The results of a survey released Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that nearly 30% of high school girls polled nationwide seriously considered attempting suicide. That’s double the rate for boys of the same age. More than half said they felt persistently sad or hopeless. Those numbers were even higher for LGBTQ students and have been consistently rising over the last decade.
The report comes as federal lawmakers are considering legislation to hold online social media platforms more accountable for their connection to youth depression. Gary Nelson, Willingboro High School’s director of mental health services, joins us to discuss the findings. What the report is really saying about adolescent girls, Nelson said, is “that they’re really in crisis.”
