DC youth take on mental health in new podcast

A group of D.C. students has been hard at work on a podcast about mental health and the many pressures that young people face.

This new podcast is called “Behind the Smile: Teens and Mental Health in America.”

The students who worked on it told News4 it’s really been a labor of love to help their peers who may be struggling.

“Behind the Smile” will have four episodes starting this week. They’re going to be tackling tough topics like bullying, toxic relationships, anxiety and self-esteem.

The students were part of the Marion Barry Summer Youth Employment Program. They plan to bring on different guests to give advice to young people.

“A lot of our peers and teens, especially in the DMV area, we tend to always find different ways to cope with our problems, whether that be substance abuse, sometimes running away,” said Miles Johnson-Dean, a rising sophomore at Norfolk State University. “And I feel like this podcast really gives a deep perspective of not only us, but also people who have prior knowledge to the psychology field to help us really understand what can we do to help better ourselves and really better our community.”

The podcast will have a debut celebration at the 12th Street Christian Church this Tuesday afternoon. It’ll start off on YouTube, and the students are hoping to put it on Spotify in the future.

“It’s okay to ask for help, and it’s okay to go talk to someone,” said Maliyah Thomas, a rising freshman at Fayetteville State University. “Even if you don’t want to, just talk to someone so you can release some of the stress you’re having.”