Latest news with #MentalHealthMonth
The Citizen
3 days ago
- Health
- The Citizen
Security forum seeks support to prioritise men's mental health event
Lakes Security Forum in the east of Pretoria, is urging the public to support its upcoming Mental Health Month initiatives, with a particular emphasis on assisting men. The organisation is preparing for a busy calendar in June, which includes mental health awareness campaigns, a prayer day, and a Father's Day event, all designed to address the often-overlooked emotional struggles faced by men. Chairperson Jean Jonker has called for assistance in the form of sponsorships, volunteers, venues, and resources to ensure the success of the events. 'We're specifically looking for speakers, mental health professionals, and experts who can offer their time and skills during our men-focused sessions,' said Jonker. He emphasised that far too many men suffer in silence, grappling with grief, trauma, pressure, or stress without adequate support. 'In June, we want to create a safe space for men to open up, connect, and find strength together,' he said. 'Men's mental health is often neglected, and we hope to change that by bringing in motivational speakers, mental health specialists, and faith leaders who can provide the tools and emotional support they need.' He said the mental health and support sessions will be open to all men but will certainly welcome women who wish to learn how to support the men facing these challenges in their lives. 'We know that in society, men's mental health is stigmatised, and many will be too ashamed to come themselves, so we encourage their women to accompany them and support them.' Jonker added that this session will aim to create awareness and build an environment in which men can be supportive pillars for one another. 'However, we need the community's support to make this event a success. We essentially have to create something from scratch, so we will need food for participants, financial contributions for support materials and services, and speakers and experts to offer their skills.' He added that even if people simply spread the word about this upcoming beneficial event, it will make a difference. 'If people share this and talk about it, more men will show up, and every action creates a ripple of hope and support.' One of the directors, Malcolm de Klerk, said it is important to make the awareness campaign a success. 'It will essentially help with men's mental health, which is too often overlooked, especially in the community safety space,' he said. ALSO READ: North residents confront Tshwane officials at imbizo Do you have more information about the story? Please send us an email to bennittb@ or phone us on 083 625 4114. For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord's websites: Rekord East For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram or TikTok. At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Rockford area organizations unite to address mental health issues
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — As part of Mental Health Month, numerous local organizations joined the National Alliance of Mental Illness of Northern Illinois in connecting the community with mental wellness resources. The third annual 'Building Bridges to Hope' event featured keynote speaker Jamie Tworkowski. His book, 'To Write Love on Her Arms' is recognized as an award-winning leader in mental health and suicide prevention. If anyone who wanted to make it to this event was unable, here is a list of resources in the Rockford area: Boys and Girls Club of Rockford offered resources on how youth can develop in an emotionally healthy way, and increase access to mental health care. Brightpoint provided services for pregnant mothers through support and education on topics including nutrition, labor, delivery preparedness, coping with stress, and postpartum care. They also offer prenatal groups. Carpenter's Place offers housing and employment assistance City of Rockford Health & Human Services shared programs available to the community, including housing programs, energy programs, and community action programs. Crusader Community Health assists with many mental health issues, including diagnosis, therapy, crisis intervention, and medication-assisted treatment. Emmaus Health Partners and Family Counseling Services provided therapy services. Employment assistance is offered by Bridgeway, Goodwill, and The Workforce Connection Family Peace Center offers services to those suffering from interpersonal violence, including counselling, safe supervised child supervision, legal services, and shelter. Food Pantries including Rock River Valley Pantry, Cornucopia Food Pantry, and Northern Illinois Food Bank provide food to those in need. Housing assistance is offered by Rock River Homeless Coalition, Rockford Housing Authority, MELD, Rockford Rescue Mission, Shelter Care Ministries, HUD, and WCHA. Lockwood Park's Equine Assisted Services utilize horses in activities where participants learn foundational social and emotional skills to help enhance their well-being and interpersonal relationships Lifescape had a focus on senior wellness, including tools to recognize isolation, loneliness, and depression. Live4Lali seeks to reduce the stigma against substance abuse and provides resources through prevention, education, treatment, and support. Marshmallow's Hope offers