May is Mental Health Month
May is Mental Health Month and this is important! It is important because there is fear and stigma around mental health.
Mental Health
When we cut ourselves, we bleed and use a bandage. Break a bone and we use plaster. Physical pain is acceptable to address. Mental pain is a different story. I’m sure we have all been told at some point to: suck it up, turn that frown upside down, be strong, and focus on the positive. Yet we would never use these words to heal a broken bone.
Mental Health in Our Community
The National Alliance for Mental Health or NAMI, reports that 1 in 5 adults in the United States will experience mental illness in a given year. To see other statistics click here. The Colorado Branch is namicolorado.org. If you are reading this in Colorado, this story might interest you.
Mental Health and You
You are important. You are loved and cared for and deserve to be okay. That means many different things to different people. Mental illnesses impact us all, because we all live together as a family on this lovely earth. We are all connected. You are part of the wonder that makes the world. Please care for yourself as you would care for others. Be compassionate with yourself as you would with others. A poem by Emily Dickinson follows:
