Taking care of your mental health isn’t cheap. There are the expensive therapy sessions, the expensive medications, the time off requests and leaves of absence to deal with mental health issues or just combat burnout — even mental health apps can cost a pretty penny (though there are cheaper options in market ). It’s all way more expensive than it should be, creating a system where only the wealthiest can maintain their mental health. But a new study aimed to quantify the cost of poor mental health in a new way: by measuring the impact of teenagers’ stress on their earnings as young adults.
The study, published today in the journal PLoS Medicine, found that teens who struggle with anxiety or depression are less likely to enter the workforce as young adults, and when they do, they’re likely to be paid less. And it’s not just these young adults who suffer the consequences. it turns out that when it comes to the economy, we all do. The study found that if a fraction of these teenagers could be helped by a hypothetical policy to expand mental health care, it could lead to a whopping $52 billion in savings from the US budget.
The study used data from an ongoing study by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, starting with data collected in 2000. They examined the mental health of more than 3,000 15- to 17-year-olds, paying particular attention to to questions about anxiety and depression levels. . They then looked at these teens’ employment records 10 years later, when they were young adults, analyzing how their mental health history affected their job prospects.
The results? The researchers found that 6 percent fewer people had a job as a young adult if they had clinical anxiety or depression as a teenager. Meanwhile, young adults who experienced psychological stress as teenagers earned more than $5,600 less in wages than those who had none. Finally, the researchers estimated that if a national mental health expansion policy could reach just 10 percent of these stressed teens, the “labor supply effects alone” would lead to an additional $52 billion in federal revenue over 10 years old. Through subsequent calculations, the team found that these savings could “plausibly provide significant compensating returns” against the costs of the mental health policy itself.
“Our new research finds that, at the scale of the United States economy, improvements in adolescent mental health can generate many billions of dollars in benefits to the federal budget over ten years, potentially offsetting the costs of policy change that could to cover critical services for young people. “, summarized the lead researcher Nathanael Koontzchief policy officer for The Kennedy Forum, in a press release, per US News & World Report.
And while the study focuses on big-picture policies to address the teen mental health crisis, it’s a good reminder that this change can happen on a small scale, too. Parents can play a big role in helping teens improve their mental health. As a psychotherapist and SheKnows columnist Zuania Capo writes, it starts with making sure you listen more and talk less when your teen is struggling. “Create a judgment-free zone where your teen feels like they can share openly, knowing you won’t immediately respond with advice,” advises Capó. “Practice active listening – nodding, paraphrasing what they’ve said and throwing in a few open-ended questions to keep the conversation flowing.” Validating their feelings and making sure you’re present and engaged when you’re with them (not just on your phone or silently watching TV) are also good strategies.
While the financial impact may not be the first thing we worry about when it comes to the teen mental health crisis (more like, we just want our kids to be okay!), it’s another reminder of how big this issue is and how it can affect every area of ​​our lives. our teenagers. So, while we continue to advocate for large-scale mental health policy change, remember to take a moment to get your teen checked out today. (Here’s a check-in approach that will actually work.) They (and maybe their future bank accounts) might just thank you for it.
Before you go, check out our favorite mental health apps:
