Archive

We don’t provide our services in a vacuum. We are people who provide services to other people. And like many first responders across the country, the Clifton Fire Department in Clifton, N.J., is seeing an increasing number of calls from...

From living on your own to partying without a curfew, college offers a panoply of first-time experiences. There’s one “first,” however, that no college student wishes for — a first-time brush with mental illness. But it’s a possibility that anyone...

Damien Johnson owns and operates Charlotte, N.C.’s No Grease Barber School and knows firsthand how mental illness impacts his clients. Johnson says he hears stories day in and day out of men struggling – not with bills or relationships – but with mental...

A death by suicide is often met with a would’ve, could’ve or should’ve. If he would’ve told me, maybe I could’ve done something. Even though he never said a word, I should’ve known. Unfortunately, I know a thing or two...

The National Council for Mental Wellbeing is proud to partner with Boys & Girls Clubs of America to train local club staff in Youth Mental Health First Aid. The eight-hour course teaches parents, family members, caregivers, teachers, school staff, peers,...

In June, designer Kate Spade’s and chef Anthony Bourdain’s suicides reminded us that suicide does not discriminate. It can impact anyone, and it is often unexpected. Numerous factors can put a person at risk, including family history of suicide, substance...

Your boyfriend or girlfriend breaks up with you. Your beloved pet dies. Your hoped-for promotion at work falls through. We all feel sad or “blue” when bad things happen, but everyday sadness is not a depressive disorder. When you know...

Hi, my name is Ramon Cruz and I am a person in recovery from mental health and substance use disorders. For many years, I carried a good deal of anger and resentment so, instead of addressing my issues, I turned...

September is National Recovery Month and Mental Health First Aid can be the first step on the road to recovery. You can literally #BeTheDifference in someone’s life by knowing how to understand, recognize and respond to someone experiencing a mental...

The face of mental illness can be deceptive, hidden behind big smiles, wide eyes and exuberant expressions forced into place to avoid detection. Millions of people every day wear a rehearsed look of “all is right with the world.” Many...

“It’s probably not a big deal. I’m probably overreacting,” thought Sara, a graduate student at the University of Michigan, when her dark thoughts were not going away. She was sitting in her university’s counseling center at the time (What colleges...

“Hello, I am the protective factor,” was the unorthodox greeting I recently received following congregational prayer in my local mosque. The elderly gentleman who approached me was a participant in a Mental Health First Aid class a few weeks prior....