crucial services to those in need, providing a beacon of hope in times of darkness through youth counseling, mentorship, and suicide prevention school assemblies. OSF Trauma Recovery Center helps victims of violent crimes. Prairie State Legal Services gives access to legal services for low-income, elderly, and vulnerable people to meet their basic needs. Ramp's mental health services for disabled individuals focus on mental health referrals, independent living services, youth education and advocacy, technical and accessibility audits Remedies Renewing Lives offers help to survivors of domestic violence, substance abuse treatment, gambling addiction treatment, and human trafficking services. Rockford Area Arts Council promotes mental wellness through positive mental stimulation and outlets through the arts. Rockford Barbell supports youth through free after-school programs with a mission to improve the social and emotional well-being of youth through mindful movement and trauma-informed practices. Rockford Sexual Assault Counseling provides resources for sexual assault survivors, teen dating violence, domestic violence, child advocacy, workplace resources, and more. Rosecrance Behavioral Health has mental health and substance abuse programs for youth, veterans, front-line workers, adults, and the elderly. Jubilee Center's day program provides case management, intervention, and a welcoming day program including activities and meals. This program focuses on adults living with mental illness who are currently homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. Stepping Stones gives access to mental health treatment options for people of all ages and their families through counseling and/or residential care in home supervision, and support services. Tommy Corral Memorial Foundation offers support through both youth and adult educational programs, support groups, retreats, and instruction in recognizing signs of mental health or substance use challenges. YMCA of Rock River Valley offers healthy living and activities that boost mental positivity. Youth Services Network focuses on providing and coordinating services to improve the well-being of children, young adults, and families. 'We all need a little bit of help sometimes.' Executive director of NAMI Northern Illinois, Danielle Angileri, told us. 'I think mental health, mental illness is a spectrum, so you can have high-functioning anxiety, you can do really well in the world, or you can have an anxiety disorder that is debilitating, you can't leave the house, for example. I think we all operate on a spectrum, and it's okay to come find out what resources are available just in case you run across someone you love one day that might need it.' Anyone looking for immediate mental health services, visit this 24/7 chat line. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Charitable Impact Spotlights Canadians Taking Action on Youth Mental Health
From public tragedies to private missions, Canadians are stepping up and the tools they need are already in their hands Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 22, 2025) - As Mental Health Month brings national attention to the growing youth mental health crisis, everyday Canadians are finding ways to support, not as experts or institutions, but as individuals. Some are launching grassroots efforts in response to tragedy. Others are quietly giving what they can, month by month. What ties them together is a desire to help, and access to tools that make it easier to take action. According to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), suicide is now the second leading cause of death among Canadians aged 15-24, and the third for children aged 10-14. Yet mental health services across the country remain underfunded and overstretched. For many Canadians, the question isn't whether to help, it's how. "Lots of people say they want to help, but they often get stuck at the starting line," says John Bromley, Founder and CEO of Charitable Impact, a donor-advised fund. "That's why we built a platform that helps donors manage their giving in a way that's simple, personal, and effective." Real stories of action and impact In Vancouver, local leaders created the Lapu Lapu Mental Health Fund to provide free one-on-one counselling for families impacted by a recent public tragedy at the Lapu Lapu Day Festival. The fund was launched through a Giving Group, an easy-to-use, customizable fundraising page that anyone can set up at no cost. "In those first heartbreaking moments, we needed a trusted space where caring individuals and donors could come together in solidarity," says Tegan Moss, President of The Kelty Foundation. "The giving group made it easy for the community to come together and ensure every dollar helped the families who needed it most." Elsewhere, musician and mental health advocate Robb Nash launched the Operation Overcome Cause Fund, championed by his charity, The Robb Nash Project and The Kelty Foundation. Believing that many potential donors know they care about youth mental health but don't know which charities to support, this provided a solution. As a leader in the space, Robb and his co-Cause Leaders, with the support of a team of experts ensure the funds are strategically distributed to high-impact charities. Operation Overcome also wants to promote collaboration: "When we break down barriers and help charities work