Tips to help teens facing mental health challenges | Features

Globally, teenagers are experiencing a mental health crisis. According to the World Health Organization, one in seven children aged 10 to 19 suffers from a mental disorder — a staggering figure that is increasing, partly due to unprecedented access to global crises through the internet and the constant news cycle. 

Young adults in Arizona are no different. A recent report by the Arizona Department of Health Services detailed an increase in mental health diagnoses, such as ADHD, depression, and anxiety, among the state’s adolescents, along with a rise in thoughts of suicide and self-harm in recent years. 

Horizon Recovery, a teen mental health and addiction treatment provider with facilities in Peoria, Glendale, Buckeye and Scottsdale, is trying to stop the young adult mental health crisis, one patient at a time.

“Unfortunately, anxiety rates in adolescents have extremely increased, especially since (the COVID-19 pandemic.) They’re rising at unprecedented rates, and I think the biggest component is the digital world, today’s tech-driven world,” said Patrick Buehl, executive director and co-founder of Horizon Recovery, said.

A teen mental health and addiction treatment provider with facilities in Peoria, Glendale, Buckeye and Scottsdale, Horizon Recovery offers a holistic approach to its patients and their families. 

For the most serious cases, Horizon Recovery offers inpatient residential treatment, designed to help those from ages 12 to 17 with substance abuse and co-occurring mental health disorders. It also has intensive outpatient programs, a partial hospitalization program and outpatient therapy.

“We just have created a robust program to help educate the teens and parents about managing anxiety and understanding mental wellness. I think it’s really important how we connect families with experienced counselors, expert level clinicians that work for Horizon and who specialize in adolescent mental health,” Buehl said.

The “Adolescent Mental Health Report: Trends in Mental Health,” published in October 2024, utilized data from the National Survey of Children’s Health and the Youth Risk Behavior Survey in Arizona. According to the report, 40% of adolescents reported experiencing poor mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic, indicating a concerning escalation in mental health challenges among Arizona’s youth and highlighting the need for targeted interventions and support systems. 

Buehl noted that there are strategies to mitigate the debilitating effects of unfiltered exposure to global crises and other sources of anxiety for young adults. Education is the most powerful tool a parent can possess, along with the readiness to establish boundaries on media consumption and to emphasize the importance of media literacy. 

“I think a lot of things that we can do to help this is open dialogue. We encourage parents to create safe places at home for their teens to discuss current events. I think it starts in the home by just establishing that environment of trust, and when we help validate that, it creates a supportive foundation for processing the world around them,” Buehl said. “I think that’s one thing that is really vital for us at Horizon, just making sure we’re educating families, making sure that we’re supporting them.”

The average length of stay at one of Horizon Recovery’s residential facilities is 60 days. Its Buckeye facility is for females only, while the Glendale-Arrowhead Lakes center serves males. Its newest facility in northern Peoria at Deer Valley is gender-neutral. 

In partnership with Teen Pathways Alliance, it also offers the Peoria Supportive Housing Program for those who need a stable and supportive environment in transition out of the residential treatment level of care. 

“Seeking help is good. It’s healthy. It’s something that we can do as a community to support these adolescents, letting them know (they’re) not alone. A lot of us have been through these things as well, but there is truly help out there,” Buehl said.