Walter reed, there was nowhere else to go. This is a conversation that i have had with myself or anyone unable to address their depression. They start to have dark conversations about selfharm. Things continue to tick off the list. I kind of hit the Emergency Brake further. I cant be a blueprint for my children. I cannot let them be left alone or to not understand why he wouldve done that. Earlier in the year two friends of mine, one had a stroke and the other had a bad heart attack. They both had Young Children and took their lives. It was very devastating. Not because they were weaker or i was strong, i got lucky. I knew that i needed help. I didnt know what that looked like. It was presented. I reluctantly was like i dont need to go in there. I figured out this is the right choice and that is where i ended up. I know this is so hard to talk about. Just to be clear, you are saying that you had thoughts of harming yourself . Yeah. Ive said that publicly. At first i didnt. I thought at that time if i could be of most servers are helpful to people, i have to be fully honest. That is what i decided to do. It would be my goal if somebody could hear this kind of a message or conversation that we are having an might make a different choice. If you did have a team around you, a family around you that loves you very much who describe a bit of a intervention. What did they say to you to get you to make that final step and go and get help and check yourself in for treatment . They just said or it just really got to that fork in the road. It was like what i have no idea what life would look like if i didnt take advantage of this amazing opportunity or what could possibly happen, i could possibly get better, even though i thought i couldnt. I decided i will take the chance. If you also took the chance to speak publicly about it. How worried were you about being honest about what you were really going through . When i got released where i was going, it was a big story. I assumed that would be the end of my career. I dont know what kind of impact that would have a my family or anything. I really didnt know what would happen at that point. Were you scared . Yes. I was desolate for the first couple of weeks. Can you talk about what it was like, the first few days of being in treatment . Just meeting with people there. Meeting other people that were there as well. My family would visit. My brothers would visit. I really didnt like to have a lot of conversations. I wanted to be left alone and to stay in bed. Were there ever moments where you were seeking treatment and you started to lose hope . Every day that ends with y. Every day i felt like there wasnt any hope. Like what do i have left . Feeling like there was no hope is what kind of drove me to that place. Thats why i want people to know no matter how much it might stink, im begging you, its not that bad. Even if you think that is true youve got to hold on. You cannot imagine how much better it can get if you make the investment and the commitment to hold that line and work to get better on that. What should people who are suffering with depression know about the treatment that you have received . What was it like every day . Was it a grueling or hopeful process . To anyone feeling that right now, i am one of yours. I know how much pain it is. I dont really see more different of a Health Challenge like cancer or a heart you know, i have Heart Challenges too. It is real. Somebody may not look at you physically. Its like having nothing wrong physically, but you cannot get out of bed. It is a real thing. Something is wrong with you, but it is something that needs to be addressed. If you dont, you run the risk of a very dark conversation with yourself. You have to promise yourself that you must never ever harm yourself. If you are able to make that promise to yourself and to the people that you love that allows you to okay, that is soft. Now i can face the depression and some of these other issues. You know that you are able to deal with it. You have talked about the fact that you made a choice in that moment. What was the choice that you made . It wasnt that it was a choice made to me. It was a life that i thought was gone. It was actually still there. That gave me the kind of joy, this idea that i get a second chance. I am able to be a part of their lives. I am able to get back into my life. That gave me something to really double up my effort to really get together. Your doctors advised you to stay off of social media. How important was that . Everybody does. Anybody Walking Around the corner im sure would say stay off of social media. I have stayed off, but i made the mistake to check it out either somewhere in late november or early december of 22. It wasnt the things said, it was the volume. Just where is this coming from . Where can there be so much of this . Its like with this be the rest of my life . Look at what its done to me. More importantly what has this done to my family . My kids are afraid. They left social media behind. We stopped posting Family Pictures and things like that. It is just astonishing that so many people want to take the time to hop on mine and say things to a stranger who never did anything to you, especially members of my family. Do you think social media may have made your depression worse at