T H E N AT I O N | F E A T U R E
NOT EASY BEING BLUE
How Teens in China and Abroad Can Deal With Mental Health By Alistair Baker-Brian
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ife isn’t always easy for teens in modern-day China. Academic expectations, coupled with pressure to fit in among peers, can mean many young people in the Middle Kingdom face a whole host of mental health challenges. Beijing-based mental health NGO CandleX has come up with a way for teens to deal with such challenges.
The Teen’s Open Letter allows teens to, as suggested by the name, write a letter which openly talks about their own experience in battling mental health. CandleX founder Xiaojie Qin tells That’s that in the organization’s early days, some teenagers would use some of the services offered by the NGO. The organization would deal with Chinese
students studying abroad, as well as international school students studying in China. She says that the mental health challenges faced by teens were somewhat unique compared to those of the adults which used CandleX services, adding that she admired the courage of the teens to speak up about their problems.
“We believe writing and seeing your articles published is an incredibly empowering experience ” The Teen’s Open Letter was officially launched in February 2020. What started as a column entitled My Story with Depression eventually became a means for teenagers to voice their experiences regarding mental health. As China was in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, offline activities were not permitted. However, participants were still able to write.
10 |NOVEMBER 2021
