Category Archives: Mental Health
Suicide During a Pandemic
Written by Paul Reich, Behavioral Health Program Manager While headlines across the United States focus on the loss of life due to COVID-19, it is important to recognize that September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, and September 6th to the 12th is Suicide Prevention Week. In 2018, over 48,000 Americans died by suicide, including almost… Continue Reading
Suicide – Hope, Resilience, and Recovery
Written by Paul Reich, Behavioral Health Program Manager Traditional religions, including Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, have long viewed suicide as a sin against God. The Catholic Church used to forbid a funeral mass or burial in a Catholic cemetery, considering suicide a mortal sin. Until quite recently, suicide was illegal in some Western European countries,… Continue Reading
#StopSuicide -> Utilize Local Mental Health Resources
Written by Sami Damsky, Behavioral Health Outreach Coordinator Education and Prevention Suicide prevention begins with education. While I do not expect everyone in our community to know everything about suicide, I DO want everyone to know about local resources and where to go for support. So often in our rural mountain community, we hear how… Continue Reading
Watch Your Mouth! How Your Words Can Add to Stigma
Written by Corinne Cavender, Behavioral Health Operations Coordinator When someone is diagnosed with cancer, we don’t call her a cancer. We use positive descriptors like “strong”, “brave”, and even “hero”. When someone breaks his leg, we encourage medical attention and ample time to heal. So, why am I not strong, brave, or someone’s hero because… Continue Reading
Be Proactive About Back to School Stress
By Julia Johnson, School-Based Programs Coordinator As summer comes to an end, students and school staff start to get ready to go back to school. Transitions are not always easy, and this time there is a lot of stress from uncertainty about what school and even the future looks like. “Chronic stress decreases memory and… Continue Reading
Is the Term Social Distancing a Misnomer with Unintended Consequences?
Until March, the Coronavirus was a topic I paid only scant attention to when it appeared in televised news segments or popped up on my news feed. It still felt distant to me, a flu-like illness that had paralyzed the city of Wuhan, but something that would be certainly be contained in China, if not… Continue Reading
Domestic Violence Awareness Month (Guest Post)
October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and during this time, not only is it important to raise awareness about the dynamics and prevalence of domestic violence, but also we want to highlight the associations between domestic violence and mental health in order to underscore why Mental Health Matters. The National Center on Domestic Violence, Trauma… Continue Reading
Do you know someone among the 20%?
Perhaps you are a parent of an adolescent who is living with a mental health condition. Or you are concerned about the health and wellness of a nephew, grandchild, or one of your child’s friends. Or you are a teacher concerned about your students. If so, you are not alone. It is estimated that nationally… Continue Reading
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