the time . Yes. It is an accelerant. Are you back on it . Selectively. Maybe to post something, but i dont go around like a, let me find something. You know there are going to be some mean things that. I dont verify it myself. I just assume it is going on. I would warn anybody that ive never noticed anyone to believe their Mental Health has been supported by spending any kind of time on social media. If they do, i would love to meet who that is. Lets go back to your recovery. At a certain point the medical team came to you and said you were in remission. It is amazing that you use that exact word. The lead doctor sat down. I was thinking whats this . He was like we have concluded your depression is in remission. I was like really . To me it felt like you are being pardoned or kind of like really . I had no idea. I didnt know how long i would be there for two people observed the same things that i feel and how i am feeling differently inside . One that was validated it was like really . That was the second part of the 12 punch that really allowed me to fully just get together and realize i do have a life to come back to. What was it like once you left and you started reentering life . I think i remind myself just how grateful i am. It is really just grateful. Anyone who has put themselves up to the brink realizes just how awful it feels. It is so dark and so awful. To be able to get that close to it, i dont ever want to get back to that. I will never allow myself to come back to that. I have had a lot of challenges. My father over the summer just collapsed in the kitchen and died for 20 minutes and was on a ventilator in a coma. I got the message actually walking out of the very room that we are in. I found out what happened. I jumped in the car and i drove up to my parents house and visited my father unconscious in the hospital. I never had a chance to have a conversation with him. My father would visit again and again to me at walter reed. Now it was my duty and my honor to visit with him. After such a catastrophic heart attack he has made a virtual 100 recovery. Just finally, senator, you couldve tried to deal with this by not being completely honest about everything that you were going through. Why has it been so important for you to be 100 honest with the American Public in your constituents about your Health Journey over the past year . It is a risk that i wanted to take because i wanted to help people. I dont want them to suffer or put any kinds of despair on them. If that conversation helps, im going to continue to do that. We make our thanks for that conversation. If you are struggling with suicide and Crisis Hotline has support. Call or check 988 or visit 988lifeline. Org. When we come backs social media to the cause of our childrens Mental Health . . To duckduckgo on all your Devie Duckduckgo comes with a builtn engine like google, but its pi and doesnt spy on your searchs and duckduckgo lets you browse like chrome, but it blocks cooi and creepy ads that follow youa from google and other companie. And theres no catch. Its fre. We make money from ads, but they dont follow you aroud join the millions of people taking back their privacy by downloading duckduckgo on all your devices today. I think hes having a Midlife Crisis join the mim not. Of people taking back their privacy you got us tmobile Home Internet lite. After a week of streaming they knocked us down. To dial up speeds. Like from the 90s. Great times. All i can do say is that my life is pre i like watching the puddles gather rain. Hey, your mom and i procreated to that song. Oh, ew i think youve said enough. Why dont we just switch to xfinity like Everyone Else . Then you would know what year it was. I know what year it is. Welcome back. A Bipartisan Group of 42 Attorney General is suing mehta, arguing the social Media Company design features to purposely addict children and teens. Of the 95 of teens 1317 report using a Social Media Platform with more than a third saying they use social media almost constantly. Joining me now are the chair and vice chair of the National Governors Association Republican governor spencer cox of utah and gerrit polis of colorado. The disagree issue is projecting dialogue. Welcome to Meet The Press. It is great to have you both here. Lets Start Talking about the youth Mental Health crisis. The Surgeon General has called it the defining Public Health issue of our time. Governor cox, do you agree with the Surgeon General . If i absolutely agree and i want to give a quick shout out to Governor Phil Murphy of new jersey, the former chair who took this issue on as his initiative. We absolutely believe this is the issue of our time. We have seen a 63 increase in persistent loneliness and sadness among young women especially over the past 1012 years. Weve seen Suicide Rates going up, depression, anxiety and selfharm skyrocketing. What we know is that it corresponds with social media becoming iniquitous and cell phones becoming ubiquitous with our teenagers. The numbers you cited from the Surgeon General are deeply troubling and really saddening. We have to take control of this. We are going to talk about social media and i appreciate bringing it up. Let me have you weigh in on how the Surgeon General has characterized the enormity of this crisis. I think people of all ages