Mental Health Matters: TeenTalk in Schools – How Counselors Provide a Lifeline for Students

Mental Health Matters: TeenTalk in Schools – How Counselors Provide a Lifeline for Students

By Shari Shapiro

The other morning, a student walked into a TeenTalk counselor’s office without saying a word. She dropped her backpack, sat down, and stared at the floor. It took a few minutes before the tears came, but when they did, so did the words: “I don’t know who else to talk to.”

That moment is exactly why the Kids In Crisis TeenTalk program exists.

In Fairfield County, we are fortunate to have 18 TeenTalk counselors embedded in elementary, middle, and high schools. They are trained mental health professionals, but to the kids they serve, they’re something simpler: a safe adult who will listen without judgment. Every day, these counselors provide the kind of steady, compassionate prese