Michael Lowry (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The stories of growing up in Ireland in the 1960s and 1970s sound like fables to the young people of today. Life in those times revolved around the home and school, which were not always safe places. It was the era of children being seen but not heard. Poverty and hardship were rife and young people bore a significant brunt of the suffering. It was uncommon for young people to receive any form of help for mental health problems during their formative years. In reality, the form of help available was not something anyone would willingly seek out. The result was that the mental health scars inflicted on young lives during that era were carried through to adulthood, where they manifest themselves in myriad problems people carried with them throughout their adult lives. The damage done to people in their youth became the foundation for the future. Ireland has come a very long way since the 1960s and 1970s. Thankfully, the young people of today do not have to battle alone. They are seen and heard. They have a growing support system, but the fact is that the support is not capable of reaching many of the places where young people that need it most. Across Tipperary, an area with which I am familiar, there is a serious problem in accessing mental health services.

The information contained in the mental health reform document makes for stark and distressing reading. The number of children living in abject poverty without access to education, unable to receive vital medical care for physical health issues or without a secure and safe place to call home should make every one of us in the House and everyone involved in public life hang their heads in shame. Saying that there is still more we can do is a major understatement. Until we have helped to improve the lives of all of these children and those who come after them, our duty of care and work will never be done.

If they have not already done so, every elected representative should be encouraged to read the Pathfinder project on youth mental health. The aim of the project is to establish, on a statutory basis, a cross-governmental unit. The objective of the unit would be to evaluate and assess the full spectrum of youth mental health issues. It would need to examine the appropriateness of a number of issues, ranging from assisted decision-making to the use of electroconvulsive therapy for young people. It also needs to examine the propriety of treating young people in adult psychiatric settings and the adequacy and suitability of existing services. In short, the project aims to bring our services for the treatment of mental health up to date and in line with countries that excel in providing services for their children and young people. It is nothing less than the young people of this country deserve and need.

Youth mental health is a bigger issue now than ever before. It is estimated that one in three of our young people in Ireland will meet the criteria for an anxiety disorder by the time they reach the age of 18. This is a shocking and frightening statistics. It suggests that every home in this country will have a young family member suffering from some level of unmanageable stress or some form of anxiety that could potentially impact on their future lives.

We have these predictions and we have the awareness. We also have some wonderful support systems already in place which are continuing to grow and expand. Furthermore, we have the opportunity to address the issue by means of a united approach and a statutory solution. We can do much more to support our young people. As adults, we must take time to see the world from their perspective. Unless we do, we will never understand it.

Many young people suffer trauma and mental health problems because of pressure to succeed at school. Not every child is academically inclined. Many grapple with some subjects. Class sizes in Ireland remain above of the European Union average. Teachers are not superhuman and cannot ensure that all pupils stay at the same level. Feelings of inadequacy begin to take hold in young people. Confidence in their own abilities is shaken. Anxiety and stress take root. Parents and teachers must be conscious of this and advise that help is sought if the need is seen.

Outside school, the pressure can continue. Mobile phones have become a weapon in the hands of some young people. Bullying and shaming are rife. This can be carried out anonymously which makes an impressionable young person suspect that everyone is targeting them. They begin to feel worthless and different. Feeling different as a young person is detrimental to their mental health. At home, there can be pressures within the family - financial pressures, social pressures and family problems. Their home which should be their safe haven from the world becomes a cauldron of pressure and unhappiness. These are some of the reasons that one in three of our young people will develop an anxiety disorder.

Thankfully, we have excellent service providers in Childline, Jigsaw, BeLonG To , Reachout, SpunOut and CAMHS. The report into the south Kerry CAMHS operation is disturbing and undermines much excellent work by CAMHS teams across the country. I welcome the national audit of all those mental health services which is to be undertaken by Government. These services need our continued support. Demand for services is increasing exponentially. Without them, our young people would be cast adrift.

I pay a special tribute to Comhairle na nÓg. The Thurles sub-group has been designated with the theme of mental health. Recently, members of that group took the initiative to invite local Deputies to join their meetings to discuss local and national events, and ways in which to reach and engage young people in our community. Unfortunately, Covid restrictions prevented their participation in an awareness video to mark the very welcome opening of Jigsaw in Thurles. However, their willingness to reach out and address matters of importance to young people is to be applauded. We should all share the objectives of Jigsaw. Our vision is for an Ireland where every young person's mental health is valued and supported.

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