are facing increased pressure and stress, especially coming out of the pandemic. In colorado we have the i met a program that provides free counseling sessions. We have had over 51,000 sessions with young people who often do not know where to turn or how to access the professional help they need to avoid depression, anxiety risk of selfharm. The need is great to make sure people of all ages have access to the Mental Health support services that they need to thrive. Lets talk about social media. Governor cox, you have put a lot of blame as you gently and on social media. Utah became the first day in the nation to pass legislation to limit teens use of social media. Why do you think it was the right move and what do you think it has accomplished so far . Again, we want to be data driven. We have been working with experts across the country, the smartest people have looked at all of the data and have concluded. And i think its obvious to anyone who spends any time on social media or has skin i have for my kids. Ive seen what happens to them as they have spent time on social media. This is absolutely causing these terrible increases that we are seeing in anxiety, depression and selfharm. By the way it is bad for adults also, but especially for young people. If you saw a 63 increase in cancer amongst young women in our country, we would be moving Heaven And Earth to change that. We have kind of sat on our hands and said i guess this is the new normal. That is unacceptable in utah. We have passed the most aggressive legislation to hold social Media Companies accountable. We have sue meta and ticktock. They have taken a page out of the tobacco lobby. They know this is harming our kids. They are covering it up and doing Everything Possible to take advantage of our kids and we are not going to stand for it. We are still pushing forward. We are confident that we are going to do everything we can to protect our kids. Is there anything to be gained from social media . Could kids find a sense of community there . Could they find a sense of identity there . Do you see any upside . Sure, yes. There is definitely an upside when used in the correct way. That is not how these apps are designed. That is the problem. They are designed to addict, very intentionally. These addictive features make it impossible for kids to get the benefit out of that without all of the downside. The access that they get to terrible content, the rabbit holes they end up going down. These algorithms that are destroying lives. Somebody has to step in. We are not trying to ban social media completely. We are trying to make it safe. Governor polis, would you be open to more restrictions in your state . I think the responsibility belongs with parents and not the government. I have a 12yearold and a nine yearold and we do not allow them on social media yet. We will have a conversation with our 12yearold soon in an appropriate way. I think fundamentally that they cannot be the parents. I certainly agree with the diagnosis that governor cox did and i have some sympathy. I do think the government cannot parent kids. It is up to parents to step up. In many cases many parents do not understand the full threat of Different Social Media for their kids. I think more parents need to step up and take on the responsibility. He met with talk about a recent study five children who identify as lesbian, or nonheterosexual is about two times more likely than heterosexual peers to feel consistently sad or hopeless and almost onefor mac attempted suicide during the previous year. Governor polis, how do you address that piece . First, in your question about the upside of social media there is a Great Potential for finding community. Imagine growing up the only kid or thinking you are the only person in the world and finally there are others like you and being able to work through those issues with you. There is also a need to show we accept and love everybody. Schools educate everybody regardless of who you are in every part of the state and in every part of the country. We need to learn the social and emotional needs of every student. Governor cox, user has joined 21 other states banning general farming care including hormone treatments. What do you say to members of the medical community, to families, kids who identify as being transgender who say this type of gender affirming care helps to benefit their Mental Health and makes them feel less sad and less depressed . I would say there is still debate in the medical community about whether or not that is true. We put a pox on both surgeries and those normal therapies until we can get more information. Until that debate can be settled and we are not doing more harm than good. I want to respond to something Governor Polis said. I believe parents should be responsible for social media. It is the parents asking for help. They are desperate to get more help. What these companies have done is find ways to get around parents. We are not trying as governments apparent these kids. We want parents to actually have control over what their kids are able to do with social media. I want to end on a personal note with both of you. Governor cox, i will start with you. You just hopefully her mind conversation with senator fetterman. The male suicide rate is four times higher than it is for