WE KEEP HEARING THAT YOUNG PEOPLE ARE INCREDIBLY DEPRESSED AND ANXIOUS. THERE AREN’T ENOUGH THERAPISTS IN THE WORLD TO DEAL WITH IT. SO WE NEED TO DO SOMETHING FASTER, EASIER AND CHEAPER. HERE IT IS!
FREE, UNSUPERVISED, UNSTRUCTURED PLAY TIME!
A study recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that “Physical activity can help alleviate depressive symptoms in teens, according to a systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical trials.”
How much physical activity do the kids need?
“10 to 15 sessions of physical activity per month were linked to the greatest mental health benefits.”
What kind of activity are we talking about?
“Engaging in physical activity three times per week was linked with the greatest reduction in depressive symptoms, and the effect was greater when the physical activity was unsupervised than when it was fully or partially supervised in the studies.”
This is a type of FREE THERAPY. Why isn’t it more common?
Is there a way to get this incredibly low-cost “therapy” to lots and lots of young people a.s.a.p., considering the mental health crisis?
There is. You know we always recommend schools stay open for mixed-age, no-devices free play, with a Let Grow Play Club. (Free implementation guide here.) The adult(s) present have the lightest possible footprint. They do not organize the games or micro-manage. The kids are as close to unsupervised as our litigious culture allows.
And not only does this give kids a time and place to run around — they are also off their devices. Play Clubs are a No Phone Zone.
We recommend Play Clubs for elementary and middle schools, but if your high school starts one, send us stories!
Meantime, we also suggest finding other Let Grow-inclined families and having the kids run around outside together while you do something else, inside. (Feel free to visit Raising Independent Kids, our Facebook Group, and announce you’re looking for folks near you.)
This is a movement — actually, a movement-movement — whose time has not only come, it’s crucial: Kids are suffering and at least part of the solution is straightforward, free of cost, and, now, scientifically proven:
Let. Them. Play.
The problem seems to be that both parents working, after school and sports programs are used as childcare. In this economy both parents feel the need to work to get by. I don’t know the answer, but allowing more kids to be lactchkey kids just gets cps involved. Even when they are “old” enough to be home alone, many states state that they can’t mind younger siblings. Perhaps neighborhood coops where each family takes a turn at being that day’s designated parent for all.