El Dorado’s New
High School Wellness Centers
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A Place for Teens to Talk, Feel Safe and Get Help
hen the Oak Ridge High School Class of 2020 lost a classmate to suicide earlier this year, it shook the entire student body. For students like Diana (not her real name), the new wellness center on campus was nothing short of a lifeline. “I’ve suffered from anxiety and depression since eighth grade, and having someone to talk to right there at the school, right when I needed it, was really important for me,” Diana says. “It reminded me I was not alone, and that there are resources available to help get you through some really hard times.” Diana’s story is a common one among high school students. Guidance counselors across America have been reporting ever-growing numbers of students experiencing more anxiety, depression, stress and personal crises. Locally, the El Dorado Union High School District (EDUHSD) has not been immune to the problem, and that was the case even before COVID-19 sent everyone home. According to the American Psychological Association, members of Generation Z (people aged 15–21) have the worst mental health of any generation currently alive; a fact punctuated by Time Magazine’s recent headline, “More than 90% of Generation Z is Stressed Out.” Closer to home, the California Healthy Kids Survey, commissioned by the California Department of Education, reported between 33 and 39 percent of high schoolers in the EDUHSD said they’d “felt sad or hopeless feelings” in the last 12 months, and a frightening 19–20 percent— one out of five—had “seriously considered attempting suicide” in the past year. by BILL ROMANELLI photos by CHARM PHOTOGRAPHY and DINA GENTRY
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