The case for mental health screenings in schools | Amelia Kelley | TEDxRaleigh
We all want to believe our kids are okay—but what if their struggles are hiding in plain sight? In this talk, Dr. Amelia Kelley reveals how one simple but powerful tool could uncover what’s missed, connect kids to life-changing support, and prevent tomorrow’s crises before they begin.
Dr. Amelia Kelley is a trauma-informed therapist, author, podcast host, and mental health advocate with over 20 years of experience supporting emotional health and neurodiversity. As a military spouse and former school counselor, she brings a personal lens to mental health reform—advocating for early intervention and greater emotional support for children.
This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx
21 Comments
Counseling is available and pediatric docs can check Vitamin D3 and thyroid…any good adolescent psychiatrist should check these too
Another ted talk were the core message is
DONT BE POOR
tell me love whose paying for this my local school can’t afford to fix the roof
I had the honor of witnessing this talk live! Thank you Dr. Amelia for your advocacy surrounding this important topic👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
Everyone is a victim
Alexa, play "The Kids Aren't Alright" by The Offspring
This and legitimate punitive and real consequences for bullies. Like what japan and korea did against bullies. It shouldnt always be upon the victim of bulling to stop a whole issue that could be comming from the bullies home life.
Madem yours faithfully special speech good 🎉🎉🎉 God bless you and your children and I liked you and your ❤
To say this is a much needed and often stigmatized and over looked conversation is an understatement! THANK YOU Dr. Amelia for bringing this to light and using your expertise, empathy, and lived experience to help the youth, and adults even, helping everyone! So prpud and happy to have witnessed you deliver this Phenomenal talk, message, and call to action, in person. ❤🎉
The school system is not designed to support good mental health in our children. Period. The upper class wanted the school system to pump out factory workers. The children who conform best are treated the best. The system is traumatic and deeply hurts our society.
We need trauma informed teachers, admin, and systems in place to help the children. Not just a few hours in training here or there. Actual substantial systems in place. The old way of doing things is past it's prime and it wasn't even good way back when. It never encouraged or considered fully creativity, inclusion, or individual strengths and skill building or healthy and sustainable mental health practices. Teachers and admin are miserable and so are the students.
Thank you Dr. Amelia Kelley for this wonderful and hopeful talk. I would love to hear more from you.
As someone who was pulled from school because I was caught self harming by a friend. No teachers reported my cuts, no staff noticed I was starving myself, and it had got to the point I had a suicide plan. I went to treatment for 7 months for Anorexia, SI, and SH. While a check-in may not have completely transformed the outcome, if someone had checked in with 12 year old me when I first started self harm and restricting, maybe it woudn't have taken over my life. I say this because I am currectly 15 and I have lost so much time to my eating disorder, and I wish I could go back. I wish someone had noticed and asked for help. By the time my parent's noticed I was in too deep.
What an incredible talk. Such an important talk that so many of us need help on. Thank you for brining light to the topic and thank you for offering up a solution that is definitely something we can deploy. BRAVO
More often than people think, the mental health challenges experienced by younger people are actually caused by the malicious actions of their 'family'. This would need to be factored in to the mental health checks. Thanks for your good work 🙂 ❤Theresa
Excellent work!! What could be more important! Thank you for sharing your message!
Amelia, I was very touched when I heard your talk live, last August in Raleigh. Thank you for sharing your important message, and for your advocacy in shifting mental health from crisis response to early prevention. That shift has the potential to change countless lives, and I know you won’t stop until that happens. Great job with the talk, and congratulations on your special recognition by TED as an Editor's Pick!!
Mental health for all matters. 🫶 great talk my friend!
Thank you Dr. Kelley for bringing this VERY IMPORTANT issue to light.
Father please heal & protect children young & older all ages.
"Asking the right questions" to our youth is essential! Thank you for sharing this information!
What a powerful video. I want to learn more about how to support the school administrators and local representative.