Dangerous, foolish or questionable decisions by children and teenagers can’t always be blamed on inexperience. While adults can fall back on past choices as a predictor of future outcomes, the young among us don’t enjoy the same opportunity. This fact of life is what inspired Julio Avael III to help educators manage the many personalities of their pupils. The outside help that he provided gave schools a partner as they sought to improve the various facets of mental health. As a result, school district administrators lauded Julio Avael’s team of behavioral health professionals and the services they brought.
According to the University of Rochester Medical Center, “the rational part of a teen’s brain isn’t fully developed and won’t be until age 25 or so. In fact, recent research has found that adult and teen brains work differently.” This is not a detriment in the mind of Julio Avael III. Rather, he took this fact of life and turned it into inspiration as he sought to provide mental health management options in school districts across the country. It’s possible for parents to kickstart conversations about mental health and Julio Avael says this can be beneficial. The University of Rochester Medical Center concurs, adding that “discussing the consequences of their actions can help teens link impulsive thinking with facts. This helps the brain make these connections and wires the brain to make this link more often.”
Mr. Avael put his preaching into practice in Florida and helped provide school districts with access to behavioral health professionals. These positions, which were funded by a grant, were championed by district administrators at the time for their ability to help students better understand stress, anger management, peer pressure and more. These are common themes that almost every teenager will be able to relate to. The risk of not properly showing teens and young adults the correct path forward is incorrect decisions – which could result in irreversible events. Julio Avael III doesn’t want this to sound like fearmongering. He has simply spent so much time and devoted so much attention to adolescent mental health and primary care trends that he knows it’s possible to always follow the right path. The first step may involve schools researching available mental health technology and providers. It is within this space that Julio Avael was able to fill a vital role and it’s one he will continue to serve in.
Written by Greg Smith
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