Faith Focus Haven™ · Research

What the evidence says about teen girls.

The research behind two connected programs: free workshops for girls and parents, and paid youth media.

Every figure carries its year. The claims it does not support are listed further down.

What girls are reporting

53%

of female high school students reported persistent sadness or hopelessnessCDC, 2023

27%

seriously considered attempting suicide in the previous yearCDC, 2023

12.6%

about 1 in 8, reported a suicide attempt in the previous yearCDC, 2023

22.6%

of girls 12 to 17 had a major depressive episodeNSDUH, 2024

Figure
What it measures
Year
39%
of female high school students reported poor mental health on most or all of the previous 30 days
2023
17.2%
of girls 12 to 17 had major depression with severe impairment
2024
14.1%
of girls 12 to 17, about 1 in 7, had serious suicidal thoughts
2024
400,078
Texas students are on Section 504 plans, and state law requires no transition planning for any of them. 504 is where ADHD, anxiety, dyslexia and much autism live
2026

The trend line, and why the 11 to 15 window is not arbitrary.Persistent sadness or hopelessness among female high school students ran about 35% in 2011, rose to 57% in 2021, and was 53% in 2023. In 2008 to 2010 data, depression roughly tripled between age 12 and age 15, from 5.1% to 15.2%. That is where the curve bends.

What actually predicts a good outcome

Protective factors

  • A strong family relationship
  • School belonging
  • Positive childhood experiences
  • Parent and child communication

Coping skills

  • Managing a feeling without acting on it
  • Asking for help instead of going quiet
  • Finding another option when the first fails
  • Recovering from a mistake or a rejection
  • Sleep, and somewhere to belong

Why that matters here

  • All four protective factors are relational and practiceable.
  • A workshop can work on them directly.
  • A paid cohort with a real supervisor works on several at once.

What we learned about girls who are neurodivergent

From about 70 coded first-person accounts of girls 11 to 18, collected in 2026. These are functional patterns, not diagnoses.

What this evidence does not say

  • Not "57% of girls are depressed."Sadness or hopelessness is not a depression diagnosis, and 57% is the 2021 figure, not today's.
  • Not a staircase.Anxiety at 12 does not reliably become substance use at 17. Adolescent distress rose from 2013 to 2023 while adolescent substance use fell.
  • Not a single cause.The evidence does not support blaming social media, the pandemic, or neurodivergence for the rise.
  • Not treatment.These programs teach practice and relationship skills. They measure behavior, never clinical outcomes, and they refer out.

Sources

  • High school figuresCDC Youth Risk Behavior Survey, MMWR 73 supplement 4
  • Ages 12 to 17National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 2024
  • Section 504Texas Governor's Committee on People with Disabilities, 2026-2027 Policy Recommendations, Education Recommendation 8
  • RuminationPubMed 41698121
  • Checking and reassurancePubMed 38621516 and 38672028
  • First-person accountsIndependent voice-of-customer research pass, 2026-08-18

Where this research goes

These figures sit underneath the workshops and the youth media program. If you are considering funding or hosting either one, start here.

If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 in the US for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.