Whereas National Children’s Emotional Wellness Month brings attention to childhood and adolescence as key stages for good emotional and mental health development;

Whereas, during the month of September, people and organizations come together to recognize the importance of children’s emotional well-being to thrive in the home, classroom, and society;

Whereas emotional wellness is the ability to manage and express emotions effectively during stressful situations and adapt to changing and difficult circumstances;

Whereas emotional wellness impacts every step of a child’s development and is closely linked with mental, physical, and behavioral health;

Whereas 140,000 children experienced a death of a caregiver during the COVID–19 pandemic, severely impacting their emotional well-being, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, and many children also faced academic disruption and social isolation, had a parent lose their job, or suffered physical or emotional abuse at home;

Whereas, from March to October 2020, mental health emergency visits rose by 24 percent among children ages 5 to 11 and 31 percent among children ages 12 to 17;

Whereas children who use social media for more than 3 hours a day face double the risk of depression and anxiety, according to the Department of Health and Human Services;

Whereas, according to the National Institutes of Health, 53 percent of youth own a smartphone by age 11 and more than 95 percent of adolescents between the ages of 13 and 17 have access to a cell phone, and youth who receive a smartphone before age 13 face an elevated risk of adverse mental health outcomes stemming from factors such as exposure to social media, disrupted sleep, cyberbullying, and weakened family relationships;

Whereas 1 in 5 children in the United States, ranging from ages 3 through 17, suffers from an emotional, mental, or behavioral disorder, according to a 2022 National Institutes of Health National Library of Medicine report;

Whereas the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that only 20 percent of children with an emotional, mental, or behavioral disorder receive specialized care and the treatment that they need;

Whereas the second-leading cause of death among United States children and young adults is suicide, and approximately 2,000,000 children attempt suicide annually;

Whereas a child’s mental health is directly impacted by parental mental health, and parents who experience perinatal mood and anxiety disorders are more likely to have children who experience emotional problems at 2 years postpartum;

Whereas the children’s mental health workforce is vital to the emotional well-being of millions of adolescents, and it would be appropriate to celebrate the pediatricians, therapists, and mental health care providers for their invaluable service;

Whereas local nonprofit organizations such as the Extraordinary Lives Foundation offer a unique approach to awareness, prevention, and early intervention and support the mental and emotional health needs of children through classroom toolkits, therapeutic resources, and educational opportunities for families; and

Whereas spreading awareness during the month of September is crucial to increase access to social-emotional and mental health support and reduce barriers to access, including complicated and burdensome systems, limited supply of qualified mental health providers, and stigma that prevents families from seeking services: Now, therefore, be it