Adolescents have fundamental developmental needs for companionship. It's the desire to build relationships outside their familial unit that eventually leads to adulthood. However, in an effort to keep themselves and others safe during COVID-19, many teens have been prevented from engaging in normal developmental activities. Parents, educators, and researchers are seeing a steady increase in depression and anxiety, which may be contributing to a rise in teen suicide.  Dr. David Frankel, a respected clinical child and adolescent psychologist from the Bay Area, discusses the growing mental health crisis among adolescents, what signs to look for, solutions, and how to start a conversation with the teens in your life. 

"...it's okay to talk honestly and frankly about your worries with your kids, about how they're doing and stuff like that. I think the other thing is if objectively you're struggling and they're struggling, to name that, to talk about it. I mean, the kids can already observe what's going on, so not to pretend it's otherwise or be afraid that they're going to somehow be unnerved by you acknowledging the reality that's in front of all of you and to try to talk about how things are going." --Dr. David Frankel

*Due to the sensitive subject matter on this episode, we do not recommend listening where small children may be present.