Verywell Mind and Parents release Mental Health Days & Kids survey, finds stigma and income are barriers to use of mental health days in schools

NEW YORK, Aug. 16, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Dotdash Meredith's Verywell Mind and Parents released findings from Mental Health Days & Kids: A Verywell Mind & Parents Study. The study examines the benefits and barriers of mental health days for children and how economic divides prevent access and availability to mental health days.

The Mental Health Days & Kids survey indicates favorable perception and support of mental health days for kids but concerns around legitimacy and reception from others hold steadfast. Results showed more than half of parents (55%) have let their child take a mental health day from school or other obligations, and an additional 32% say they would consider it. And while 3 in 4 parents believe mental health days are effective tools, 46% would not tell friends or family that their child had taken a mental health day.

"The pandemic, canceled activities, and remote learning contributed to an increasing kids' mental health crisis, prompting many states to permit kids to take mental health days from school so they could focus on managing their symptoms," said Amy Morin, LCSW, editor-in-chief, Verywell Mind. "While challenges like socioeconomic status and lingering stigmas still prevent widespread use, our survey results show the beginning of parents' acceptance of mental health days, which gives us hope that more parents and schools will follow suit."

Grace Bastidas, editor-in-chief of Parents, said, "Presently, over half the country does not have legislation for mental health days in schools, and even where it is mandated, 1 in 5 parents can't afford to let their kids take one. They simply can't miss work or pay for unexpected childcare, so taking a day to reset and recharge becomes a question of privilege for many families."

Findings and analysis of the survey can be found in separate stories on Verywell Mind and Parents, detailing the use and impact of mental health days as a growing number of U.S. states allow them as an excused absence from school. Some of the most significant survey results include:

Parents welcome mental health days.

• The majority (68%) of American parents are aware of mental health days and 54% know other parents (parents with children in the same age range) who allow their children to take mental health days.
• 3 in 4 parents (75%) feel mental health days can be an effective tool in managing a child's mental health, and another 74% feel that schools should offer mental health days to children. Overall, 62% feel that children should be able to take more mental health days.
• Among those who let their child take mental health days, 86% feel that mental health days have been impactful on their child's mental health with (77%) saying the impact was positive.

But a quarter cite stigma as a barrier.

• While 42% of parents have no concerns about their child taking a mental health day, 1 in 4 (26%) are concerned about stigma for either themselves or their child for taking/allowing their child to take a mental health day.
• 1 in 3 parents surveyed are concerned that mental health days are less legitimate than sick days (34%) and another 1 in 3 (31%) feel that mental health days are an excuse for children to skip school.
• 1 in 3 (31%) parents also feel their child is too young to have mental health issues.

Schools in wealthy neighborhoods are more likely to offer mental health days. 

• 55% of parents in households making $100k or more say their children's school offers mental health days, compared with 20% of those in households earning less than $100k annually.
• 91% of parents allow their child to take a mental health day if their household income is at least $100k annually and their school permits them, compared with just 45% of parents in the same income bracket but with children in schools that do not offer mental health days.

Parents let their children take mental health days where schools permit.

• 81% of parents whose children's schools offer mental health days make use of them, compared to just 45% of those whose children's schools do not offer mental health days.
• However, 84% of those who did not let their child take a mental health day would consider letting their child take a mental health day from school or other obligations if their school allowed.

Kids and schools are speaking up.

• 58% of parents say they know if their child needs a mental health day when their child asks for one while 31% feel the need when the child's school suggests it.
• When deciding whether their child needs a mental health day, 37% of parents consult either a co-parent/guardian or school counselor (35%).
• 37% of parents said their child has seen a school counselor for emotional or mental struggles.

For more information on the Mental Health Days & Kids: A Verywell Mind & Parents Study, and insights into the current state of mental health, visit Verywell Mind and Parents.

Methodology
Verywell Mind and Parents surveyed over 1,000 American parents across a wide range of demographics including age, race, income, geographic location, and sexual orientation. Respondents are all parents or guardians of a child between the ages of 8-12 (tweens) or 13-17 (teens).

About Verywell
Verywell Mind is one of the largest mental health sites in the world, serving 6 million people a year during their moments of need. The award-winning publication is committed to providing inclusive mental health information through thousands of expert-written, medically-reviewed articles across hundreds of topics and empowers readers to get the mental health treatment they deserve. Verywell Mind is part of the Dotdash Meredith publishing family.

About Parents
For nearly 100 years, Parents has provided its audience of 9 million monthly caregivers with  trustworthy advice and a supportive community as they raise the next generation of confident and compassionate kids. Parents' team of editors, writers, and experts are by your side as a current and practical source of information for the big life decisions and memory making moments in the constantly evolving scope of parenthood. Parents is part of the Dotdash Meredith publishing family.

SOURCE Verywell