Sheriff hopes youth well-being talk is just the beginning

FINDLAY — As the school year concludes, Hancock County Sheriff Michael Cortez is hoping that his recent educational series on youth mental health and well-being is just the beginning of the discussion. This spring, Cortez held a series of "Choices and Challenges" community wellness events to educate the community on youth wellness issues including gambling, internet safety, vaping, mental health and other concerns. He said attendance was lower than he had hoped for, but he received "a lot of positive feedback." The sheriff's office plans to post a video recording of the event on its website in the near future. Cortez said one topic discussed was the high levels of sadness, hopelessness and suicidal thinking among youth, so parents could be aware of signs to watch for. "All too often, with teens, they don't really want to talk," Cortez said. He said "hovering," or trying to push a child to talk who isn't ready to do so, can lead to the child isolating themselves further. He advises instead "providing them with their needed space and just checking in, and making sure if they need something. And just relaying to them that they're loved and supported." Data from Hancock County youth who completed the Ohio Department of Behavioral Health OHYES survey shows that 29.88% had felt sad or hopeless almost every day for two or more weeks, and 15.44% had considered suicide. Zach Thomas, executive director of the Hancock County Board of Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services, said the "sad or hopeless" figure had been 25% in 2018. "So we know that more and more kids are experiencing anxiety and depressive symptoms," he said. "And we also are seeing that, particularly in behaviors among kids in school … How it's being expressed, though, in school, isn't necessarily showing sadness, but there's a lot of other, related issues with how they're acting out or they're behaving in schools that's causing a lot of concern. And it continues to get younger and younger." Thomas said students may be feeling pressure to do well in school, and comparing themselves to others. The prevalence of technology and social media also likely plays a role, and schools that have adopted "no cell phone" policies report that they have seen students become more engaged in school, he said. Cortez said bullying today occurs on social media and may be visible to everyone. "I always try to remember intent is never greater than impact," he said. So even if a youth or adult intends something as "a joke," what's more important is how it impacted the individual affected. "You don't know what people are going through," he said. "You don't know what kind of day they're having. They could have just suffered some type of traumatic event." "I think we just have to renormalize that not everything needs to be public … Just because it's a thought, it doesn't mean that you have to share it," he said. People who are struggling with their mental health often "mask" these feelings, and may seem OK on the surface, Cortez said. Often, "they want to make sure that others are OK, because they're not," he said. "So they want to ensure others are OK around them." He said the important thing is just to know your children well, so you're aware when they are not acting like themselves. It isn't so much about knowing how to have an awkward conversation about how they're feeling if something is wrong, as "it's about doing it all the time." That is, make it a routine to talk regularly, in general, not just about inner emotions or feelings. Make sure your child can feel like you're a trusted person, and let them know that it's OK to talk to you. "We have to be vulnerable with them," as well, to normalize that being vulnerable is part of these conversations, Cortez said. Thomas noted that 43% of students in the OHYES survey reported that their parents swore at them or put them down, up from 22% in 2018. As adults themselves are more stressed and experiencing their own challenges, this may be affecting their children's well-being. One positive Thomas sees is that youths themselves are often more willing to discuss these topics openly. Hancock County Probate and Juvenile Court Judge Kristen Johnson, who presented at Cortez's events, said she is particularly concerned about vaping among youth. These days she infrequently has cases of youth coming to court for underage drinking, but she sees a lot of youth who have been vaping marijuana. Johnson noted that there are dozens of other chemicals also consumed during vaping. Both youths and their parents may see it as relatively safe, but vaping marijuana is more potent than smoking a joint, and many youth do it all day long, as young as middle school. She said she's concerned that vaping is harming their lungs. She has seen a handful of children who have experienced health issues related to vaping. "And they're so young," she said. "You have no idea what their lungs are going to look like in 10 years." Heading into the summer season means an elevated risk of traffic accidents, Cortez said. More people are on the roads as vacation season begins. Motorcyclists are out more, as are agricultural vehicles. Young drivers will also be out, and some of them may be drinking or using drugs. Cortez urged parents to convey to their children that their safety is what's most important. So, if the child has been drinking or using drugs, they need to call rather than getting behind the wheel. There may be consequences later if the child has made unwise choices, "but the important thing is that they're safe." The community as a whole can come together to support its children, and this starts by paying attention to what's happening in northwest Ohio, Cortez said. He noted that the data from the survey is information children are sharing and may feel too awkward to say more explicitly or out loud. "This is their anonymous way of saying, this is what's happening, and this is what I'm dealing with," Cortez said. "Now we have to do something. We have to do something to address that. And what we have done here with the Community Wellness series is just part of that solution … just a very small part of it."