By Izack Kessler, Guest Writer
The United States has an average of 30 psychologists per 100,000 people and 15.6
psychiatrists per 100,000 people.
That’s according to Good Therapy, an online network of mental health professionals committed to ethical and collaborative practices that put people in therapy first.
Indian Trail High School has one school psychologist who serves a campus of just over 2,000 students. And the typical wait time right now for an appointment to see a private therapist here in Southeastern Wisconsin is anywhere from six months to even a year.
“I started trying to find a therapist almost two years ago, and I was only able to find a temporary one. After that I was unable to find a new one, and still am unable to,” said Leon Fitzmaurice, a Tremper junior.
Fitzmaurice struggles with persistent depressive disorder, generalized anxiety
disorder, and complex post traumatic stress disorder. There is too long of a wait for a counselor appointment, he said.
Barbra Baer, a Racine counselor, agrees, saying that communities need more people in the healthcare industry who specialize in counseling. More teens should seek help, she said, especially now during the pandemic as teens have been much more active on social media.
All of the increased connectivity has taken a toll because of the spread of misnformation and how platforms like Instagram can be used to intimidate teenage girls and boys.
Baer believes that the need is stronger and much greater for this generation at this point in time, she said.
For the teens who do not have access to professional help or healthy outlets, the issue becomes that much more challenging.
“Schools do not teach calming, coping or deescalation strategies even though the district has many tools available,” said Karin Vogt, an Indian Trail psychologist. “The priority is far too high for teaching academics, even to students who are not regulated and therefore spending their brain’s energy and attention on emotional stress or trauma instead of academics. A dysregulated brain can’t learn.”
As students struggle to be successful in school, worldwide factors may also be causing stress to teenagers.
“As society has become more impulsive and sensation seeking, poverty has increased, violence has increased and extended families decrease in size. Teens are more stressed now than ever. This chronic stress and trauma leads to more mental health concerns,” Vogt said.
As people’s mental illness worsens, the waiting lines for counseling only gets longer. One student suggested that society’s indifference to the problem speaks in and of itself.
“The lack (of concern over the shortage) makes it almost seem like it’s not as big of an issue as it really is,” said Owen Ingram, a IT Communications junior.