TAMPA, Fla. — May is Mental Health Awareness Month.
Two teens created an organization called Mental H2O which is for students, by students.
For Garrett Livingston and Idania Rodriguez, the mission of their nonprofit is personal.
“I noticed there was a prevalent issue regarding mental health within teens and students. Ever since I could remember, starting school in Hillsborough County, I saw a lot of my friends were struggling with their mental health,” said Rodriguez, President of Mental H2O.
She said those feelings were made worse by the pandemic.
“School for a lot of us is how we communicate face-to-face, and once that was taken away, a lot of us really did have poor mental health after that because we couldn’t communicate,” said Livingston, CEO of Mental H2O.
The two connected online, Livingston is in North Carolina while Rodriguez is here in Hillsborough County.
“We came together to try and find a solution to this,” said Livingston.
They created the nonprofit Mental H2O to streamline online resources. The website includes mental health tools, information, hotlines, and volunteer/internship opportunities for students.
“If they don’t feel comfortable talking to their families about it, that’s why there is Mental H2O. You can go online and look at resources by yourself with the comfort of yourself and look at hotlines that you need that are curated and backed by research,” said Rodriguez.
“What resource do you see used the most?” asked ABC Action News anchor Lauren St. Germain.
“I see manage stress and anxiety used the most. We have mental health worksheets to manage anxiety and stress. A lot of students don’t know how to manage their stress when it comes to exams, friendships, or stuff at home,” said Rodriguez.
“Why is it important this organization is youth-run?” asked St. Germain.
“A lot of students struggle talking to adults. Personally, I know they may feel intimidated or scared of what’s to come if they talk to an adult, so the fact that we are youth-led allows students to feel comfortable with us,” said Rodriguez. “If they are struggling with isolation, if they are struggling with feeling left out, we cover all of it on our website. It does feel nice that I can help students who were once like I was in my position feeling sad and lonely.”
When they started the nonprofit four years ago, it was mainly for Hillsborough County students, but now they are expanding across the country.
