COVID-19 has transformed life in California and plunged our nation into a “new normal". Surveys show that adolescents in particular are struggling with the mental health effects of the isolation and stress of a pandemic. 

 

The California Partners Project partnered with the Child Mind Institute to take a deep look at how life is being experienced by teens coping with loss, social isolation, and screen saturation. Adolescents report they processing something akin to grief. They describe headaches, poor sleep, minimal physical activity, and exhaustion. They report feeling the consequences of being “addicted” to their phones and social media — but believe these problems are too mild to matter or warrant a change in behavior or conversation with their parents. 

 

Our study aims to help caregivers and adolescents understand what is happening beneath the surface so they can support and navigate the healthiest possible response and adaptations to the loss and changes of the COVID-19 era.