RIPON - Social media platforms were often a source of terror and torment for Barrett Poetker.

Through much of middle and high school, Poetker's classmates at Brookfield East High School used Snapchat and Instagram as tools to insult, threaten and otherwise tear her down. 

Diagnosed with depression, anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder, Poetker contemplated suicide multiple times.

None of those experiences stop Poetker from using social media today — as a method to break down the stigma around mental health. 

"I never posted anything negative on social media myself, but seeing stuff about me was really tough," Poetker said Monday. "But now, I use social media as a positive platform to talk about mental health. ... I've really turned social media around for me." 

Poetker was one of three Wisconsin youth who shared their experiences navigating mental health challenges during a public hearing for the Speaker's Task Force on Suicide Prevention Monday at Ripon College.

The bipartisan task force, formed in March, is charged with evaluating Wisconsin's current mental health and suicide prevention efforts, and making recommendations for improvement, while also increasing awareness of the issues.

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The hearing included a screening of "You're Not Alone," a documentary produced by Milwaukee PBS and USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin as a tool for schools, families and communities to start conversations about youth mental health.

In the documentary, Poetker and three other Wisconsin youth, Alex Hart-Upendo, TJ Esser and Reyna Saldana, talk about how they navigated mental health challenges. The film drew on several years of reporting by USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin on youth mental health issues for its Kids in Crisis series.

During a question and answer session that followed the screening, state lawmakers and community members asked Poetker, Hart-Upendo and Esser about their experiences and how their struggles could have been better addressed.

A theme of the session was the negative impact of cyberbullying and how schools handle it.

Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Youth Behavior Risk Survey shows cyberbullying rising in Wisconsin in recent years, with 18% of youth reporting they were subjected to it in 2017.

Poetker said she doesn't think schools have fully figured out how to deal with it yet, especially if the cyberbullying occurs off of school property.

In one instance during her senior year of high school, Poetker reported some classmates who were sending hurtful and threatening messages about her on social media. In that case, she said, the school did nothing.

Asked by a lawmaker whether social media platforms have been largely "instruments of terror" or a place to find solace, Esser said he's experienced both sides.

Esser, a transgender student at Germantown High School, said he never experienced cyberbullying to the degree that Poetker did, but there is one incident he remembers well.

What sticks with Esser most about that incident isn't the initial hurtful comment, but rather the way his friends rallied behind him and supported him online.

Esser said that incident is emblematic of the largely positive community he finds with fellow transgender people on social media.

"If there's something negative, it's usually outweighed by people who are trying to help me," he said. "It's more of a positive place in that aspect." 

State Rep. Joan Ballweg, R-Markesan, the task force's chairwoman, said the opportunity for state legislators to ask questions of the students was invaluable to their work. 

"We're really trying to dig into what they feel could've been done better for them and how schools can move forward," Ballweg said.

Interested in hosting your own screening? Request a free copy of "You're Not Alone" at



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