Teen girls have increased mental health concerns due to violence and sadness, CDC says
"Our teenage girls are suffering through an overwhelming wave of violence and trauma, and it’s affecting their mental health."

Teen girls have increased mental health concerns, CDC says.
Editor's Note: If you are having thoughts about taking your own life, or know of anyone who is in need of help, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is a United States-based suicide prevention network of over 200+ crisis centers that provides 24/7 service via a toll-free hotline with the number 9-8-8. It is available to anyone in suicidal crisis or emotional distress.
The mental health of teens has been widely discussed over the past few years. Lockdowns early in the pandemic put a much greater emphasis on teens and their social-emotional development and highlighted how isolation contributes to mental health concerns. But as things returned to normal, or as normal as they can be, the teen mental health crisis didn't seem to let up.
Now, the CDC is saying the crisis is actually getting worse, specifically for teen girls. In the fall of 2021, the CDC conducted its Youth Risk Behavior Survey and the results are in: A startling 57% of teen girls—nearly 3 in 5—reported feeling "persistently sad or hopeless," while 30% said they had seriously considered dying by suicide, an increase of 60% since 2011. These numbers are the highest they've been in the last decade, according to the CDC.
The Youth Risk Behavior Survey has been conducted every other year for the past 30 years and includes the responses of 17,232 high school students living in the United States, so the new data is concerning.
Kathleen Ethier, director of the CDC’s Division of Adolescent and School Health, told NBC News, "Our teenage girls are suffering through an overwhelming wave of violence and trauma, and it’s affecting their mental health." According to the CDC data, there has been a dramatic increase in violence against teen girls reported, with 1 in 5 saying they experienced sexual violence within the past year. And 14% of teen girls reported being forced into having sex, which is an increase from 2019.
This survey doesn't discount the mental health struggles of teen boys. It simply shows that teenaged girls are showing an elevated response. In fact, overall more than 40% of boys and girls reported feeling so sad and hopeless that it interfered with their schoolwork or extracurricular activities.
And teenagers that identified as part of the LGBTQ community were even more likely to report mental health struggles. Rates of suicidal thoughts among LGBTQ youth continue to be staggering with 45% seriously considering suicide in the past year. They are also more than four times more likely to attempt suicide than their straight peers. According to the CDC, 22% of LGBTQ youth attempted suicide in the past year.
Open and honest communication with teens about mental health and mental health resources can be helpful. As a therapist, I encourage parents to make sure their kids have crisis hotlines stored in their phone, like 988 and the Trevor Project numbers, 1-866-488-7386 for calls and 678-678 for text.
Because here's the thing, teens are notoriously private and are likely to tell their friends they're struggling before they inform their parents. It's important for them to have the tools to make those connections when they need it most. In fact, the CDC numbers do not show an actual increase in acts of violence or harassment against teens. Rather, they show teens are reporting incidents at a greater frequency. But there is still likely a significant gap between incidents that occur and those that are reported.
The teen years are hard for a lot of reasons, but with the increase of violence against girls, it's hitting them a little harder. Being there to support them through this time without judgment, even when you don't understand, can be a big help.
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There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."
This article originally appeared in May.