Are young people comfortable discussing mental health?

52646

Total votes

15977

5-11 votes

36669

11-16+ votes

For this VoteTopic, voters explored the conversations we have around our wellbeing and decided how easy these are to have. They discussed some of the statistics around mental health in the UK today, reflected on the barriers to talking to someone about their emotions, and considered the benefits of opening up.

Primary 7-11, Secondary, 16+ & College voters were asked: “Would you feel comfortable having a conversation about your mental health?”, while Primary 5-7 voters discussed: “Is it easy to talk about your feelings?”

52,646 young people in the UK took part in this vote.

Age 5-11 voter

"Yes because if you have a negative thought bubbling inside of you, you need to get it out because then that can affect your mental health even more.”

Age 11-16 voter

“It feels uncomfortable to talk about, it can feel like you are putting a burden on your friends. The thought of how they will react might put you off.”

Age 16+ voter

"Various things can stop us talking about mental health; including the fear that people do not want to listen, or do not understand."

The age 5-7 vote was split 50/50 on whether it's easy to talk about your feelings.

5-7-year olds were discussing the question, “Is it easy to talk about your feelings?”
Pupils were split down the middle, with 50% voting 'Yes' and 50% voting 'No'.

70% of 11-16-year olds said they would feel uncomfortable having a conversation about their mental health.

All other students were voting on the question, "Would you feel comfortable having a conversation about your mental health?"
Secondary students had the greatest majority, with 70% voting 'No'
Primary 7-11, 16+ & College students also had majority 'No' votes

Some argued that they fear the response they would get from others if they discussed their mental health.

Some students said they were concerned about the response they would get if they discussed their mental health too openly
Others clarified that it depends on who the other person is; they felt more comfortable at the idea of a conversation with a trusted adult than a stranger or peer