ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) -A St. Charles County teen is hoping to help others navigating the complexities of their own mental health by sharing the story of her own struggle.
Alyssa Maloney, 18, said given her personality, academics and social life, no one ever would have suspected she was facing an internal battle that started to become difficult to manage.
“For someone like me, it’s so easy to get caught up in the mindset of you can do it on your own, you’re a superhuman, you can do this,” said Maloney. “But sometimes you don’t have to be strong, sometimes being strong is reaching out.”
It’s a lesson Maloney is now impressing upon others, as she works to publicly share her struggle with mental health during her junior year of high school.
“I didn’t really want to reach out to family or friends because I thought I could handle it alone,” she said. “There was such a stigma around it, I was like, I don’t want people to worry about me, like I’m okay, it’s okay. But in my head there was so much going on…I should have reached out.”
Maloney said the impacts of social isolation stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic began to weigh on her, as she struggled with anxiety and depression. Certain family issues, she said, made the feelings even harder to manage.
Her mother, Jenna Rakers, began noticing some behavioral changes at home.
“She would isolate herself in her room rather than wanting to be downstairs with me and the kids,” said Rakers. “I decided to see if therapy might help her with some coping strategies.”
Maloney said she spent months in therapy, but the feelings persisted. None of her family or friends at school knew the extent of the mental turmoil she was facing.
“It’s hard to differentiate, ‘Oh she’s just a teenager and she’s going through those teenage years,’ and okay, there’s a real issue here, and that was a real struggle for me to figure out,” said Rakers. “I feel like I only figured that out when it came to a head.”
Maloney said it all became too much last October, when she overdosed on a bottle of pain medication.
She was able to alert her parents and get to the hospital for treatment, an experience she said not only changed her life, but gave her an idea for a career path.
“So much of the treatment from therapists to nurses to psychiatrists ignited this interest in pursuing public health,” said Maloney. “Given I’ve been where so many future patients have been mentally, I think I can use my story to help encourage others.”
About a week later, Maloney returned to school at Fort Zumwalt West High School. There, she told her best friend, Hershey Bhutoria, what had happened.
“It can truly be anybody,” said Bhutoria. “I never would have guessed it would be Alyssa, she’s my best friend and I know everything about her.”
Both women are members of HOSA, a school club designed for students interested in healthcare careers. Together, they decided to enter the state competition, using public health and the idea of reestablishing human connection as their focus.
The competition consisted of a live presentation, in which Alyssa decided to share her story publicly for the first time.
“People need to hear about this, but this is so personal to me. What are they going to think about me?” said Maloney. “I had to set that aside and know that telling my story is going to help me, open up, make those connections, and then it could also reach at least one person, which is all I wanted.”
The girls took second place at the state competition, advancing to the HOSA international competition in Nashville in June.
“Hearing it out loud was tough,” said Rakers. “I was there when it happened but it was so tough hearing her say it, but I was like, she’s come so far and she’s turning this into something meaningful.”
Their appearance at the international competition marked a first for Fort Zumwalt West High School in the club’s history.
“I think the biggest misconception is there’s a certain stereotype of people that go through that, but it’s truly everyone,” said Bhutoria. “It’s not as uncommon as you think, it’s only uncommon because we don’t speak about it.”
Rakers said mental health will likely remain a lifelong battle for her daughter, but she’s hopeful with the right mixture of tools and strategies, she’ll be able to successfully navigate it.
“There is no shame in therapy, there is no shame in medication and there is no shame in saying I’m a little bit lost,” said Rakers. “So make sure you’re having those open conversations with your kids.”
As the girls approach the final semester of their senior year, they hope to continue the conversation about mental health among teens.
“I had good grades, I was normal, I never lashed out in class, I was the average girl and this happened, so I think that makes people more aware of how common this is,” said Maloney.
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