SAMHSA’s National Prevention Week, May 8 – 14, 2022, brings together communities and organizations to raise awareness about the importance of substance use prevention and positive mental health. Each day of NPW focuses on a different substance use and mental health topic.
Tthe topic for Tuesday, May 10 is Preventing Substance Use and Promoting Mental Health in Youth.
In 2018, 8.9 million young adults reported having a mental illness and 5.1 million young adults reported having a substance use disorder. More than half of the young adults included in the sample that reported having a mental illness did not receive treatment, while nearly 90% of those that reported having a substance use disorder went untreated. To view the most recent state and local data on substance use and mental health among youth, please visit the Healthy Youth Survey website.
Federal, state, and local resources are available that can help young people navigate behavioral health concerns:
- For proven tips on how to talk, monitor, and bond with teens: StartTalkingNow.org
- For LGBTQ+ youth: The Trevor Project
- Help for teens by teens: Teen Link
- Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 800-273-8255
- Crisis Text Line provides confidential text access from anywhere in the U.S. to a trained crisis counselor. Text HOME to 741741 (24/7/365)
- More resources on the Department of Health’s website