MENTAL ILLNESS: THE GREATEST PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS OF OUR TIME?

Part three of a series of principles based on Jeff new new book, Teen Suicide: The “Why” Behind America’s Suicide Epidemic. We can no longer sweep mental illness under the carpet… Teen suicide and the opioid crisis are crippling communities on a scale we have never seen. We have major issues on our hands that […]

Teen Suicide and Mental Health

Part one in a series from Teen Suicide: The “Why” Behind America’s Suicide Epidemic For more than two decades, I have worked in the trenches of teen life as a youth motivator and mental health advocate. I am also a suicide prevention and crisis intervention expert. I can’t count the number of teen suicides I […]

It’s Never Too Early to Talk Mental Health and Suicide Prevention

    In my career as a youth motivational speaker, it’s not often that an elementary school brings me in to speak – especially in the areas of mental health and suicide prevention. But this was exactly where I found myself early this month in East Quouge, New York – a community on Long Island. […]

A Conversation with Isabella

One of the greatest things about my work as a youth motivational speaker is that I get to plant seeds, give hope and inspire young people. One of the most challenging things is that sometimes I get to help, but I might not know the end result of the work I do. Thankfully, I know […]

TEEN SUICIDE: THE “WHY” BEHIND THE EPIDEMIC

My name is Jeff Yalden. Many know me as a youth motivational speaker. For 26 years now, this has been my passion. Since 1992, I have presented to more than 4000 live audiences at schools, colleges and mental health organizations in this country and around the world – and it is an absolute joy to […]

Mental Health – Full Transparency

EDITOR’S NOTE:  Mental health speaker Jeff Yalden took himself to the emergency room at a local hospital near his home in the Myrtle Beach area on October 8, after experiencing a bout with anxiety and anger over the weekend. Yalden lives with mental illness, and is a staunch advocate for full disclosure. “I think if […]

Teen Suicide: Jeff Yalden on the Forever Decision

Weighing on the heart of youth motivational speaker and author Jeff Yalden is the issue of teen suicide. He has grieved with so many families over more than two decades, yet with each devastating loss, the heartache and pain – the very idea of trying to be a source of hope and comfort – only […]

Jeff Yalden on Mental Health, Suicide and Chris Cornell

Nobody will ever really know what prompted rock icon Chris Cornell to make the tragic final decision to end his own life on May 17. What we do know is that Cornell had just performed a sold-out Soundgarden concert in Detroit. The Daily Mail reported that he posed for photographs after the show and told […]