Moama Anglican Grammar Newsletter

From our Head of Pastoral Care

Concerns for mental health of young viewers

I am writing this week with the understanding that ‘It takes a village to raise a child’ and from this viewpoint, I want to raise your awareness of a TV series currently streaming on Netflix, 13 Reasons Why.  Mental health experts across Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Canada are warning that viewing this TV series may harm children and young people, particularly those who are currently experiencing mental health challenges.  In Australia, headspace, the national suicide media initiative, Mindframe, and Mental Health First Aid all advocate strongly that the series exposes viewers to risky suicide content which may lead to a distressing reaction by the viewer.  They argue that the series risks glorifying suicide and triggering the potential for suicide contagion. I have watched the series and share their concerns. 

 

The plot of 13 Reasons Why is centred on the suicide of a teenage girl and, whilst I certainly acknowledge that the 13 episode series raises a plethora of issues that young people need to talk about with the significant adults in their lives, such as peer pressure, bullying, sex and sexuality, self-harm, alcohol and drug use, it also depicts disturbing scenes of graphic violence, including rape, and disturbingly confronting scenes of suicide method and means.

 

Targeted at teenagers, it is my opinion that this TV series is definitely not suitable for Primary School or Lower Secondary School children and there is considerable controversy and debate around its suitability for older teenagers as well.  However, among the numerous articles and reviews that I have read about the series, the advice that resonated most strongly for me came from Dr. Claire Kelly, Youth Programs Manager of Mental Health First Aid Australia who said: "Telling young people they shouldn’t watch it may reinforce the idea that suicide shouldn’t be discussed. Instead, it’s important for the adults around them to be ready to talk to them about the content, and about what they should do if they or one of their friends needs help."  With this advice in mind, I highly recommend that parents and guardians of teenagers under the age of 16 either: (1) view the series themselves prior to deciding its suitability for their son/daughter to watch; or (2) watch the series with their teenager and discuss the sensitive and confronting issues with him/her as they arise.  Of course, given the series has been streaming for over a month now, the chances are that your son/daughter may have viewed it already or may be currently viewing it.  If so, please take the time to discuss the issues raised by the series with them. 

 

To assist adults to have these important conversations, MHFA Australia has created two excellent documents to talk about the series with their teens.  The first presents possible points for discussion; the second a summary of the plot and explanation of what material may be distressing or potentially triggering for vulnerable young people:

13-reasons-why-plot-talking-points[1].pdf
13-reasons-why-plot-summary[1].pdf

You may also be interested in the information about the series from headspace and Common Sense media located below:

 

Also, please be aware that the series has been based on the young adult novel of the same name by Jay Asher, which has been described as ‘intense’, ‘dark’ and ‘disturbing’ by Common Sense Media:

Additionally, advice re: how to set parental controls on your Netflix account can be found here: https://help.netflix.com/en/node/264

 

Should you wish to discuss the television series further OR should you have concerns for your child’s mental health and wellbeing, please don’t hesitate to contact me or our School Counsellors, Mrs Jo Webb and Mrs Stacey Warren. 

 

Libby Barnes

Head of Pastoral Care