women and they make up about 80 of all suicides. Governor cox, you have thought talked about experiencing suicidal thoughts when you were younger. Can you share what do you think made the difference for you . I have and i want to be very open and transparent. When i was a teenager my parents got divorced. I thought the world would be a better place without me. I was very fortunate to be surrounded by good people who care deeply about me. They got me the help that i needed. Here is what i want to say. As dark as it was, i am so glad that i say. To anybody eliciting, we need you to stay. There is help available. You can call the 988 helpline. Please stay. We need all of you. Life is worth living and against so much better. Governor polis, i want to give you the last word. We know suicide by firearm is also increasing. What is your message to people struggling in this new year . Small things a policy can do. We had a Waiting Period in colorado, three days to purchase a weapon to help eliminate Impulse Suicides and get people to think about it. I think the key thing is the stigmatizing and talking about it. We all know people in our lives who ended their life that way. My best childhood friends brother committed suicide. I think the first thing to do is to talk about it. For too long suicide was not discussed and people were left to suffer a low. I think breaking down the barriers, having those discussions and making sure people have access to the help that they need when they need it is a critical piece. This is such an important conversation and critical information. Governor cox and polis, thank you both very much. When we come back we have a special panel of experts on the front lines of this crisis. The panel is next. Panel is next. Getting sick and tired of cold and flu products that dont work . Biovanta is the only number one physicianrecommended product chosen over all others, including tylenol, mucinex, zicam, and nyquil dayquil. The Combat Symptoms and boosts immunity. Biovanta really works. Getting sick and tired of cold and flu products that dont work . Biovanta is the only number one physicianrecommended product chosen over all others, including tylenol, mucinex, zicam, and nyquil dayquil. The Combat Symptoms and boosts immunity. Biovanta really works. In order for Small Businesses to thrive, they need to be smart, efficient, savvy. Making the most of every opportunity. Thats why Comcast Business is introducing the Small Business bonus. For a limited time you can get up to 1000 prepaid card with qualifying internet. Yup, 1000. So switch to Business Internet from the company with the largest fastest reliable network. Give your business a head start in 2024 with this great offer. Plus, ask how to get up to 1000 prepaid card with qualifying internet. Welcome back. We have a expert panel joining us. Former congressman Patrick Kennedy and founder of the kennedy form. Dr. Turner, the chief Health Officer of the crisis helpline and founder of the hidden component and host of real pod. Thank you so much for being here for this really important conversation. Congressman kennedy, you have been open about your struggles with addiction. You write about the fact that your late father was not pleased with your decision to speak out. How did you push past that fear and why was it important to share your story . Like a lot of his generation these were very shameful issues. He suffered terribly from the trauma of seeing both brothers assassinated. My mother suffered from terrible alcoholism. It wasnt anything we felt we could address. Frankly it is still the attitude that we cant really fix this problem. That is the difference between our attitudes yesterday to today. We can make a enormous difference and reduce the number of suicides dramatically if we count this as a Public Health approach. We can reduce overdoses. We had 200,000 last year. Whenever kept in touch with anyone of them. 95 are those that are successful later on in overdosing. Why dont we wrap our arms around these people . In other illnesses we follow them outside of the e. R. We employ chronic a scare. In addiction, suicide and major depression it is acute episodic treatment. In other words we do not deal with these issues is chronic. Furthermore, we do not pay for these illnesses is chronic based. Finally we basically do not pay. There is a reason as a pediatrician, dr. Mike turner, that there is a 1000 likelihood you are going to be out of network if your child is seeing a Mental Health provider, versus any other illness. That means the families have to pay a lot more to get care. Let alone pay cash, which tragically is the way most people have paid for this care. We are going to delve into that issue, the lack of access to healthcare. I do want to stay on the big point that you are making of there is no National Plan. Victoria, you obviously have been active in the effort to destigmatize Mental Health. You talk about your own struggles with depression and anxiety when you were an athlete in college. What is your message to people . What should they take from your struggle . I think there are so many students and athletes now struggling then we know. Personally for me i felt like i checked the boxes i was supposed to check. Going to this prestigious college, having a starting spot. We won a pac12 