve Fund, students have engaged with the program. She is also aware that some young people do not have access to even begin to get the help they need.

Newsome Duncan notes that there is often a barrier to reaching out for help, especially when many campuses lack the resources.

“When students reach out for help, and they either are told that there isn’t anybody available,  or they meet with somebody who they feel does not get them, that can significantly decrease their willingness to reach out,” she said. “It can increase their sense of loneliness and increase the sense that there is something wrong with them and may deter them from further help-seeking.”

“If that’s the case, and they don’t have anyone else letting them know that it’s okay if you didn’t connect with this person, we’re going to try again and connect with someone else, or ‘I’m going to assist you in finding someone.’ Those are the kinds of situations where we can find students experiencing escalating symptoms and isolation,” she continued.

Where The Steve Fund comes in

As the lead mental health expert for The Steve Fund’s Family Initiative and Family Corner platform, Newsome Duncan explains how the program can assist with equity and mental health campus frameworks, which help normalize help-seeking for students.

Whether it’s through the organization’s crisis text line where they can reach someone who is trained in culturally responsive mental health, or helping them to find a therapist when they have been having issues connecting with what’s provided on-campus, The Steve Fund specializes in promoting the mental health and emotional well-being of young people, particularly those from underserved and under-resourced communities. 

“Where I have tremendous hope, and I feel very optimistic, is that they are being vocal,” said Newsome Duncan. “They’re telling us how they feel, and if older people are saying, you know, ‘Oh, just sit down,’ they say, ‘No. I’m feeling this way. I’m gonna speak up.’”

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