Study Shows Teens Suffer Later In Life From Difficult Early Romances
A new study finds that toxic, controlling teenage dating relationships may increase later risk for problems like drug use and mental or physical health problems. Meanwhile, CDC data shows teen eating disorders have been more severe and prevalent during covid than ever.
NBC News:
Troubled Teen Relationships Can Have Lasting Health Problems, Research Finds
Teenagers engaged in toxic, controlling dating relationships may be at risk for a variety of problems as they enter adulthood, including drug use, as well as mental and physical health struggles, new research finds. The study, published Monday in the journal Pediatrics, also showed that such teens are likely to repeat patterns of unhealthy — potentially dangerous — intimate relationships. (Edwards, 5/1)
The New York Times:
After Student’s Suicide, An Elite School Says It Fell ‘Tragically Short’
Last April, Jack Reid, a 17-year-old junior at one of the nation’s elite boarding schools, tucked a Bible into his gym shorts and a note into his pocket directing his parents to a Google document explaining his feelings of despair. Then, inside his dorm room, he took his own life. On Sunday, the anniversary of Jack’s death, the Lawrenceville School in New Jersey offered an extraordinary admission of failure, publicly acknowledging that it had been aware that Jack was being bullied by other students, but that it had fallen “tragically short” of its obligation to protect him. (Weiser and Tully, 4/30)
NBC News:
Eating Disorders Like Anorexia, Bulimia Are More Severe Than Ever
Teen eating disorders have never been this rampant — or this severe. Hospitalizations for eating disorders spiked during the pandemic, doubling among adolescent girls, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While most teens have returned to a normal life of in-person school, sports and social activities, eating disorders, especially anorexia, remain at an all-time high, experts warn. (Hopkins, 4/29)
KFF Health News:
For California Teen, Coverage Of Early Psychosis Treatment Proved A Lifesaver
Summer Oriyavong first heard the ringing bells and tapping sounds in her head when she was in middle school. Whispering voices and shadowy visions, ones that made her feel superior and special, soon followed. It wasn’t until Oriyavong ran out of her classroom in terror one day that her teachers and parents realized she needed help they couldn’t provide. The shadow people were telling Oriyavong that her classmates were going to hurt her. (Young, 5/1)
If you are in need of help —
Dial 9-8-8 for 24/7 support from the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. It's free and confidential.
Other mental health news about the effects of gun violence —
The New York Times:
A Year Of Pain: Victims Struggle After Brooklyn Subway Shooting
More than a year ago, a mass shooting on the subway in Brooklyn miraculously killed no one. But as the victims live on, so do their physical and psychological wounds. ... The experiences of victims in the Brooklyn attack illustrate the long-term consequences: the damage not just to bodies, but also to a sense of safety and the ability to earn a living. (Zraick, 4/30)
The Washington Post:
Why Are Americans Shooting Strangers And Neighbors? ‘It All Goes Back To Fear.’
Experts blame a cocktail of factors: the easy availability of guns, misconceptions around stand-your-ground laws, the marketing of firearms for self-defense — and a growing sense among Americans, particularly Republicans, that safety in their backyard is deteriorating. Since 2020, the share of Republicans who said that crime is rising in their community has jumped from 38 percent to 73 percent, according to the latest Gallup numbers from last fall. Among Democrats, that same concern climbed only 5 percentage points to 42 percent, marking the widest partisan perception gap since the polling firm first asked the question a half-century ago. (Paquette, Harden and Clement, 4/30)
The New York Times:
‘Zero Leads’: Dragnet Continues For Man Sought In Fatal Shooting Of 5 In Texas
The suspect, Francisco Oropesa, who is accused of killing five people, had been shooting his gun in his yard in Cleveland, Texas, on Friday evening when his neighbor Wilson Garcia approached him and asked him to stop so that his baby could sleep. Instead, the authorities said, Mr. Oropesa, 38, retrieved an AR-15 rifle from his house and walked over to Mr. Garcia’s home, where he killed his 8-year-old son, wife and three other people. (Moya, Albeck-Ripka andMedina, 4/30)
The Washington Post:
On Abortion And Gun Control, Democratic AGs Are Using Courts To Win
For Bob Ferguson, the Democratic attorney general of Washington state, the seventh time proved to be the charm. For six years, Ferguson pushed a ban on assault-style weapons in Washington’s legislature. Each year, the proposal failed to make it out of committee — until this one. In April, the legislature passed the bill and Gov. Jay Inslee (D) signed it into law. ... Ferguson is one of several Democratic attorneys general moving aggressively on key social policy issues to blunt Republican initiatives across the country designed to loosen gun restrictions, outlaw abortion and curtail the rights of transgender residents. (Wilson, 4/30)
