How can I be a kid if I’m stuck with adult responsibilities?

16-year-old Alex lost his dad, Ted, to suicide when he was 11. While grieving and dealing with his own mental health struggles, Alex felt like he had to step up and help his mom, Tricia. Today, he’s asking her: how am I supposed to be a kid when you put the weight of adult responsibilities on me? Looking for resources? Visit ineedtoaskyousomething.org for info on how to strengthen relationships, deal with traumatic events, and get help.  Dr. Monica Band is the host of this show and consultant with the Jed Foundation. Chrystal Genesis is our supervising producer. Giulia Hjort and Rachel Lightner are our producers. Andi Kristindottir is our engineer. Tess Novotny is our associate producer. Mixing and original music by Bobby Woody. Additional music by Andi Kristinsdottir. Special thanks to Kelsey Henderson. Jackie Danziger is our VP of Narrative Content. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer and Stephanie Wittels Wachs. This series was created with The Jed Foundation, a non-profit that protects emotional health and prevents suicide for teens and young adults. Find ways to manage your emotional health, cope with challenges, and support the people in your life at jedfoundation.org.  This series is presented by Hopelab, a social innovation lab and impact investor supporting the mental health of adolescents, ages 10-25, especially BIPOC and LGBTQ+ youth. Learn more at hopelab.org.  This series is also presented by the Stupski Foundation, returning resources to the communities it calls home in Hawaiʻi and the San Francisco Bay Area by 2029 to support just and resilient food, health, and higher education systems for all. Learn more at stupski.org.  This series is also presented by the Lumina Foundation, an independent, private foundation committed to making opportunities for learning beyond high school available to all. Learn more at luminafoundation.org. Follow I Need to Ask You Something wherever you get your podcasts, or listen ad-free on Amazon Music with your Prime Membership. You can also get premium content and behind the scenes material by subscribing to Lemonada Premium on Apple Podcasts.  Follow Dr. Monica Band on Instagram at @the.mindful_healer. Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia. Want to become a Lemonada superfan? Join us at joinsubtext.com/lemonadasuperfan.   Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. To follow along with a transcript, go to lemonadamedia.com/show/ shortly after the air date.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.