Within the landscape of our country, there are many communities that are considered rural. Some teenage stressors are nearly universal, but others can be specific to the community a child lives in. While some urban youth may be more likely to experience challenges such as gun violence in their neighborhoods, for instance, children and teenagers living in rural communities also have their own unique challenges to cope with.
For instance, in a recent article by the American Psychological Association they noted that rural youth have a greater incidence of suicide than those in urban areas. They also have higher incidences of anxiety, depression and behavior issues.
At the same time kids in rural areas have less access to behavioral health providers. More than 60% have a shortage of mental health professionals in rural or partially rural communities. This presents significant challenges when mental health issues are identified because the help for these kids is limited.
There are other complications in rural communities, such as poverty and the fact that parents have to work long hours or multiple jobs, creating demands on teenagers to provide sibling care. There is exposure to substance misuse. There are transportation issues just because of distance and long commutes. Many teenagers are required to work on family farms as well as do their schoolwork and have little time for connection with friends. They can become extremely isolated.
Dr. Casey Jo Cottrill, PsyD, a clinical psychologist who serves adolescents in a school-based clinic in the rural Appalachian community of Barbour County, West Virginia states “I see a lot of students expressing loneliness, worthlessness, low self-confidence. It’s often a cyclical process: ‘I feel lonely and worthless; therefore, I have a hard time reaching out to other people.’ That, in turn, creates more loneliness and social isolation,” she said. “As practitioners, we can work with students to help them build better communication skills and navigate stressful peer situations.”
It would be somewhat logical to assume that kids are more protected in rural communities. In reality their mental health problems are equally difficult, and they have some unique challenges to forming normal relationships and getting the services they need. Truthfully this has been a long-term problem that has finally received some research recognition. Our concerns as professionals are that mental health funding has not been adequate to meet the needs of our youth. This research has created even more disparity between the needs for our kids and the services available.
This rural population of youth has to become a part of our focus in providing care and support to them and their families. We must develop our systems of care more creatively with the rural population in our focus. It is just not acceptable to ignore a whole sector of our youth community as we provide options and hope to meet their mental health needs.
Gerry Vassar
President/CEO
