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Mental health is something everyone should care about Living with mental illness can leave sufferers feeling guilt, confusion and hopelessness as they battle stigma and discrimination from those around them. During May, Mental Health Month promotes the sharing of information and understanding about what it’s really like to live with mental illness in America. Sponsored by the community-based non-profit organization Mental Health America, this year’s theme is Life with a Mental Illness. It can be hard to share one’s point of view as a sufferer, even in this day and age, and even as conditions like depression and bipolar disorder are household words. At school or at work, or with family and friends, people dealing with mental illness often feel alone with their feelings and their symptoms. That is why it’s so important for all of us to foster tolerance and get informed. One way to do this is in your social media posts. During May, Mental Health America encourages individuals with mental illness to share their pictures, videos and stories on social media with the hashtag #mentalillnessfeelslike. They can also contribute their words and images anonymously, at http:// mentalhealthamerica.net/share-your-story. Expressing what it’s like to live with this kind of illness can free sufferers from isolation and help others understand the struggles they come up against every day. And reading about their experiences helps us all learn to recognize if we ourselves are showing signs of mental illness. Visit mentalhealthamerica.net/may to learn more about how to promote Mental Health Month in your community or for more facts about mental illness and its signs. Because mental health shouldn’t be kept a secret Statistics show that 1 in 5 adults will experience a mental health condition within their lifetime. And, our lives may already be impacted by someone we know who faces the reality of living with a mental illness. Organizations across the U.S. are helping to raise awareness all month long about mental health. We invite you to help us spread the word and beat the stigma about mental health! For more information about Mental Health Month, please visit www.nami.org/Get-Involved/Raise-Awareness/Awareness-Events/Mental-Health-Month or www.mentalhealthamerica.net/may www.siouxlandmentalhealth.com | 712-252-3871 or 877-493-2273 625 Court Street, Sioux City, IA 51101 May is Mental HEALTH Month Crisis Response Are You Feeling Suicidal? Heartland Counseling Services, Inc. 917 West 21st Street South Sioux City, Nebraska 68776 (402) 494-3337 1-877-958-7776 or 1-402-494-7655 Serving the counties of: Burt, Dakota, Dixon,Thurston & Wayne Funded by DHHS and Region 4 Behavioral Health Systems: Depression • Anxiety / Fear • Stress • Grief Difficulty in Work / School • Social / Peer Relations Marital / Family Conflicts • Children’s Issues Psychiatric / Med Management Approved providers for Medicaid, Medicare, Wellmark, Managed Care and other insurances. Free On-line Assessments for Depression • Anxiety • Alcohol Use • Eating Disorders • Bipolar • Post Traumatic Stress Disorder www.plainsareamentalhealth.org For Referrals or Appointments Le Mars and Orange City 712-546-4624 or 800-325-1192 Cherokee 712-225-2575 Storm Lake 712-213-8402 Denison 712-263-5756 Ida Grove 712-364-3500 Carroll 712-792-2991
