Behind a door off the main hallway at Sacramento’s Encina High School is a calm and peaceful room that includes a soothing fish tank, comfortable seating, soft lighting, and the sounds of birds quietly chirping.
It stands in stark contrast to the sometimes chaotic and stressful world that many young people face today.
In fact, 44% of high school students in 2021 reported they persistently felt sad or hopeless, according to an analysis published by The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
As part of its commitment to improving community health, Kaiser Permanente is helping schools proactively address youth mental health to enhance student learning and overall well-being. That support includes a recent grant to the San Juan Unified School District to help fund wellness rooms at several schools. The funding is part of $100,000 Kaiser Permanente has provided to the district since 2022 to support various mental health initiatives.
Leaving the stress behind
The wellness room at Encina High School includes different sensory activities to help students refocus their attention before they return to the classroom. Activities include guided meditation, yoga, coloring pages, and various mindfulness exercises.
It’s designed to help students who feel overwhelmed, anxious, or need a place to calm down and regulate their emotions.
“Once you walk in here it’s almost like a secret hideout. (It’s a place where) you can ground yourself before you jump back into a stressful atmosphere with assignments, tests, and even planning for the future,” said senior Alain Rodriguez. “I’m getting overwhelmed with college applications and figuring out what I want to do next.”
“To me, this is that breath of fresh air, especially when times are hard with students overstressed about exams or tests,” Rodriguez told CBS Sacramento.
Students who need more support can connect with free mental health services, including individual and group therapy. Kaiser Permanente funding also supports the school’s mental health screening of all incoming 9th grade students.
Encina Principal Greta Sholtes said she is thankful for Kaiser Permanente’s support.
“Our wellness room provides a vital space for students to prioritize their mental health and well-being,” she said. “This room not only supports our students in managing stress, but it also fosters a sense of community and resilience within our school.”
Increasing access to mental health resources
Kaiser Permanente Sacramento child psychiatrist Anjani Amladi, MD, said mental health resources, such as wellness rooms, are important for the well-being of young people.
“Mental health is just as important as physical health because we know that when stress is increased it makes everything worse,” Dr. Amladi said. “With students, that can translate to potential negative behaviors or poor academic performance.”
In addition to several wellness rooms within the San Juan Unified School District, Kaiser Permanente has also provided support for 7 wellness rooms in the Roseville Joint Union High School District as well as school wellness rooms at schools in Napa and Santa Cruz counties.
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