The words you use to describe your work can serve as an invitation — or as a barrier to entry. In many communities, "mental health" is heard as "mental illness," and "resilience" sounds like a demand to endure more rather than an offer of support. Programs that catch on tend to test their language with young people and families, then lead with what feels approachable.

When clinical language backfires

Across vastly different contexts, organizations and youth report that the wrong words can drive people away. Cynthia Steele of EMpower notes that "mental health isn't even a concept that exists in some languages.” In Vietnamese, for instance, "the closest [phrase] that one would use to describe something like mental health is being mad, and that's obviously not what we mean."

In The Gambia, Aji Jocob Njie, founder of PathMothers (introduced to us by the WHO), faces an especially stark version of this problem: in Mandinka and Wolof, the closest available terms for mental health translate directly to "you are mad." So she takes a different path. "We put it in a courteous way. I don't have to come and say, 'Mental health, mental health.'" Her team reaches people through poetry, acting, singing, and drumming — cultural forms that allow communities to “communicate and understand clearly” on difficult topics. She also challenges the impulse to diagnose from the outside: "I think most of the time, that is the problem. We look at people and say, 'This is what you have,' instead of telling them, 'Tell me what is wrong with you. I am ready to listen. I love and value you.'"

Even well-intentioned framing can miss the mark. Zuzana Figerova of The SHM Foundation learned this directly from the young people her organization supports:

What works instead

The most effective programs replace mental health terminology with culturally resonant entry points. Lerato Mahau, a youth participant in EMpower’s work in South Africa, says she never leads with a diagnosis: “Talking about mental health is still taboo. You can't really say, ‘I'm depressed.’ How I do it is to associate it with my reality. I usually use my own experiences to get someone to talk about their experience." She also pays close attention to which language she uses, often switching into a student's home language mid-conversation, because "if you communicate with someone in the language that they understand, it's easy for them to open up."

Rima Yacoub of Reclaim Childhood in Jordan takes a similar approach. In her context, she says, "if you say you are unwell, then it means you're sick, something we cannot talk about." Rather than introducing new vocabulary, her team focuses on creating conditions where conversations happen naturally: "The sense of safety, a feeling they will not be judged, and also, when they hear from other people close to them that there is a way to be better."

Nije builds on this principle by using arts and culture as the vehicle. "Here in The Gambia, we love entertainment,” she says. “Through entertainment, we can share information." Critically, her team does not assume the same approach will work everywhere. Before entering any new community, they conduct what she calls a “reality check.” "Then we come back to put ourselves in order and say, 'In this particular place, this is what is happening. They don't do this. They don't like this. What can we bring for them to help them understand?'"

The mental health conversation adults are missing

The challenge is not only that young people might be reluctant to discuss mental health. It is that when they do, they may use language adults do not recognize. Onthatile Tuta, a youth from EMpower's National Youth Forum in South Africa, researched this directly and found that "young people are really active on social media talking about mental health, but the language may be different from what older generations are used to." She points to a 2019 post on X where a young woman asked in Sotho, "O jewa ke eng?" — meaning, "What is eating you?" — which became one of the most reshared posts in the world that year, with hundreds of young people sharing their struggles and others responding with resources and support.

Her advice to organizations trying to adopt youth language? Don't. "If it's an older person who's using our lingo, then it's a matter of, 'What are you trying to say?'" Instead, "use young people to reach out to other young people. Then we are definitely going to listen."

Language is not a detail to sort out after designing a program. It is a foundational choice that determines whether a program reaches people or talks past them.