Resilience, Recovery, and the Importance of Early Support
The experiences you have in early childhood, both good and bad, shape you. However, nothing is set in stone. It is precisely during childhood and adolescence that you undergo significant development, and your brain is still highly malleable. This idea, that people are not defined by their early experiences, but that change and recovery are possible, has always fascinated me.
Recovery through building positive experiences
When life feels heavy, it can be hard to notice anything good at all. Stress, anxiety, or difficult past experiences can take up so much space that positive moments fade into the background. For many young people struggling with mental health issues, this isn’t because good things never happen, but because difficult experiences take up most of the mental and emotional space.
Supporting youth for a mentally healthier future
How can we get to a turning point, to a mentally healthier and happier generation and society? Lasting change takes time, political prioritisation, and structural investment, but a societal need and desire for change is evident.
Quietly Struggling: Creating Space for Youth Mental Health with the SELFIE intervention
I move between two worlds: the therapy room, where I meet individual young people, and research meetings, where we talk about systems, data, and interventions. In both spaces I see the same reality: youth mental health is under pressure, and many young people feel left alone with their worries.
Learning from Early Intervention Models Across Europe and Beyond
Isaac Searle is a member of the YOUTHreach Youth Advisory Group and is a British student in Social Sciences studying in Brussels, Belgium. He attended the Nordic headspace 2025 conference with support from the University of Birmingham. Read his blog here:
Meet Daria, Youth Advisory Group member
This is a short story about experiences that shaped me, lessons I’ve learned and the incredible ways in which volunteering and international projects can change the way you see the world… and yourself.
Reimagining Youth Mental Health Support: The Promise of Moderated Online Social Therapy (MOST)
Recently, there has been a rise in articles with headlines like “Gen Z is increasingly turning to ChatGPT for affordable on-demand therapy”.
Mental health in Italy between emergency and hope: the case of the Psychologist Bonus and the European YOUTHreach project
700,000 applications for the Psychologist Bonus this year: there will not be enough funds for everyone, but European projects such as YOUTHreach offer new hope for young people.
Why aren’t young people happy with the care they receive?
During my internship at a school for children with special needs, I was struck by something I did not expect.
Creating safe spaces through art and peer support
As both an artist and an experienced expert of mental health challenges, I want to keep exploring how creativity can be a bridge between people.