together, collectively and collaboratively, we can overcome limits to youth mental wellness," the organizers explain on their fund page. To others like Zil E Huma Khan, giving is more private. She sets up a recurring deposit into her personal Charitable Impact account, quietly distributing funds to mental health charities she is familiar with. "Everyone deserves the resources and support to live well and be empowered," Khan says. That belief fuels her commitment to mental health and education, and why she chooses to give in a way that fits her life. One Platform, Many Ways to Give These stories don't follow a single playbook, but they reflect a common thread: Canadians acting on what they care about in ways that feel right for them. "Our platform, a donor-advised fund open to everyone, exists to support generosity in all its forms," said Bromley. "Whether someone's rallying their community, supporting multiple charities quietly from their own account, the platform adapts to how they want to give and makes it easier to take action and track it over time." For some, like the Lapu Lapu Fund organizers, that means starting a Giving Group to rally community support around a shared trauma. For others, like Robb Nash, a Cause Fund provides a way to make it easier for donors to give confidently on a focused causal level. And for donors who already know where they want their money to go, the same platform offers them a way to manage all their giving from one place, regardless of which charities they choose to support, when or why. During Mental Health Month, and beyond, these stories offer a reminder that change starts when individuals choose to act. Explore more stories like these, or start your own at About Charitable Impact Charitable Impact is a modern giving platform that helps Canadians engage more personally and intentionally with charitable giving. Operating as a donor-advised fund, it offers flexible tools and support for people to plan their giving, support the causes that matter to them, and collaborate with others to grow their collective impact. Whether giving individually or through communities, users can explore, organize, and amplify their generosity-all in one place. Since 2011, more than 210,000 people have given through Charitable Impact, donating over $1.5 billion to more than 14,800 registered charities across Canada. Charitable Impact is built on the belief that giving should be accessible, personal, and meaningful-empowering anyone to create the change they want to see in the world. Learn more at For media inquiries, please contact: Luisa Velez Director, Corporate Communications at Charitable Impact media@ To view the source version of this press release, please visit
Associated Press
06-05-2025
- Health
- Associated Press
Psychiatry's Legacy of Racism and Coercion Highlighted in Restraint Deaths
LOS ANGELES, Calif., May 5, 2025 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — With May being Mental Health Month, the Citizens Commission on Human Rights International (CCHR) is spotlighting a disturbing new study published in the Journal of Forensic and Legal Medicine, titled 'I Can't Breathe' – A Study of Civil Litigated Cases on Prone Restraint Deaths. The review analyzed 229 fatal police restraint cases from 2010 to 2019. Of those where race was reported, 38% of the victims were African American. In 58% of cases, death occurred within five minutes of restraint; more than 20% of victims were recorded gasping, 'I can't breathe'—a hallmark of lethal respiratory failure.[1] The mental health watchdog warns that such deaths are rooted in eugenic ideologies that historically promoted coercion under the guise of control. The disproportionate representation of African Americans in restraint-related deaths reflects entrenched psychiatric and psychological racism—pseudoscientific theories that falsely declared Black inferiority and continue to influence profiling today. This coercive culture is echoed in 'warrior-style' or 'killology' law enforcement training developed by a psychology professor 20 years ago that promotes a 'kill or be killed' mindset. It conditions officers to respond with deadly force. As Mother Jones reported, such training 'often runs the risk of the use of unnecessary, and sometimes, fatal force.'[2] Such force reflects a broader, systemic pattern: racial profiling and the use of physical and chemical restraints, disproportionately on African Americans. A 2017 New York Law School Journal report confirmed: 'Behavior by African-Americans is more often interpreted as 'dangerous' than identical behavior by whites,' and they are more likely to be labeled with psychiatric conduct disorders.[3] These injustices trace back to the slave era. Benjamin Rush, dubbed the 'father of American psychiatry,' claimed Blacks suffered from 'Negritude'—a disease curable only by whitening their skin. His protégé, Dr. Samuel Cartwright, fabricated the diagnosis 'Drapetomania' to explain why slaves tried to escape, advocating that 'whipping the devil out of them' was therapeutic.[4] Myths that Blacks were 'more durable to pain' persist today, known as Black hardiness,' stereotypes that influence restraint and drugging. CCHR highlights the enduring racism embedded in psychiatric practice: Further compounding harm, psychiatrists prescribe African Americans higher doses of antipsychotics, which can cause tardive dyskinesia (TD), a neurological disorder marked by uncontrollable movements.