Cel­e­brat­ing Men­tal Health Month: Today and Everyday!

May 31, 2024

What is Men­tal Health Month and Why Do We Celebrate?

May is Men­tal Health Month. Men­tal Health Month focus­es on rais­ing aware­ness about the impor­tance of men­tal health while also pro­vid­ing sup­port and des­tig­ma­tiz­ing the brav­ery that is seek­ing care. Men­tal Health Month also cel­e­brates the oppor­tu­ni­ty to uplift and rec­og­nize men­tal health suc­cess­es. Men­tal health sup­port is cru­cial in keep­ing our com­mu­ni­ties healthy. Ken­neth Young Cen­ter is proud to be a part of cre­at­ing inno­v­a­tive solu­tions in com­mu­ni­ty men­tal health sup­port this month and year round!

Men­tal Health Statistics

• 1 in 5 U.S. adults expe­ri­ence men­tal ill­ness each year and only half of them receive treatment
  
• 50% of all life­time men­tal ill­ness begins by age 14 and 75% by age 24
• 1 in 20 U.S. adults expe­ri­ence seri­ous men­tal ill­ness each year 
  
• 1 in 6 U.S. youths aged 6 – 17 expe­ri­ence a men­tal health dis­or­der each year 
  
• 47% of U.S. adults with men­tal ill­ness and 65% of U.S. adults with seri­ous men­tal ill­ness nev­er received treat­ment in 2021
• Peo­ple with depres­sion have a 40% high­er risk of devel­op­ing car­dio­vas­cu­lar and meta­bol­ic dis­eases than the gen­er­al pop­u­la­tion. Peo­ple with seri­ous men­tal ill­ness are near­ly twice as like­ly to devel­op these conditions.
• Stu­dents aged 6 – 17 with men­tal, emo­tion­al or behav­ioral con­cerns are 3x more like­ly to repeat a grade.
• The rate of unem­ploy­ment is high­er among U.S. adults who have men­tal ill­ness (7.4%) com­pared to those who do not (4.6%)
• Depres­sion is a lead­ing cause of dis­abil­i­ty worldwide
• 21% of peo­ple expe­ri­enc­ing home­less­ness in the U.S. have a seri­ous men­tal health condition

Self Care Tips to Take Care of Your Men­tal Health

• Get­ting up and mov­ing around
• Spend­ing time with loved one 
  
• Writ­ing down what is on your mind
• Lis­ten­ing to music
• Get­ting enough sleep
• Spend­ing time in nature 
  
• Mak­ing time for your­self each and every day
• Eat­ing well and & exer­cis­ing regularly 
  
• Relax­ing and let­ting go of stress 
  
• Prac­tice self-compassion
• Express grat­i­tude
  
• Reach­ing out and ask­ing for help when you are struggling
  

Car­ing for Oth­ers While Car­ing for Yourself

At least 8.4 mil­lion peo­ple in the U.S. pro­vide care to an adult with a men­tal or emo­tion­al health issue. Tak­ing care of a loved one with men­tal or emo­tion­al health care issues can be over­whelm­ing and iso­lat­ing. Men­tal health care is cru­cial com­po­nent in over­all pos­i­tive health out­comes. If you are a care­tak­er, Ken­neth Young Cen­ter offers Care­giv­er Sup­port Groups both vir­tu­al­ly and in-per­son each month for those sup­port­ing a loved one to meet oth­er care­givers, receive sup­port, sup­port oth­ers, and become empow­ered in your care-giv­ing role! 

Our Care­giv­er Sup­port Spe­cial­ist shares a tip that engag­ing in activ­i­ties with loved ones can build a sense of com­mu­ni­ty and well-being. Our Mem­o­ry Café is a free month­ly event for those with mem­o­ry impair­ments and care­givers to attend togeth­er. This wel­com­ing atmos­phere allows those expe­ri­enc­ing mem­o­ry impair­ments a place to con­nect and care­givers to receive resources and sug­ges­tions dur­ing activ­i­ties that pro­mote healthy interactions! 

Sup­port is ALWAYS Avaliable!

Any­one. Any­where. Any­time. If you need men­tal health sup­port, we’re here to help by phone or in per­son. Vis­it our page here for infor­ma­tion on how we can sup­port you.

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