- Hey, y'all.

Honestly, I took my first sip of alcohol when I was 16.

Eh, sorry, parents, just being honest, because studies show that I'm not alone.

A recent Georgia student health survey found that one out of seven students have drank alcohol before the age of 16.

So why do we start so early?

How do you know when it becomes a problem?

And more importantly, what does recovery look like?

Stick around, you're about to find out.

(upbeat music) We paint through our depression and we sing through our anxieties.

- And we dance to celebrate our recovery.

- [Renier] So how did Rise come about?

- It started back in 1995 when I started my recovery process.

I realized that there had to be another language to express myself.

And dance is my first language.

Movement and dance helped me to express my deepest emotions because I had no words.

And I found out that I wasn't the only one.

And that's how this work got started.

- When I'm dealing with my anxiety or depression, I will come to Rise and I'll use the facility and I would dance until, like, I just feel like I have left it all on the dance floor and I can pack my stuff up and I can leave it where it is and I can go out the door.

- We met every Saturday with our children, and we danced and we cried and we laughed and we created.

My father as a military man lived with PTSD.

He served in three wars.

And we didn't know it then, but, in retrospect, I realize now that my father lived with his own mental health challenges.

And as a result of that, I also lived with anxiety.

That led me to smoking weed and doing other drugs.

So once I put the alcohol down, the drugs down, I realized, wow, the initial challenge was living with anxiety.

That's where the creativity came in.

So now I paint or I sing or I dance, and I calm down my anxiety.

I don't blame my childhood.

I don't blame my father.

I think that in our culture we don't talk about anxiety, we don't talk about depression.

But I saw it coming up as a kid.

- [Renier] At what point, though, in your life, did you realize or that you needed recovery?

- Mm.

I knew that when, in the midst of my addiction, I became pregnant.

And I went to the hospital and I got a ultrasound and I could hear my daughter's heartbeat.

And I knew I had to change my life.

From that point on, I said to myself, "I may be addicted, but I'm a mother and I'm not gonna die like this."

And that was my affirmation.

- It's also a safe place for me as well with my mental health because I deal with anxiety and depression.

I realize that I'm a functional presser.

- And she's a beautiful dancer.

I remember her pulling on me at, like, three and four, saying, "Mommy, I wanna dance."

And I'm like, thinking in my mind, I don't wanna push this on her, but dance has become her best friend.

(Brianna sniffs) Okay, breathe.

And so now she's a sonographer.

She's actually the ultrasound tech.

So she lets mamas listen to the heartbeat of their babies.

I initially thought that Rise was gonna be a place for people my age, but it's not.

It is for the next generation and the generation after that.

I believe that young people need to feel safe, and they don't need another lecture.

Giving them the opportunity to say what they need and being a listening ear and providing a space for that to happen safely is how I connect with young people.

I needed that growing up.

Recovery is deeply unique.

It is deeply personal.

And to help young people find out what that is for them is where we come in as an organization.

Recovery is a lifelong journey.

No, addiction does not define who a person is.

Recovery is the journey of defining who you are.

(rhythmic music) (paper rustling) - I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and, doggone it, people like me.

Hi, I'm "Hope Givers" reporter Cora Ocampo.

And today we're talking about affirmations.

Let's go.

What is an affirmation that you live by, or your motto?

- That everybody is beautiful.

- And why do you think that?

- Because it's like, I don't know.

Because it's like, there's beauty in everything, you know?

Even when you're having a bad day, you still might get a compliment.

You never know.

Give somebody a compliment, tell them they're beautiful.

- Hakuna matata.

- And why is that?

- Because, like Timon and Pumba said, it means no worries for the rest of your days.

- Well, my motto I live by is, when one door closes, another one opens.

So it's like, if you think you're not gonna get an opportunity, a bigger opportunity's gonna come for you, so.

- Work towards your dreams or never stop working.

Just keep training.

- Don't let people get to you.

'Cause at the end of the day you eat up every day and they don't, so.

- Mental health is a real thing and it is hurting people.

And, like, you do need to say something if you need help.

Like, you don't have to hide.

- Thank you all so much for watching.

Again, I'm "Hope Givers" reporter Cora Ocampo, signing off.

(paper rustling) - Hey, people.

So today in the loft we have Jakob.

And, Jakob, what did you bring?

- So I brought Legos.

And I use Legos to cope from stress and stuff because there's such these intricate little pieces and you don't really know what this is gonna be.

Is it gonna be a fish?

Is it gonna be some kind of spaceship?

You really don't know.

