How Organizations are using ConcernCenter to Connect Users to Mental Health Services
The topic of declining mental health, especially in teens and young adults, has earned national attention as of late. Between the loss, fear, isolation, and hardships brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighted racial disparities, the fear of mass violence, and a national hotline established for mental health emergencies, families across the United States have undoubtedly felt an increase in anxiety, stress, and depression. Data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that drug overdose deaths reached record levels in 2021 and [...]
National Grief Awareness Day – Virtual Hug
Thank you for being here. I’m so sorry you’re hurting. I’m so sorry that you’ve ever had to experience the loss of something or someone who was once really important to you. I know sometimes it may feel like it, but I promise you are not alone. You are not alone if you cry at night. Even many years later. You are not alone if a memory fills your body with emotions you didn’t know were still there. You are not alone if you’re worried [...]
7 Practical Strategies for Reducing your Stress
You’re stressed. I get it. Me too. And that means you want to scroll down to the 7 Practical Strategies for Reducing your Stress instead of reading all of the “blah, blah, blah” that comes before the part you really care about. But thankfully, I’m not a fan of the “blah, blah” either, so I’ll save you some scroll time. Here's the gist: Stress sucks. These strategies work for me. I hope they work for you too. Block your schedule. Like, right now. Go into [...]
A Note to You During National Suicide Prevention Week
I was 24 years old, in a Master’s of Mental Health Counseling program, and facilitating one of my first group sessions. It was an interpersonal relationship process group- you know- one of the groups used to train newbie therapists how to be in the here-and-now and learn about their quirks through interactions with others in the group? Pretty low key. At least most of the time. I loved group facilitation and especially relished in the moments when I would say something (I thought was) profound; earning myself the respect and admiration of those who were participants. I felt admired by my colleagues, supported by my professors, and would do anything I could to continue the persona of master therapist; wise beyond my years.
Connecting During COVID-19
The need to recognize and support students of concern didn’t simply stop when Coronavirus affected our schools. In fact, for many, the number of student’s needing support increased while options for supporting them, decreased. Now that almost all of our country's institutions and districts have gone to some form of virtual instruction and remote ways of supporting students, Case Managers, School Psychologists, and Behavioral Intervention Team (BIT) leaders have taken on a new task—identifying creative ways to check in on the students they serve. Here [...]
Some K-12 Districts are Ready to Identify Students of Concern, Others Are Not… Yet
The date was April 16, 2007. I think it was a Monday. I know it was a day that changed the landscape of student support on college campuses, forever. On this day an undergraduate student opened fire, shot, and killed 32 people and wounded 17 others on the campus of Virginia Tech. The nation was stunned. If this could happen on a college campus—where smart and capable students were focusing on bettering themselves and their futures—it could happen anywhere. In the years that followed, colleges [...]