Studies suggest teens who experience mental health issues during adolescence are more likely than their peers to also experience these issues as young adults. Child Trends' brief, The Persistence of Depressive and Suicidal Symptoms into Early Adulthood: Do Health Insurance and Counseling Matter?, examines whether counseling use or insurance access during adolescence is related to the likelihood of reporting symptoms of moderate to severe depression or suicidality in young adulthood.
The brief analyzes data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health to assess the role of health insurance and counseling for teens with and without moderate to severe symptoms. Findings suggest that:
- Health insurance is associated with a reduced risk of mental health issues as young adults for teens who report no suicidality and have no depressive or mild depressive symptoms. However, health insurance alone may not be enough to help teens overcome these issues.
- Teens who received counseling during adolescence were more likely to report depressive or suicidal symptoms as young adults, whether or not they reported moderate to severe symptoms of depression or suicidality as teens.
These results may reflect that teens who receive counseling might be more likely than other teens to seek help for other emotional or behavioral issues which have led them to seek counseling as teens and which continue into the twenties. The findings confirm research suggesting that teens who report mental health issues are more likely to report similar difficulties as young adults. Further research is needed to better understand patterns of mental health over time and also reasons for counseling use among teens. |
