Students at Central Huron Secondary School in Clinton have been hosting a Mental Health and Wellness Week this week.
On Wednesday, former TSN host, Michael Landsberg, made a virtual appearance and spoke to a packed auditorium of Central Huron and GDCI students about his battles with depression and anxiety. Mental Health Student Lead for the school, Kyra Leddy, explains, Landberg's visit was arranged by the Tanner Steffler Foundation. And she says mental health has become a serious issue at the school.
"There have been so many kids that have reached out to our school counsellors, which are all booked up. We have about three therapists or counsellors here and I believe that they're all booked up. They all have students, one after another."
Leddy says there were mental health issues before the pandemic, but COVID has definitely exacerbated those issues.
"So especially with COVID, kids are a lot more mellow, they're not very outgoing or there's more behaviour issues or the kids aren't doing as well in school. I would say those are the main things. I don't have an exact number because that's confidential, obviously, but I've been told it's a really big issue in our school."
Leddy says she believes the problem has always been there, but the pandemic has added to the situation and more people are now willing to step up and talk about it.
Kyra Leddy - CHSS Mental Health Student Lead (Courtesy of Central Huron Secondary School)