championship. Everything on paper and on my social media looks picture perfect yet i was the lowest ive ever been mentally. I wasnt prepared to experience those emotions. The conversation was so stigmatized that i viewed it as a weakness. For someone who wanted to be an over achiever and succeed in societal terms associated with weakness or feeling like i maybe would fail in some way if i admitted i was struggling, i didnt want to do that. That prevented me from seeking help. Eventually i got to a point where i felt i had no one else to turn. From there i began learning about the insane pressure all students are under. That it wasnt just me that was this shameful outlier who should feel embarrassed. This was a major crisis and that is what led me to the applicants advocacy work that i do now. That is the power of finding community. Exactly what victoria was saying. She was able to open up to someone. What is going on here . Why dont we have a National Plan . This has hit us at such a record pace. We as americans have been dealing with suicide and depression. I think the combination with the pandemic and the isolation of the pandemic we are not prepared on the prevention side. We are not equipping our First Responders. Who are our First Responders . They are parents. Our parents able to have these conversations with their children . I have two teens myself. Can you say to your child you are struggling. I see it. Have are you having thoughts of death or dying . The same thing for teachers and school counselors, are we equipping them to be at the front lines . You talk about prevention and i think about social media, exactly what i was talking to the governors about. How should i address that . I love what governor cox said. If this were any other issue we will move Heaven And Earth. With cobit we responded right away. The longest impact is going to be Mental Health yet we dont treat it. We had anthony vouching on their every night. When are we going to get that same level of attention . I love the fact that victoria got here. Most young people cannot. There are not enough providers. There are no protections to make sure Insurance Companies and frankly the government treats these illnesses just like any others. Yes. Access. Senator fetterman story was so powerful. He is coming forward. He is addressing the stigma. He is talking about his Mental Health, but he had a place to go. Unfortunately its black and brown peers, male and females would not necessarily have a walter reed to check into. Fortunately he did, but so many others do not have access to that level of care. Victoria, how do you spread the word and get better access to care, especially for young people . I think social media can be a part of the problem, but also the solution. If we can show up authentically online, share our own struggles and breakup this Highlight Reel that is only contributed to this issue that can make a big difference. Im grateful that we have other powerful voices, experts and medical professionals using social media to share tools and takeaways to help others. Stay with us. We will continue this conversation on the other side of the break. When we come back as rates of anxiety and depression skyrocket americans are not getting the Mental Health treatment they need. What work can be done to improve access to Mental Health next. Xt. Detect this living with hiv, i learned that i can stay undetectable with fewer medicines. Thats why i switched to dovato. Dovato is a complete hiv treatment for some adults. No other complete hiv pill uses fewer medicines to help keep you undetectable than dovato. Detect this most hiv pills contain 3 or 4 medicines. Dovato is as effective with just 2. If you have hepatitis b, dont stop dovato without talking to your doctor. Dont take dovato if youre allergic to its ingredients or taking dofetilide. This can cause serious or lifethreatening side effects. If you have a rash or allergic reaction symptoms, stop dovato and get medical help right away. Serious or lifethreatening lactic acid buildup and Liver Problems can occur. Tell your doctor if you have kidney or Liver Problems or if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or considering pregnancy. Dovato may harm an unborn baby. Most common side effects are headache, nausea, diarrhea, trouble sleeping, tiredness, and anxiety. Detect this i stay undetectable with fewer medicines. Ask your doctor about switching to dovato. Welcome back. Dr. Turner, we are talking about a lack of access. Talk about what the Crisis Text Line is and why that is aimed at trying to improve . All the time. It is a National Nonprofit that provides free Mental Health support and crisis intervention. We are textbased only, meeting our teens where they are. Anyone can text help to 741741 and be received by a volunteer trained live crisis counselor supervised by Mental Health professionals in english and spanish. We are addressing the bilingual issues. We are accessible to teens. Over 70 of our textures are under the age of 24. We are reaching that vulnerable population and the youth of color and lgbtq plus as well. Congressman, youve talked about a lack of access and the fact that there is no National Strategy. What should a National Strategy look like . Will we have an Emergency Fema comes in. They have housing, job opportunities. We