County column urges Los Alamos to make teen mental health priority

At Los Alamos High School, some students are carrying six or seven AP or honors classes while also juggling extracurriculars, part-time work and college planning. A county column argues that pressure demands a community response before strain turns into crisis.

Pressure inside a high-achievement culture

Daily life for many local teenagers is built around stacked schedules. Los Alamos High School’s own homepage reinforces that environment, with AP and Honors summer assignments and a course structure built around advanced academic work.

That pressure can be isolating when teens think they are supposed to manage it alone. Silence around stress, and shame around asking for help, can do real damage in a community that often prizes performance and self-reliance. Parents, coaches, teachers, faith leaders and family friends should ask about workload, stress and college worries, then stay open enough for honest answers.

The numbers already show the strain

A Los Alamos High School counseling resource page cites 2021 New Mexico Youth Risk and Resiliency Survey data for LAHS showing that 34.8 percent of students felt sad or hopeless, 18.5 percent seriously considered suicide and 4.5 percent attempted suicide.

Statewide, the picture has improved but remains serious. In November 2024, the New Mexico Department of Health said 2023 survey results showed adolescent mental health had improved after eight years of worsening, but more than one in three New Mexico students, 37 percent, still experienced persistent sadness or hopelessness. The department also said 2023 high school students were 26 percent less likely to have considered a suicide attempt and 19 percent less likely to have attempted suicide than in 2021.

The New Mexico Youth Risk and Resiliency Survey is administered in odd-numbered years to public middle and high school students, and it is part of the CDC’s Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System. Los Alamos Public Schools has used that data locally, and in February 2025 the district planned a public presentation of the 2023 county youth survey results with Dr. Rebecca Kilburn of the University of New Mexico Prevention Research Center and New Mexico Department of Health mental-health epidemiologist Dylan Pell.

What Los Alamos already has in place

Los Alamos has multiple organizations trying to help. Los Alamos JJAB was formed in 2004 and operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with an independent volunteer board. Its mission is to provide resources to the children, youth and families of Los Alamos to enhance resiliency, and its work is meant to help families navigate the maze of public and private services.

Its programs cover a broad span of needs, including resource specialists, one-circle peer groups for grades 5 through 12, the Craft Lab therapy program, restorative justice, the Seven Challenges, youth peer support and Youth Mental Health First Aid.

The county Social Services Division is part of that same network. It oversees programs and services centered on community health and well-being, helps residents navigate aid, and provides referrals for physical and behavioral health as well as other basic-needs services. It also manages contracts with regional partner agencies serving youth and families.

Los Alamos High School’s student-wellness page describes the school side of that network. It is framed as a safe space where students have the right to access mental-health resources, and in New Mexico a minor 14 years of age or older can consent to medically necessary mental-health care. The page also points students toward local therapists, Los Alamos Family Council, Mesa Vista Wellness, JJAB and hotline guidance, while inviting anonymous feedback if something is missing.

Where the holes still are

Even with those pieces in place, the larger system still leaves families doing a lot of their own navigation. A parent may know the school has wellness resources, the county can make referrals and JJAB has programs, but that does not guarantee a teenager will speak up early enough to use them. Los Alamos still leans too heavily on teenagers absorbing pressure quietly until it becomes urgent.

Local planning has already recognized the gap between services and access. A 2024 county community-services presentation identified mental and physical health services for families and seniors, and activities and programs for youth, tweens, teens and seniors, as key areas for improvement. Los Alamos Public Schools also marked May as Mental Health Month, saying mental health is part of overall well-being and urging the community to learn, act and advocate.

Los Alamos Mental Health, a local access project formed through United Way of Northern New Mexico and Self Help, Inc., focuses on helping the community access care and building a culture of empathy and support.

What parents and teens can do now

The practical first step is to start a conversation that does not sound like an interrogation. Adults in Los Alamos can ask directly about course load, sleep, college pressure, friendships, work hours and whether a student feels overwhelmed by the pace of school. The goal is not to solve everything in one talk, but to make it normal to say that six or seven advanced classes, plus everything else, can become too much.

When help is needed immediately, the options are already there:

• Call or text 988 for crisis support.
• Use the New Mexico Crisis and Access Line, which JJAB lists at (855) NMCRISIS, or 662-7474.
• Contact Los Alamos High School wellness resources or a school counselor.
• Reach out to Los Alamos County Social Services for referrals to behavioral-health and basic-needs support.
• Use JJAB, Los Alamos Family Council, Mesa Vista Wellness or Los Alamos Mental Health as entry points into care.