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In the face of academic, social and other stressors, young people can be especially burdened by the pressure to succeed. Add to these the pervasive demands of busyness, and well-being becomes an even more difficult topic to take seriously

In 2021, the Children's Hospital Association, American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry declared a state of emergency in child and adolescent mental health.

Dr. Stacy Garrett-Ray will always remember the look of joy and wonder on a young girl's face the first time she heard the human heart through a stethoscope. "To let a child listen to your heart, it's a very touching experience," said Garrett-Ray, senior vice president and chief community impact officer for Ascension. The health system's Foundation for Health Equity connects middle schoolers with a day of hands-on health care-related activities through its #GOALS (Go Out and Love Science) program.

"Children require the presence of at least one caring person who can provide support for healthy development and learning, engender trust and love, and convey compassion, understanding, respect and interest." When the time comes to transition from an alternative school setting back to their original or traditional school, students at risk often struggle. Challenges include falling behind academically, returning to negative influences from peer groups, and difficulty readjusting to a less structured environment.

As I approach 30 years in clinical practice, walking into our SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Pediatrics and Integrative Medicine office at SSM Health DePaul Hospital in St. Louis reminds me of the poem I wrote as my mission statement when I was only dreaming of such a possibility.

I know from being an assistant football coach that there are endless formations, designs, schemes and combinations that can be part of an offensive playbook. Yet, it boils down to what a quarterback can do with a football, which is to run it, hand it off or throw it. Life, too, is full of a myriad of philosophies to follow. There are many ways you can run your life. You can fill your playbook with countless plays.

Some parents may notice that their teens seem more stressed every school year. And they are correct. According to The American Institute of Stress, 27% of U.S. teens feel extreme stress during the school year, approximately 18% experience an anxiety disorder caused by stress, and almost 30% report feeling depressed.

New Mexico: The Land of Enchantment, where you can find many opportunities for adventure but very few opportunities for our children. In 2010, the Annie E. Casey Foundation reported that the children of New Mexico ranked 46th in children's well-being in the country, with 63% graduating high school and 80% of fourth graders falling below the proficient reading level.

Medical misinformation used to arrive on the back of a magazine or matchbox cover. Ads for questionable, gimmicky products were often clunky, unsophisticated and met with an eye roll. "I'm not going to be able to go buy a belt and put it around my waist and have it jiggle, and that's going to suddenly make me have that beautiful hourglass figure," said Robin Henderson, chief executive of behavioral health at Providence Oregon.

Two high chairs stand next to an assortment of wheelchairs and walkers in the corner of the dining room at Trinity Woods.

Transition is both a verb and a noun. In its most general sense, it means, according to The Merriam-Webster Dictionary, "a change or shift from one state, subject, place, etc. to another," and the "period or phase in which such a change or shift is happening."

"Nothing gives me greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth"

As a child, whenever Christmas drew near, I looked forward to watching A Charlie Brown Christmas on TV. In the holiday special, Charlie Brown is feeling down despite the Christmas season and bemoans its commercialism.

Childhood is a time of growth, learning, wonderment and hope, filled with the potential of a full and prosperous life ahead.

"Hope is not a strategy!" That refrain ricocheted across system leadership offices from a tough-as-nails executive, known for her grueling questioning of senior leaders.

In 1992, German artist Gunter Demnig conceived an art project as part of an initiative to honor Roma and Sinti victims of the Holocaust.

Recent conversations with David Addiss and Heather Buesseler, from the Task Force for Global Health's Focus Area for Compassion and Ethics (FACE), reminded me of the synodal process the Catholic Church has undertaken.

For those who steward the Catholic health ministry, today's leadership demands constant assessment of how decisions strengthen or limit the influence of our Catholic identity.

As the United States mourns the death of its 39th President, so too it honors and carries forth his legacy. In President Jimmy Carter's farewell address to the nation when leaving office in 1981, he reminded us that every American has "a right and a duty to help shape the future course of the United States."

The Catholic health ministry has long used its healing presence in communities to help build peace in society. Today, that presence and ministry are as critical as ever. It requires Catholic health providers and all those who support or work within the ministry to understand the unique role and opportunities that exist to help heal the political divisions in society, just as the ministry heals the physical needs of our communities.