Yeming overcomes bullying at school, thanks to mental health lessons

Thirteen-year-old Yeming stands on her own by the window of an empty classroom at Zhangqiu No 4 High School, Shandong. She looks out across the vast school campus, which hosts 9,900 students in huge red-brick buildings. She watches other students walking between yellowing trees beneath her, their footsteps echoing, towards a lake in the centre of campus. It is autumn but unusually cold and windy, and many of the children wear padded jackets over their uniforms.

Yeming is a quiet and slightly withdrawn junior high school student. She avoids eye contact or starting conversations with new people, although she is different with her close friend Jinghao or when playing sport. When she was at primary school, Yeming was a victim of bullying, which affected her mental health.

“In primary school, I was always on my own and didn’t have any friends,” Yeming remembers. “I loved playing football, so my skin was darker from being out in the sun. My classmates would tease me about my skin tone and didn’t want to play with me. I was really hurt at the time, and it affected my self-esteem.”

Yeming tried to deal with the issue at the time, but she didn’t know how and lacked the skills or support system to help her navigate the challenges. At the lowest point, she started harming herself.

“I asked my parents if I could take a break from school, but they said that it wasn’t a big deal,” she continues. “With all the pressure, I felt depressed. I wished I’d had a friend who would care about me and offer comfort. I wanted compassion from my family, understanding from my teachers, and respect from others. But I didn’t get it then.”

Mental health lessons

Luckily for Yeming, her school is participating in the Adolescent Mental Health and Development Programme, run by UNICEF China, the National Health Commission and the China Youth League. This includes mental health sessions, also known as a ‘service package’, facilitated by teachers.

One morning, Yeming’s teacher Zhao Feifei leads a mental health lesson for her class. She begins by asking the children to close their eyes and focus on their breathing. They follow her instructions, standing in rows behind their desks. “Now, open your eyes with curiosity,” she says, and they do. “Look around you, identify and count objects with different colours, shapes and sizes. Pay attention to how you feel.”

Next, the children use a chart to map out their emotions over the past week against important events, using colours and emojis. Yeming and her classmates take turns to present their charts to the rest of the class. “Emotions mirror what we go through in life,” Mrs Zhao tells them. “They are neither good or bad. Fear helps us stay alert when we are in danger. Happiness teaches us what to value. Every emotion is meaningful.”

Afterwards, Yeming shares her thoughts on the lessons, highlighting the 'raisin theory'. “Just like every raisin is different, each person is unique in their own way,” she says. “That helped me, and now I’m more open and confident. I share more with my teachers and friends to let them understand me better. I feel I can talk to my teachers about anything. My parents and friends are there to support me too.”

Her teacher Mrs Zhao cites “academic pressure, social interactions and expectations from family and society” as driving factors for mental health issues among her students. “I believe that every child is a one-of-a-kind seed,” she adds. “This programme is like sunlight and rainwater, nurturing every child to help them reach their full potential.”

Situation of children

Around the world, poor mental health is causing suffering for children and young people. It’s a top cause of death, disease and disability, especially for older adolescents. Globally, more than 14 percent of children and adolescents aged 10 to 19 (one in seven) are living with a diagnosed mental health condition, according to WHO and UNICEF. This is severely affecting the childhoods.

We see a similar picture in China, where many children and adolescents are experiencing high levels of stress, anxiety and depression. This is often driven by academic pressure, bullying, online exposure, and relationships with other children and parents. However, with the right intervention, many of these conditions can be successfully prevented or treated.

That’s why UNICEF and partners are working together to help adolescents improve their mental health through the Adolescent Mental Health and Development Programme. In addition to the service package of mental health lessons for students, this also includes training for teachers and peer supporters, and a referral pathway to local healthcare services.

UNICEF China’s Adolescent Development Officer Li Nan says that over 900 teachers have been trained across ten regions nationwide, benefiting students in more than 300 schools. “We hope that the 10 mental health sessions in the adolescent mental health programme will help more adolescents learn how to handle stress, manage emotions and improve their mental health,” he adds.

In Zhangqiu No 4 High School, the programme is led by Zhao Peng, an experienced teacher who has worked on mental health for over 20 years. “In the past, we didn’t have any standardized teaching materials for our mental health classes,” he comments. “But now we have a proven and effective system. It allows students to systematically learn methods for managing mental health. They can apply these techniques to address many of the challenges they face in life.”

A fresh start

These days, Yeming is much more confident to take part in sports without worrying about bullying. She joins her classmates for a run around the sprawling school campus. Then, she takes part in an activity where the students come together for a hug in different sized groups, representing the petals of a flower – such as five for peach blossom. Yeming laughs as she runs between groups of children with her friend Jinghao.

Afterwards, she reflects on her future and reveals a passion for photographing the natural world. “I used to feel uncertain about my future dreams,” Yeming says. “But by learning to understand myself, I’ve discovered what I truly want to do. I want to be a photographer, capturing the small, beautiful moments in life—like the colours of a spider’s web glistening in the sunlight, or the reflections in a puddle after the rain.”