INDIANAPOLIS — Teens mental health is the topic of one summer youth program, but getting teens to express themselves isn’t always easy.
Mentors that WRTV’s Rachael Wilkerson spoke with are determined to change that.
“This is called name that emotion. Why is that important? Because sometimes we don’t know how people feel,” Aaron Green said.
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Learning how people feel and how to deal with your mental health is what the FAR Academy and Struggle University’s youth summer program is all about.
“You have to know how you feel or someone else will tell you how to feel,” Quinton Collins said.
The lessons being taught inside the Douglass Park Family Center are making an impact on 17-year-old Tyanna Johnson.
“So far, it’s really been helpful not only with me being a teen, but as a teen mom. It’s only so much I can do, it’s good to have the resources around me to help guide me,” Johnson said.
She says the journey here has been hard, but she's found comfort in her friends and camp staff.
"Not only through school but through life as a mom, they not only talk to me through whatever it is that I need but they let me know it's OK to not be OK," Johnson said.
Green, co-founder of the summer camp, says too many teens are silently battling their mental health. It's not always easy for them to express themselves.
“Really, I’m the type to not talk about how I feel,” Rajon Street said.
But Street says he is finding ways to get past that.
On Thursday he learned:
"Mental health. How to control it, how to talk to certain people," Street said.
"Why is that so important," asked WRTV's Rachael Wilkerson.
"For youth, kids my age, younger or older, just so everybody can understand how other people feel," Street said.
Green challenges parents to provide a safer place for children when it comes to their emotions.
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“You can’t be mad if kids don’t want to talk to you if you haven’t created a space where they feel comfortable and not judged, or where they feel good enough and that it’s not going to be used against them,” Green said.
For those struggling:
"It's people that really love y'all and want y'all to succeed. We get it and are here for you," Collins said.
"If you need resources or just need company, come out," Johnson said.
The summer program is happening from now until July 18. Classes are every Tuesday and Thursday from noon until 2 p.m. at 1616 E. 25th St.
There is a $25 registration fee. Transportation, food, snacks and drinks are provided.
For information on how to register, you can reach out to Quinton Collins or Aaron Green.
