The Wisconsin mom helping kids cope with mental health by using tools in their 'Back Pocket'

 

MADISON, Wis. (CBS 58) -- With so many kids dealing with depression and anxiety, a former teacher decided to go back to the classroom to help students manage their mental health.

After teaching for 30 years in the Middleton School District, Shaney Andler's work now consists of helping kids and teens navigate everyday stresses. She hosts mental health workshops that focus on coping skills, something she believes many kids don't have.

"If we can get ahead of the game and get kids practicing this and integrating it into their daily life, they might not get to that sort of scary point that a lot of them are getting to simply because they don't have enough coping skills," Andler said.

Her goal is for students to walk away with tools they can keep in their "Back Pocket," which happens to be the name of the book she wrote that includes four strategies to manage mental health. The book also incorporates lessons such as accessing happy hormones, finding and recognizing gratitude, as well as ways to minimize screen time.

"When they are presented with situations in life they need to cope with, oftentimes they are frozen and don't know what to do," Andler said. "I think they get into the phone world where they are on social media and then they feel worse, but don't know why."

Her experience in the classroom and in her current role working at an adolescent psychiatric hospital helped her craft the book, but Andler says her true expertise came from watching her son Alex struggle with anxiety in middle school.

"My son struggled when he was in 7th grade, and it was a situation where he developed this debilitating anxiety over throwing up and it popped up out of nowhere. We didn't know what to do," she said, testifying to lawmakers.

Andler was one of many professionals who spoke to lawmakers on the Senate Mental Health and Substance Abuse Committee during an information hearing Tuesday about mental health programs across the state. It also was held during Mental Health Awareness Month.

She explained to lawmakers how Alex, who's now in his mid-20s, was able to work with a psychiatrist to eventually manage his anxiety -- something she wants more teens to grasp onto.

"I want kids to get this before they need it," Andler said. "And a lot of kids say they feel comfortable having the tools, even if they don't need them now. They almost have this comfort that 'I got a plan.'"

The topic of mental health comes as the issue will soon be up for debate as the Joint Finance Committee has begun to craft the state budget.

Governor Tony Evers declared 2023 the 'Year of Mental Health' and proposed $270 million over the biennium for student mental health. His budget also calls for additional investments in mental health treatment programs in rural areas, and a new position to oversee a suicide prevention program that would coordinate with efforts across the state.

It will ultimately be up to the lawmakers on the GOP-controlled JFC to decide how much funding is directed towards mental health.