GREENSBORO, N.C. — Since the start of the pandemic, we've seen a spike in emergency room visits for suspected suicide attempts among young people, according to CDC data.

What You Need To Know

  • The 12-week program is designed to focus on stress management, self-esteem and suicide prevention

  • Gives teens a positive environment for students facing mental health issues

  • The program is being held at two different Greensboro schools and one community organization 

A group called Mental Health Greensboro has put on a 12-week program to help address mental health issues specific to teenagers. Mental Health Greensboro provides services and programs that promote mental health and support recovery from mental illnesses. The 12-week program is called "Teens Gotta Talk," and its motive is to create a positive environment for students facing mental health problems.

The program focuses on three main categories: stress management, self-esteem and suicide prevention. 

Erin Hanes is the peer support coordinator for "Teens Gotta Talk," and has battled mental health problems as a teenager and felt it was important to give teens today a support system that they can trust. 

“They’re super open and honest in group, they’re so comfortable with each other that they will talk about their personal experiences, so just being that support for them and helping to destigmatize mental health and just be a support system is huge to me," Hanes said.

She's already helped many students, including Dream Griffin, a student at Piedmont Classical High School, who struggles with mental health. Griffin told us that Hanes has helped her immensely.

“My challenges with mental health are basically mainly, I talk down on myself a lot so that becomes a real issue and I have a lot of self-esteem issues. I’ve had like one suicide attempt before and then I’ve had self harm a couple times, so still dealing with that, but I’m pretty clean on self harm. I’ve been a year or two clean on my suicide attempt," Griffin told us. 

"Teens Gotta Talk" is currently being implemented as an after school program at two schools in Greensboro, and at one community organization. Leaders hope to expand the program to other schools in the near future. If you'd like to learn more about "Teens Gotta Talk" you can visit the website.