Then you put it all together and you realize that it's an egg.

- [Renier] Oh.

- And I like Legos 'cause I know they're generally for, like, smaller children and little kids, but I used to do these with my brother.

And we got home from school and just build these legos all day long.

And so to have these and something that I grew up with, it's so very nostalgic.

And also, you know, life can get pretty stressful at times.

You know, sometimes you don't know where you're gonna be.

You don't have all the pieces in life.

So you're just like a little brick in, you know, the set of life.

So to get to put this together and have these different intricate designs, it's really relieving and I really enjoy it.

- Hm, well, I like it and I think I'm gonna go get me some, so.

- You have to go get you some.

- Can you take over?

- I got you.

I'll take over here.

I got it.

- Alright, cool.

I'll be back.

- Yeah.

Guess I'm the host now.

(paper rustling) - This week's Youth Across America filmmaker is Natalie Rau with her film "The Truth."

(upbeat music) (static whirring) (gentle music) - My mom's addiction had a toll on me my whole life and it really formed me, who I am today.

And I remember a time when I was little, she took me out to go see the movie "Zootopia" and we went to McDonald's and she was drunk that day.

We were riding the bus and everybody was staring at her, looking at her like she was crazy.

But I just remember enjoying it 'cause I was so little, I didn't really understand.

(gentle music continues) - Didn't have a lot of patience for them.

It probably made them feel like I didn't care, or.

It took time to build back trust and, you know, they still worry about me.

You know, I think they always will.

- At the end of the day, she is my mom.

And I know she caress about me and she's trying so hard every day to bring back what we used to have.

(paper rustling) (upbeat music) - What Alexia's created out of the suffering and struggle of her addiction is so beautiful.

Rise, where you can dance, move, sing, paint.

It offers community.

And, as she says, young people don't need another lecture.

They need a place where they can be and openly express themselves without the fear of being judged.

We could all learn from Alexia.

Imagine if all of our schools had a place like what Alexia's created at Rise.

Have a sense of community where they don't feel judged, and a very positive atmosphere, like Alexia's space.

That could be transformative for these students and for these communities.

Natalie's film is incredible.

It's very rare to see a teenager be so open and honest about a parent with a substance use disorder.

It's usually something they feel a lot of shame around and they feel the need to protect that parent.

And Natalie does a beautiful job of talking very openly about her mom's substance use disorder, riding the bus home drunk, and, at the same time, holding no anger, offering grace and forgiveness.

And it's okay to suffer and feel what you feel.

Not everyone is going to be able to access grace and forgiveness as readily as Natalie does in this video.

And that's fine.

The important thing is to find someone whom you do trust who you can talk about it with.

(paper rustling) - - [Announcer] Do you know someone we should highlight?

Send us your suggestions and keep holding on.

- Demi Lovato once said, "One of the hardest things was learning that I was worth recovery."

Remember that you are worth it, too.

And if you know anybody who is struggling, there are resources you can go to for help like "Hope Givers."

In the loft today we have Kello Hitty performing their hit song "Great Dark Blue."

(gentle music) ♪ Talk about the lights ♪ that follow you around ♪ ♪ Tiptoe past the lion's den ♪ ♪ Don't make the smallest sound ♪ ♪ Eager to get out and ♪ start it on your own ♪ ♪ Whisper to the moon ♪ ♪ With her, you're all alone ♪ ♪ Oh, crashing into me ♪ ♪ Like a waterfall in the deep ♪ ♪ I don't like to trust, I like to see ♪ ♪ Come and get your feet wet with me ♪ ♪ I can feel the dew upon ♪ an early morning grave ♪ ♪ If you like to wait ♪ ♪ Don't wait until nothing can save you ♪ ♪ Call upon your lungs to ♪ fill up and raise you ♪ ♪ Do and I'll hide ♪ ♪ Do and I'll hide ♪ ♪ Oh, crashing into me ♪ ♪ Like a waterfall in the deep ♪ ♪ I don't like to trust, I like to see ♪ ♪ Come and get your feet wet with me ♪ ♪ Chase me into the night ♪ ♪ And chase me into the moonlight ♪ ♪ Chase me into the great dark blue ♪ ♪ Oh, chase me into the night ♪ ♪ Oh, crashing into me ♪ ♪ Like a waterfall in the deep ♪ ♪ I don't like to trust, I like to see ♪ ♪ Come and get your feet wet with me ♪ ♪ Mm ♪ ♪ Oh ♪ ♪ Mm ♪ ♪ Come and get your feet wet with me ♪