[9] African Americans are twice as likely to develop TD compared to whites.[10] Antipsychotics may cause suicidality, diabetes, brain shrinkage, compulsive behaviors, and are even linked to breast cancer, according to a recent study.[11] CCHR points to the tragic deaths of children under psychiatric restraint: Each case underscores a system not of healing, but of unchecked coercion. The United Nations and World Health Organization have repeatedly condemned coercive psychiatric practices, equating them with torture. Despite these clear international mandates, African Americans remain disproportionately subject to such practices in the U.S. CCHR, established 56 years ago by the Church of Scientology and professor of psychiatry, Thomas Szasz, calls for a permanent end to coercive psychiatric practices: banning forced treatment, physical and chemical restraint, and psychological 'killology' law enforcement training. They also demand accountability for harm and deaths caused by such practices. To learn more, visit: Sources: [1] Alon Steinberg, et al., 'I can't breathe' – A study of civil litigated cases on prone restraint deaths ,' Journ. of Forensic and Legal Medicine, May 2025, [2] [3] Michael L. Perlin, et al., 'Tolling For the Aching Ones Whose Wounds Cannot Be Nursed,' Journal of Gender, Race, and Justice, Vol. 20, Issue 3 (Summer 2017), pp. 431-45, [4] Samuel A. Cartwright, M.D., 'Report on the Diseases and Physical Peculiarities of the Negro Race,' New Orleans & Surgical Journal, 1851; Thomas Szasz, Insanity, The Idea and Its Consequences, (John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York, 1990), p. 306, 307; -mental-health-month-may-spell-mental-health-slavery/ [5] [6] 'Racial disparities in the management of emergency department patients presenting with psychiatric disorders ,' Ann Epidemiology, May 2022 [7] [8] 'National Review of Restraint Related Deaths of Children and Adults with Disabilities: The Lethal Consequences of Restraint,' Equip for Equality, 2011, p. 30 [9] 'Best Practices: Racial and Ethnic Effects on Antipsychotic Prescribing Practices in a Community Mental Health Center,' Psychiatric Services, 1 Feb. 2003, [10] [11] 'J&J and Eli Lilly Concealed Breast Cancer Risks in Blockbuster Antipsychotics for Decades, Wisner Baum Lawsuit Alleges,' PR Newswire, 23 Apr. 2023 [12] 'Mental health and human rights,' Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, 28 September 2018 [13] World Health Organization, United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, 'Guidance on Mental Health, Human Rights and Legislation,' 9 Oct. 2023 MULTIMEDIA: Image link for media: Image caption: CCHR calls for a permanent end to coercive psychiatric practices: banning forced treatment, physical and chemical restraint, and psychological 'killology' law enforcement training. They also demand accountability for harm and deaths caused by such practices. NEWS SOURCE: Citizens Commission on Human Rights Keywords: Religion and Churches, Citizens Commission on Human Rights, Mental Health Month, CCHR International, Study of Civil Litigated Cases on Prone Restraint Deaths, LOS ANGELES, Calif. This press release was issued on behalf of the news source (Citizens Commission on Human Rights) who is solely responsibile for its accuracy, by Send2Press® Newswire. Information is believed accurate but not guaranteed. Story ID: S2P125954 APNF0325A To view the original version, visit: © 2025 Send2Press® Newswire, a press release distribution service, Calif., USA. RIGHTS GRANTED FOR REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART BY ANY LEGITIMATE MEDIA OUTLET - SUCH AS NEWSPAPER, BROADCAST OR TRADE PERIODICAL. MAY NOT BE USED ON ANY NON-MEDIA WEBSITE PROMOTING PR OR MARKETING SERVICES OR CONTENT DEVELOPMENT. Disclaimer: This press release content was not created by nor issued by the Associated Press (AP). Content below is unrelated to this news story.
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Kandiyohi County Board to make several proclamations at next regular meeting
May 4---- As part of the Tuesday, May 6, regular meeting, the Kandiyohi County Board is expected to pass three appreciation proclamations recognizing a special day or the month of May for different work being done in the county. The first proposed proclamation comes in two parts — recognizing May as Mental Health Month and Children's Mental Health Awareness Day on May 7. The second proclamation would recognize May as Foster Care Appreciation Month to encourage citizens to volunteer time and talents to help benefit children in foster care. The final proposed proclamation is Child Care Provider Appreciation Day on May 9. The Bridge Replacement Program will also be up for discussion on Tuesday. A resolution was put forth to amend the previous program resolution, which was passed on Dec. 17, 2024. The revisions to the plan come as a result of additional testing done on timber bridges, which changes the replacement outlook for the county. The board will hold a budget work session at 11:45 a.m. Tuesday to go over the county's budgets for several aspects of county management, including human services, road and bridge and the general fund. More information on the Kandiyohi County Board meeting, or to see agendas from previous meetings, visit the and look for the Commissioners' page and the meeting portal link.
