by If you or someone you know is dealing with suicidal thoughts or has a crisis in mental health care, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988 or SMS “Hopeline” to the National Crisis Text Line on 741-741.
Neva was in the fifth grade when she felt the first handles of perfectionism. Maya was in seventh grade when she started limiting her diet. Elie flashed in and out of intramural hospitals all before the age of 10.
At the top of every episode of the Podcast of Youth Mental Health Care, “Wish you wown knew”, Co-hosts Autumn Heffernan, 18, and Lizzy Thurow, 17, introduce listeners to a new teenage engraving who has struggled and, important, Victory – significant challenges in the field of mental health.
The guests talk about their stories with strength and nuance, a clarity that can only come years after completing a tough journey. That is an achievement, since the guests are all high school students. And it’s also the point.
Data from the Wisconsin Youth Risk Behavior survey from 2023 revealed a disturbing fact: six in 10 high school students from Wisconsin said they struggled at least once in the last 12 months with depression, fear and suicidal ideas. It is the newest sign that the mental health struggle of teenagers has been intensified alone since the pandemic.
Researchers from the Wisconsin Office of Children’s Mental Health get many insights from the Youth Behavioral Survey, but one of the most vital elements has been the open feedback at the end of the survey. There, researchers can read where students are in their own words.
“Because we have focused on the social connection of the youth … we hear loud and clear from them that youth voice is really important,” says Linda Hall, executive director of the Wisconsin Office or Children’s Mental Health. “We have to listen to their voice.”
“Wish You Wow” offers this most appreciated perspective every other week and dives deep into the origin of a problem, moments of redemption and all the messy in-the weekends.
Studies show that when young people share their experiences, it teaches them connectedness, builds up trust and improves overall well -being. At the same time, this stories can tell young people inspire to have more compassion, both for themselves and what their peers can go through.
“When listening to the podcast I can tell you that social media and Covid were by far the biggest factors in the reason why the mental health of our young people today derailed” podcast. “I don’t say this as a data analyst or a pollster or a researcher. I say this from listening to story after story after story after story.”
By telling stories, young people learn important lessons about vulnerability, empathy
In his recent state of the state address, the Government of Wisconsin Tony Evers 2025 stated ‘the year of the child’, and emphasized that children spend about 80% of their time outside of school. Neva spent time obsessed with her academic status; Maya discovered a harmful network of pro-anorexia websites. In the meantime, Elie discovered a sharpness for music and composition – a path from his struggle with disturbing mood disorder disorder.
“Wish You Wow” works from an improvised podcast studio in the Friendship Circle of Wisconsin in Fox Point, a non -profit organization that focuses on supporting people with a disability or who struggle with insulation. The podcast is part of the UMatter programs of the organization, aimed at strengthening teenagers and adults in the grases of the challenges for mental health.
By hearing voices such as Maya, Elie and Neva, teenagers who listen to the podcast can become more comfortable to talk about their own struggles and solutions.
For Neva, this meant that taking a break from advanced placement classes its second year and the unlearning of perfectionism. For other guests in the show, therapy has served as a leading light.
When Heffernan and Thurow keep interviews with guests, they model actively listen. Thurow can relate to the distorted body image of Maya; She grew on dancing and thinness went into that culture. Heffernan can empathize with Neva’s obsession, because she too felt the pressure to be perfect.
In other episodes, guests have talked about what it feels like a teenager to be diagnosed with bipolar disease, the specific isolation related to emigrating to the United States, and how they can deal with anxiety and depression, the most common mental health conditions that young are experienced people.
“I didn’t intend to go to someone like:” Hey, your situation sounds super vulnerable, would you like to broadcast that for the audience? ” “But it is beneficial for our future life to have those vulnerable situations and conversations and questions. I have the feeling that we are so much more comfortable.”
Listeners hear the mental health journey of another Wisconsin student every other week
The podcast comes out every two weeks, alternately with Heffernan and Thurow as a host and another guest every episode. Heffernan and Thurow ask potential guests who have a story to tell about their mental health.
Every other week one of them conducts the interviews and they both edit the episodes.
Listeners from the show may be familiar with Heffernan and Thurow as seniors at the University School of Milwaukee, but the co-hosts are careful to remove everything that the identity of their guests can give away outside of a first name and age.
Subsequently, before the delivery goes live, it is sent to the members of the Umterter Oversight Committee, all of whom have a permit in mental health care.
Debra Minsky-Kelly, who serves on the committee, is a recognized clinical social worker and a social work instructor at Carthage College in Kenosha. Her role is to listen to Podcast -episodes and pay attention to what the unintended consequences of sharing traumatic stories can be.
Minsky-Kelly and the other committee members pay close attention to the guests who are interviewed. Are they ready to tell their stories? Are they safe for damage? Do they need extra resources?
“They may feel great when they are interviewed, but there is a real vulnerability to have your story, especially in the era of social media,” said Minsky-Kelly. “You can’t always control negative feedback, so we feel very protective for our young people.”
The power of sharing stories
Heffernan and Thurow acknowledge that, just because two people both experience fear, it will influence them in very different ways. The fear of a person can happen before the tests, Heffernan explained, while the fear of another person can come from living with chronic pain.
In their first episode as co-hosts they interviewed each other. Thurow told Heffernan in that episode that her biggest challenges have always been fear and seasonal depressive disorder. Heffernan told Thurow that her fear and depression came from the divorce of her parents during the pandemic.
Minsky-Kelly said these moments of vulnerability make the podcast so rewarding. Listeners can hear the courage and courage of these young people, which is a way to “turn” the script about the relationship of society with mental health.
It also reinforces what Minsky-Kelly calls us ‘psychological immune system’. Much in the way our body forms immunities to be exposed to germs, our minds work in the same way. The “Icey-Spul” of psychological problems can teach us resilience, Minsky-Kelly said.
“The message becomes:” My mental health is not a fully invalidating state. In fact, working it has made me stronger, “said Minsky-Kelly.
That is a particularly powerful message for young people to hear, said Minsky-Kelly. Their life has been turned upside down by Covid. Beyond the obvious toll of the virus itself was the fracture of social well -being. And it has also changed radically due to social media and technology.
For Heffernan and Thurow, the podcast taught them that they do not have to take action to solve the problems of people. It’s about listening and let people know that you are there for them.
“The thing is, we all try to work through something,” Heffernan said. “There are always lessons to learn from someone else’s mental health journey.”
Natalie Eilbert treats mental health problems for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. She welcomes story tips and feedback. You can reach her at neilbert@ganett.com Or view her x (twitter) profile @Natalie_eilbert.
