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Overflow with Craig Booker

Will opens with a story about one of his top students, Tyler.

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Tyler was a seventeen-year-old student who he described as funny, respectful,

and smart. It appeared as if Tyler had it all together. On the inside,

Tyler was struggling with despair.

“He shared with me the struggle he had to get out of bed some mornings. Despite loving the program and the other students, Tyler had moments of self-doubt. In his worst moments, he even had thoughts of ending his life.”

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“How does a kid who seemingly has it all together get so down? mean, he has so much going for him, right?

He comes from a good family. Check.

He wasn't bullied as a kid. Check.

He didn't have any significant trauma from abuse. Check.

So, what was happening?”

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Will was seeing similar things in many of his students. Students seemed to be increasingly disengaged or detached in recent years.

Parents and students approached Will with concerns they had for others.

• "They just don't seem like themselves anymore."
• "They're always down!"
• "She is saying some things that are really concerning me."

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“...more and more students were feeling paralyzed and anxious when facing resistance or obstacles in life. Students were losing their resilience and their motivation.”

Many of Will’s students were self-diagnosing as being depressed, while others were describing panic attacks or anxiety.

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Even worse, others were describing their past attempts at suicide while others detailed their future plans.

As Will did more investigation, he found that this was happening nationwide.

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Statistics

Since 2007 ...

• Suicide rates have increased by 76 percent for ages 15 to 19.

• Suicide rates have nearly doubled in teen girls.

• The highest rate of increase in suicide among all age groups is in kids between 10 and 14 years old.

• Depressive symptoms are up 21 percent in boys, and up 50 percent in girls.

• Suicide attempts among black teens increased by 73 percent between 1991 and 2017, and there is an elevated risk of suicide among African-American boys ages 5 to 11.

• In early 2020, an estimated 1 out of 4 young adults contemplated suicide.

• In March 2020, the Disaster Distress Helpline saw an increase of 891 percent in call volume.

A Time When I Blew It

Will returns to the story about Tyler. He says that he believed in Tyler so

much he thought maybe he just needed a push. So, Will worked with

another program leader to come up with a plan. Together, they executed

the plan, believing they would have a new student in 90 days.

During a church retreat, Tyler experienced a setback. The combination of being

away from family and in a spiritually charged environment caused his

anxiety to increase.

When Tyler tried to share his feelings with a leader, they were dismissed.

Instead of acknowledging his feelings, he was meant with statements like

just trust God and keep praying.

On the second night, feeling uncomfortable and alone, Tyler called his

parents. They drove two hours to pick him up without telling any of the

staff.

Shocked, the leaders said, "Well, we are going to have a hard talk about this!”

The "hard talks" they insisted on backfired. Tyler became resistant, disrespectful, and seemed angry.

A few months into their plan, Tyler blindsided them by telling them he wouldn’t be attending the upcoming retreat.

Will was furious with Tyler. He called him into his...