25 signatures reached
To: This public letter is calling on the Ontario MPP, Prabmeet Sarkaria, to kindly make this change happen. This public letter is calling on the community to help sign this petition to help support children's and teenagers mental health.
Support Children in the early years and Teenager’s Mental Health
My name is Stefanie Swasey, and I am an undergraduate student at Sheridan College. I am writing to express my concerns on mental health in the early years and teenage stages.
Mental health has always been a concern in Ontario. However, recently mental health has impacted serval of children and teenagers because of COVID-19. Children in their early years and teenagers are affected by this pandemic that is causing these individuals to fall into a depression, an increase of anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. Since this pandemic has brought so much stress and mental illness to many of these individuals, there is a high chance that it will get worse after the pandemic because children and teenagers will be overthinking when it comes to going back to how things were before.
The action that can be taken is sharing this public letter for it to gain more supporters on helping being the change for the children and teens who suffer with their mental health. Also, establishing a strategy for Ontario that will improve and support children in the early years and teenager’s mental health. Some strategies are, reaching out to public speakers who can go into high schools and elementary schools talking about mental health to the children and teens. Another strategy is creating a more inclusive environment for children and teenagers in school or at home having more than a phone help line, perhaps creating more inclusionary housing in community planning.
Why is this important?
Improving children's and teenagers mental health in Ontario:
Mental health has been around for century's and has continued to affect children and teenagers physical and mental well-being. Research conducted by Garcia & Elliott states that the closures of schools are impacting the learning and retention of previously taught material for children and teenagers. The closures of schools are impacting children’s and teenager’s mental health as they are feeling less confident in their work and feeling a lack of motivation which then creates children and teenagers wanting to give up on life.
Perhaps enforcing schools to be open and finding different support systems within the schools, will help improve children’s and teenager’s mental health during covid-19. With schools being closed for a long period of time and now reopening has caused many children and teens feeling depressed and an increase of their anxiety as they don't know what to expect next. There needs to be better support systems for children and teenagers in our Ontario community today, if not it will continue to become worse and nothing will change but the lives of our future children and teens. Lets be the change in our community and use our voices to help support children and teenagers who are suffering in silence with mental health damage inside.