By Linda Hall, Director – Wisconsin Office of Children’s Mental Health

Adolescents face both benefits and risks to being online. Our digital world allows kids to connect with friends, explore creative projects, pursue their interests, and find community – often in mere moments. Such instant, constant connection to the world also carries risks – cyberbullying, harassment, and divisiveness; unhealthy social comparisons; exposure to inappropriate content; as well as privacy and safety concerns.

Whether it’s a positive activity or not, any time spent online is time spent away from healthy activities that we know improve mental health and well-being. Here’s how you can help.

Take Care of the Basics – One way that adults can help kids navigate their digital lives is by emphasizing the basics first and foremost: sufficient sleep, fresh air, physical activity, healthy eating, and in-person extracurriculars all feed your brain and protect mental health. These daily habits are the healthy brain basics.

Teach Them how to Drive their Digital Lives – You can also help kids take control of their digital lives by teaching them how to protect their mental health. They should actively manage their feed; curate positive and uplifting content; set all apps to private mode; share the best parts of social media with loved ones; schedule downtime and a recurring digital detox; talk about negative, scary, or harmful content with a trusted adult; and always know that help is available.

Have Fun with and Talk about Social Media – Professionals who work with children know how much kids love to turn the tables and show adults how something works – or teach you something new. Let kids be clever and explain the meaning behind a viral meme. Make space for them to show you the latest dance craze. Ask them to explain how a setting on your personal device works. Empower students to engage with you and consume media along with adults so they normalize social media conversations with trusted adults.

Normalize Tech-Free Zones and Tech-Free Time – Explain the crucial role of sleep and why phones should never be kept in kids’ bedrooms overnight. Model tech-free zones at school. Counselors can talk about bell-to-bell phone policies that restrict student cell phone use during the school day. Mounting anecdotal evidence shows that students are talking, laughing, playing games, and interacting far more than before these policies. These positive signs are in addition to the much-improved classroom focus that teachers report. We know from research that when academics improve, well-being improves and vice versa.

Double Down on Coping Skills – Both kids and adults face an increasing amount of digital stress. Kids can be exposed to lots of overwhelming content online. Sometimes they are overwhelmed by the pressure to look a certain way or pressure to achieve. Teaching effective coping skills; helping students identify what works for them; and reinforcing the lifelong need to manage stress may be the most lasting impact we can have on adolescents. Coping skills are life skills. (Check out our compilation of coping skills from Wisconsin youth for inspiration!)

This article was also published in the Wisconsin School Counselor’s Association newsletter.

OCMH’s inaugural cohort of 15 Youth Mental Wellness Champions from across Wisconsin launched in September. Cohort members are high school juniors and seniors and were selected through an application process. To ensure geographic representation across the state, a student was selected from each of the 12 CESAs (Cooperative Educational Service Agencies) in Wisconsin. The remaining three cohort seats were filled by students from any CESA.

The cohort meets monthly from September through May. Meetings are virtual with the May meeting being an in-person completion event in Madison. Over the nine months cohort members will explore topics such as the history of mental health, defining wellness, understanding school mental health, using data for change, storytelling, and advocacy strategies.

“The students in our cohort are all leaders in their own right at their schools and in their communities,” said Andrea Turtenwald, OCMH Family Relations Coordinator and cohort coordinator. “The monthly meetings are packed with energy and insight.”

2025-26 OCMH Youth Mental Wellness Champions are:

• Lydia Cheslock – Pulaski Community High School, CESA 7
• Ellia Christenson – Hudson High School, CESA 11
• Abby Falkowski – Marathon High School, CESA 9
• Kit Finley – Mineral Point High School, CESA 3
• Oso Fish – Superior High School, CESA 12
• Levi Linngren – St. Croix Falls High School, CESA 11
• Alivia Miller – Chippewa Falls Senior High School, CESA 10
• Gavin B. Merriam – Wausau East High School, CESA 9
• Eh Sher Moo – Alexander Hamilton High School, CESA 1
• Cecelia S. – Menasha High School, CESA 6
• Dean Swanlund – McFarland High School, CESA 2
• Cadence Van Beek – Melrose-Mindoro High School, CESA 4
• Brooke Vander Velde – Laona High School, CESA 8
• Kenai V., CESA 5
• Elijah Yang – Hmong American Peace Academy, CESA 1

When asked what cohort members liked about the Youth Mental Wellness Champions meetings, they said:

• “I liked how open it was and the information that was shared.”
• “I loved getting to meet everyone and hear their viewpoints.”
• "Everyone in the meeting was so kind, understanding, and engaged; it is so great to be in a group that truly cares about the mission at hand.”

Learn more about OCMH Youth Mental Wellness Champions here.

Humans are wired for social connection. OCMH has stood by this affirmation for years. And since 2023 when prior U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy released his advisory on loneliness and isolation, Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation 2023, there has been much more dialogue on the importance of social connection.

In his advisory, Murthy introduced many alarming facts:

• Lacking social connection can increase the risk for premature death as much as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day.
• Approximately half of U.S. adults report experiencing loneliness, with some of the highest rates among young adults ages 15-24.
• Loneliness increases the risk of premature death by nearly 30%.

Murthy's advisory called for a collective effort to “mend the social fabric of our nation,” including teaching children how to build healthy relationships, talking more to relatives, friends and co-workers, and spending less time online and on social media if it comes at the expense of in-person interactions. 

The recommendations ring true today, and November’s focus on the importance of social connections give opportunity to think about what we can do as individuals and communities to foster social connection.

Social Connection Awareness Week is November 9-15, 2025. The Wisconsin Coalition for Social Connection offers many resources for Social Connection Awareness Week. See those here. 

Safe Storage Protects Children – OCMH’s Newest Data Bite

Guns are the leading cause of death for children in the U.S., and suicide is the second leading cause of adolescent death. The most lethal means of suicide attempt is firearms. See OCMH’s newest Data Bite on safe storage here.

OCMH Data Bites provide a quick look at a children’s mental health data point. These are meant to be bite-sized, easily understood, and shared. See all our Data Bites here.

Reducing Access to Lethal Means Can Save Lives

Reducing access to lethal means for a person at risk of suicide could make the difference in whether they live or die. Lethal means are the substances, weapons, or things that can cause death by suicide.

OCMH’s newest Showcasing Solutions highlights CALM – Counseling on Access to Lethal Means, an intervention that seeks to increase the time and distance between individuals at risk of suicide and the most common and lethal methods of suicide. Read about Children’s Wisconsin’s CALM initiative here.

Showcasing Solutions shares innovative work in children’s mental health across Wisconsin. See all our Showcasing Solutions here.

Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Focus of OCMH Meeting – Recording Available

OCMH’s Children’s Mental Health Network holds four learning meetings each year. The November 7^th meeting focused on Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health. Expert panelists explored the topic in four domains of infant and early childhood mental health: foundational understanding, childcare, families, and pediatricians.

Listen to the meeting recording here.

OCMH’s Children’s Mental Health Network meetings bring together a large and broad group of children's mental health advocates and professionals to learn about children's mental health initiatives and activities across the state. Meetings are virtual and 10 am-12 pm the first Friday of the following months: February, May, August, and November. Sign up to receive notices of the Children’s Mental Health Network meetings here.

International Survivors of Suicide Loss Day

November 22^nd is International Survivors of Suicide Loss Day. Learn more:

• American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
• Awareness Days

Support the Young People in Your Life

Mental Health America has new practical and proven ways to support the young people in your life. The 2025 Supporting Young Minds resources are designed to help young people move from feeling helpless to hopeful. Explore the resources here.