All May we are recognizing and celebrating Mental Health Awareness Month!
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In bringing awareness to mental health, we want to encourage all parents/guardians to check in with their kids on how they feel and how they cope with any of their perceived stressors. Stress and poor coping skills can lead to substance use, misuse, and abuse. Therefore, in order to protect our youth from substance use like underage drinking, vaping/tobacco use, and/or opioid/prescription drug misuse, we must help them to develop and practice healthy coping skills. Talk to your child about how to deal with stress, and how to handle situations in which negative emotions (e.g., sadness, anger, anxiety, etc.) are involved. The summer is approaching, and they may be in a space where they are antsy about summer, nervous about their next steps in life (e.g., next grade, summer jobs, summer plans, planning for college, etc.), stressed about finals, or all of the above! Come up with a fun and relaxing activity that can be completed together! Remind them to never neglect their mental health, and express that they can come to you whenever things may start to overwhelm them. We encourage all parents/guardians to be a good example of prioritizing mental health and exhibiting responsible acts of drinking and medication use.
For conversation starters, tips, and other resources, text “TALK” to 85775!