Social Isolation and Youth

One of the greatest concerns as we move through Covid is the impact on mental health as a result of social isolation on youth. Specifically in regards to young people, the social isolation of Covid could and likely will have a significant and lasting impact.  In the aftermath of Covid 19, life will revert back to normal for most adults, but the reality is that there will be large number of our young people that will not revert back. For many there may be a very dark new normal.

To put this in context let’s look closer at social isolation.

Social Isolation As Punishment

Question: What is the most severe way that society punishes those that offend in society?
Answer:  Prison. Incarceration. Social Isolation.

A step further.

Question: What is the most severe way that the criminal justice system punishes inmates who offend in prison? 
Answer: Solitary confinement. More accurately, extreme social isolation.

Next to capital punishment solitary confinement is the most severe method of punishing those who offend within the prison system. From what I understand it it horrible. Although some may consider solitary confinement inhumane, for those adults in the prison system this punishment can usually be rationalized. Generally, they know why this social isolation is happening and they know how long the social isolation will last. Regardless of the fairness of this punishment, the situation is understandable to those involved even if they do not feel it is justified.

Youth Mental Health

Tragically, I don’t think we can say the same for a large number of young people immersed in varying degrees of social isolation. In contrast to an inmate in a penitentiary, do our young people fully understand why this is happening? Likely not. Do they know when it will end? No one does. Can they fully rationalize anything about this? It is hard for most grown adults. Will they be severely impacted for long term? Time will tell, but most experts agree that the stress of Covid, the uncertainty of our future and the social isolation will have a monumental impact on mental health of youth in far greater number than those falling seriously ill to the Covid pandemic. 

In our country and all over the world there is an unnatural condition of social isolation going on. To be clear, let’s just call it low grade mass solitary confinement. Although currently not our number one concern, this social isolation is already having a massive impact on mental health and will have greater impact in the short and long term future. With this in mind, health experts are predicting a  need for much more mental health support which may or may not be available to all families. 

Prevention is the key here. What can we as parents, teachers, school counselors, etc. do to protect our children and prevent this from becoming a youth anxiety crisis that impacts an entire generation for years to come?