need a strategy that understands housing is critical to address the homeless epidemic with people with severe Mental Illness. You need not only access to treatment, the treatment needs to be evidencebased. We are still behind the curve where we have providers practicing behavioral therapy for a specific diagnosis or that has been shown to have a greater outcome. If we get better outcomes, i guarantee people will want Mental Health more. They will see the transformation that can happen if people are delivered, evidence base. Youre also making the argument there is a lack of access to good healthcare . Quality and outcomes. Lets just be honest, we are playing catchup. We have so underfunded the system for so long. Why isnt it a big surprise . We dont pay them a fraction. Medicare and medicaid only fraction what they pay other professionals. Dr. Matt turner, you are at the lower end. Commercial insurers take 70 of that. By the end of the day people providing this care get paid peanuts. We have a Workforce Issue is what he is saying. We need to not just increase that pipeline and start paying providers with a me to be paid, ensuring there are providers for all different demographics. Quite honestly people sometimes feel more comfortable speaking to someone who looks like cells. I do want to talk about this moment. We are heading to the new year. You have spoken very personally about how at the height of your College Career you experienced burnout. I think heading into the new year is a time where people just feel burned out. Why are people so livable in these moments . What is your message to them about getting through the tough times that they might be feeling right now . I think we all can relate. I think it should be the happiest time of year. You inflict the guilt of i dont deserve to be feeling this way. Really it is so important to prioritize ourselves. I recently moved my Phone Charger to the office. I wake up and i look at social media. I go to bed and look at social media. Im constantly comparing online and im having too much information at one time. I think its having open conversations and looking at our habits. You talk about how damaging the comparison can be when you open up a social media app and looking at someones life that looks perfect. Completely. Students these days talk more with bombs and tongues. Postmillennials are the first generation born and raised in the exclusive social media environment. You have 5000 friends online, you show up to campus and dont feel you have one person to connect with. We are more connected than weve ever been yet disconnected at the same time. You talk about how challenging the holidays can be. The Surgeon General has warned about loneliness. The maglev go back to the idea of access. Right now in the crisis got so many denials of care. You remember Purdue Pharma and families during bottles at the facklers. Purdue started the fire. The fire was raging. Insurance companies and the federal government couldve put out the flames, but did they . No. The race of denial, preauthorization, retroactive review means they are squeezing the system even when we need Mental Health the most. I want to thank the biden administration. They have put teeth into the information and parity act. There are going to come to the hill and try to push that back in the next few months. I am signaling you. This fight is in those areas. Those watching, thats where we need to come forward as consumers and families of consumers. Dr. Matt turner, the congressman is talking about what has been done. What more needs to be done . We have to invest in the crisis continuum. We have prevention all the way out to acute and chronic care. It is building out the system and meeting the needs with mobile crisis units, with organizations like Crisis Text Line and 988 so that everyone gets the right care at the right time for the right diagnosis. Victoria, finally to you, your message to young people watching this and might be feeling the loneliness . That they are worthy of seeking help. You dont have to get to a place where you are diagnosed with Mental Illness to have that tough conversation. To make that appointment or combined in a loved one at the very least. Reach out and let someone know how you are feeling. You all have such a powerful message. Thank you for making us smarter and better. When we appreciate when we come back, what to expect from this broadcast in 2024. 2024. Before we let you go the team here and Meet The Press and i want to leave you with our vision for the new year as we approach what would undoubtedly be a complicated election season. We will seek to help you navigate it all by highlighting voices from across the political spectrum and beyond. We will hear from the candidates and talk to community leaders, authors and advocates and everyone in between to build upon the great tradition of the show which is about accountability and earning your trust. Meet the press has always been a place for Diverse Voices and challenging conversations. It is essential to our democracy and who we are as a country. On behalf of everyone here we wish you a happy and healthy new year. That is all for today. Thank you for watching. We will be back next week, because if it is sunday it is Meet The Press. As we ring in the new year all eyes turn to iowa