For those of you with kids, or who work in education, I thought this recent announcement might interest you:
Today, MHA launches our annual Back to School Toolkit to give parents, teachers, and school personnel the tools and resources they need to support their children’s mental health.
You can register and download the toolkit at the link below, take a look and let us know if it helps you and your kids this year.
I think Emilie may be on to something with this. With the over representation of some mental disorder and the under representation of other mental disorders, there seems to be ‘’socially acceptable’’ mental health issues (even though there is still a long way to go) and less ‘’socially acceptable’’ mental health issues. Sometimes the less…
I recently had a conversation with someone dealing with anxiety and trying to learn more about it. She desperately needs to know that what she’s experiencing is something that many other people are going through and have gone through. So, I’ve told her about my anxiety. I’ve told her about the times my brain just won’t turn off, and my heart beats faster for no apparent reason at all. I’ve told her about the days when I struggle to remember things because my mind is racing so fast it doesn’t process things I just heard.
My wife has been there for those conversations. She’s heard me talk about things I’ve not really told her because I don’t want her to worry. Does she worry now? Maybe. Does it really matter to me?
Yes, it does. I don’t want her to worry, but I’ll trade that for letting someone we both care about know that they are not alone. This is why we need to talk about it. No one should feel alone and ashamed about any mental health issues they may be having. There are just too many others having the same ones for there to be room for judgment instead of support.
As seen over on the Psych Central site: In her riveting memoir, Blinded by Hope: My Journey Through My Son’s Bipolar Illness and Addiction, McGuire tells the story of her son Ryan who battles bipolar, addiction and incarceration. Yet on a much larger level, McGuire exposes the messy and often heartbreaking reality of mental illness….
I feel like I just wrote something similar to this. Oh yeah, I did: “Of the top 10 shared articles, scientists found that three quarters were either misleading or included some false information. Only three were considered “highly credible.” Some lacked context of the issue, exaggerated the harms of a potential threat, or overstated research…
Depression in men: half as likely to be diagnosed but three times more likely to result in suicide. We need to talk about male mental health. tags: CA Depression A childhood lost to abuse tags: CA ChildAbuse Male Survivor Book Project – 2014 – This Tangled Web tags: CA ChildAbuse People who suffer mental illness can…
Note what it says, words like listening and acceptance. Note also what it doesn’t say, like anything about fixing things or changing their feelings, etc.
I talk often on here about simply being there. Sitting with someone who is struggling. Validation is all about that, and as you can read further, validating someone is maybe one of the best things you can do to keep open lines of communication, help them feel valued, and not dismiss their emotions.
