South Heartland District Health Department

For Give Day, we are focusing on Mental Wellbeing!

Many of us know someone who is experiencing anxiety or depression, isolation, or loneliness. Maybe these are feelings we are experiencing in ourselves. Did you know that mental health concerns can affect nearly every stage of life? These feelings can begin at young ages, increase sharply in adolescence and young adulthood, and persist or recur across adulthood and into our golden years.

Our community prioritized Mental Wellbeing as a topic to address in the current 6-year community health improvement plan (CHIP), launched last fall. Community partners have initiated several strategies that should help us improve mental well-being across the 4-county health district.

Funds from Hastings Give Day will help us implement these strategies by bringing community trainings to Hastings that will help us to, for example:

• Recognize the signs of suicide ideation and know what steps to take (QPR Training)
• Become Mental Health First Aiders, serving as a vital link between those facing a mental health or substance use challenge and the help they need (Mental Health First Aid Training)
• Recognize, prevent, and reduce the impact of early childhood trauma on long-term health and wellbeing (ACES training)
• Understand the impacts of social media on mental wellbeing and provide tools to promote healthy social media use
• Provide access to mental health risk screenings for all ages
• Promote connection, activity, and socialization opportunities for all ages.

Testimonials

“Mental wellbeing is a community priority! South Heartland District Health Department supports community health improvement by facilitating efforts to improve mental wellbeing across the lifespan through prevention initiatives with our partners.”

Michele Bever, PhD, MPH, Executive Director