One of the country's main crisis helplines says more children than ever before are seeking help – some as young as seven years old.
Youthline says it's reached record levels, connecting an average of four young people every day with emergency services because they were at immediate risk of harm over the past six months.
Just a few years ago, that figure was closer to one a week.
Youthline runs free services including a helpline, face-to-face counselling, mentoring, and programmes in schools.
RNZ reported in March one in 10 of its callers was now under the age of 12.
Chief executive Shae Ronald told RNZ's Checkpoint the age reduction had been a global trend, with similar news emerging in the UK about three years ago.
Young people were reporting experiencing increased pressure, stress and expectations from family, peers and schools – in some cases, exacerbated by social media.
"The situations they're facing are becoming increasingly serious. Every day our team supports young people experiencing anxiety, loneliness, self-harm, suicidal thoughts, family conflict and abuse, often all at once rather than as isolated issues."
New Zealand ranks last among OECD countries for youth mental health and has one of the highest youth suicide rates in the developed world, highlighting the growing need for accessible support services.
Ronald said despite funding from government, they needed public support to keep the hotline open.
"We still need to fundraise over a million dollars every year to keep the helpline going," Ronald said.
This September, it would be running a campaign called Walk the Talk, calling on New Zealanders to commit to walking or moving every day of the month to raise money, with all funding going towards the helpline.
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