As academic pressures, social expectations and personal life demands continue to increase, Teen Line, a teen-run mental health hotline, has emerged as an important resource for Pali students seeking support outside of school hours.
One of Pali’s psychiatric social workers, Theodore Lopez, explained how Teen Line fills in gaps in mental health services when school mental health staff are unavailable, especially during breaks and weekends.
“Even if we have the best rapport with students and consistent check-ins, we’re still going to be off for breaks,” Lopez said. “Just because we’re on vacation doesn’t mean your feelings and emotions are on vacation. That’s why I always promote Teen Line.”
Lopez explained that many students don’t realize how much pressure they’re carrying until it becomes overwhelming. Pali’s mental health team often sees teens juggling academic workloads, extracurriculars and personal challenges, which can make it difficult to ask for help.
“Everyone’s different, and everyone has pressure,” Lopez said. “Even just feeling like you have to get an A, that puts pressure on you. Or thinking, ‘My parents paid so much for my football camp that I have to make the team.’ So we never know how someone is feeling but we allow them to express that [at the mental health office] and help them find strategies that support their struggles.”
A current Teen Line volunteer described Teen Line’s purpose and what it’s like providing peer-to-peer support.
“It’s such a great resource, because it’s tailored to students by students,” the volunteer said. “So if schools did a better job at broadcasting Teen Line, then I think a lot of people would feel more comfortable and find it helpful to talk with someone who understands you better since they are close in age to you, but also someone who has been trained to talk with you.”
They continued by explaining how anonymity plays a major role in students feeling safe reaching out.
“It’s also all anonymous, so I go by an alias and they can go by aliases as well if they would like, and it’s like you are talking with a friend who truly cares about you, and knows what to do when you are going through a situation. Some people don’t have people their age to support them and calling or emailing us could really help.”
As part of their training, volunteers participate in sessions that help them prepare for difficult topics and real-life scenarios.
“The training process is on Tuesdays and Thursdays for three hours each session,” the volunteer said. “We go over important topics that will be addressed during the meeting, then do role plays of calls and look over past emails. The point is to see what strategies help our peers better and what steps we can take to deescalate intense situations.”
Reflecting on their experience as a volunteer, they voiced how mentoring others has taught them valuable lessons about empathy and listening, especially when peers are emotionally struggling.
“You really learn the importance of holding space, acknowledging the issue, and having empathy for them to understand where they’re coming from,” the volunteer said. “We aren’t necessarily solving their problems, but more just supporting them as much as possible and looking for solutions when we can.”
