#TeenAnxiety: Youth mental health summit for teens, adults aims to confront stigma

By Sarah Lindenfeld Hall, Go Ask Mom editor

Chapel Hill, N.C. — I wanted to share some quick details about a mental health summit that’s coming up in October on a very important topic.

#TeenAnxiety: A Youth Mental Health Summit, according to the event’s website, will feature a screening of the IndieFlix documentary “Angst, Raising Awareness Around Anxiety.” “Angst” is a 56-minute film that explores anxiety and its causes, effects and what we can do about it, according to the website.

Sponsored by Stand by Me NC and Faith Connections on Mental Illness, the summit is designed for sixth graders to 12th graders. A separate track also is planned for adults. Registration is $25 and includes programming, lunch and a T-shirt. Scholarships are available.

The program’s goal, according to the website, is to confront the stigma associated with anxiety, which is on the rise in our kids.

According to the National Institutes of Health, about 32 percent of adolescents, ages 13 to 18, have an anxiety disorder. Examples of different types of anxiety disorders include, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

• Being very afraid when away from parents (separation anxiety)
• Having extreme fear about a specific thing or situation, such as dogs, insects, or going to the doctor (phobias)
• Being very afraid of school and other places where there are people (social anxiety)
• Being very worried about the future and about bad things happening (general anxiety)
• Having repeated episodes of sudden, unexpected, intense fear that come with symptoms like heart pounding, having trouble breathing, or feeling dizzy, shaky, or sweaty (panic disorder)

#TeenAnxiety is scheduled for Oct. 6 at Christ United Methodist Church in Chapel Hill. Registration is limited to 100 youth and 40 adults. More information is on Stand By Me NC’s website.

Source: https://www.wral.com/-teenanxiety-youth-mental-health-summit-for-teens-adults-aims-to-confront-stigma/17806637/