Recognizing Mental Health Awareness Month

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. The Jefferson County Health Department has made mental health a key focus this year. As the county school registered nurse I’ve been focused specifically on youth mental health. The 2021 Youth Risk Behavioral Survey for Jefferson County schools shows that 32% of middle schoolers and 36% of high schoolers reported feeling so sad or hopeless for two weeks or more that they stopped doing some of their usual activities. In addition, nearly 15% of middle schoolers and 21% of high schoolers have seriously considered attempting suicide. The kids are not alright. 

To try and help those in crisis, I offer Signs of Suicide (SOS) education to school staff, parents and middle school students. This was successfully taught at Boulder Elementary this school year. In addition, I’ve helped bring Rural Behavioral Health Institute (RBHI) to Boulder Elementary to do mental wellness screenings for grades 6-8. The data collected stays consistent with the YRBS data that nearly 35% of students report struggling with their mental health. Every student that reports struggling is followed up with and receives support from school staff, including me. RBHI takes referrals from the school and helps families connect to mental health care if needed. The school also continues to teach social emotional learning from a young age to help students regulate their emotions. All of this is to support students’ mental wellbeing, so they have a better chance of succeeding in school and in life. 

I also helped organize this year’s Tri-County Campus “Out of the Darkness” walk to help support suicide prevention. The walk was held April 29 at East Helena High School. It started with a resource fair and ended with a two-mile walk around town. The event brought participants from Lewis and Clark County, Broadwater County, Jefferson County and beyond. The Jefferson County Mental Health Local Advisory Council was a sponsor of the walk and participated in the resource fair, along with JCHD. A bead ceremony highlighted the various ways people were connected to suicide prevention, including those working to bring awareness and those who have survived a suicide loss. To top it off, it was a beautiful day for such an occasion.