Mental Health & Wellness Page
for
Parents and Guardians
It is important that we take care of ourselves and make the time to breathe and relax . . . take one day at a time. This page is designed to provide a one-stop location for information about Mental Health and Wellness for our parents and guardians.
Scroll Down and Check back often as things are added every month.
The tool above was developed by the St. Mary's County Violence, Injury, and Trauma Action Team and is designed to help you navigate through a situation where your child may need to be connected with resources or taken to the hospital in a crisis situation. We hope that this guide will provide you with the resources to understand the processes set in place to keep your child safe and connect both you and your child to the support you need.
MH & WELLNESS FLYER - pdfPLEASE JOINS US!!
SMCPS in partnership with Healthy St. Mary's is hosting a Mental & Behavioral Health & Wellness Fair on May 18, 2024. Please check out the flyer to the left for details!!
Mental Health Topic of the Month - Mindfulness
Mindfulness is best defined as having a state of significant focus on our present moment and calmly acknowledging and accepting our feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations, as they are in the present moment. Mindful parenting means that you bring your conscious attention to what's happening, instead of getting hijacked by your emotions. Mindfulness is about letting go of guilt and shame about the past and focusing on right now. It's about accepting whatever is going on, rather than trying to change it or ignore it.
Mindfulness can help keep children focused on what is happening in the present moment, help them remain calm, and can reduce big emotions. It helps give them tools to calm their brain allowing them the ability to make better decisions.
Watch this video to learn more about "What is Mindfulness"
Protecting your Peace, Personal and Practical Strategies for Parents
“Mental health includes emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, act, make choices, and relate to others. Mental health is more than the absence of a mental illness—it’s essential to your overall health and quality of life. Self-care can play a role in maintaining your mental health and help support your treatment and recovery if you have a mental illness.”
-National Institute of Mental Health
Protecting your peace is critical. Take a look at the helpful links below for some personal and practical strategies!
***Newsletter Links***
Free Online CRAFT Training for Parents
Workshop Opportunity for Parents/Guardian
CRAFT is a is a self-paced online video course that teaches parents, caregivers and concerned others skills and techniques needed to meet the risks of substance abuse and encouraging a young person to enter treatment. Parent CRAFT uses highly engaging video segments both for teaching and practicing skills. Each of the course's five sections build on the previous skills learned. The video portion of each section is less than one hour. Parents are encouraged to complete the sections over a period of several weeks and practice the skills before moving onto a new section.
Click HERE to Register
Positive Mental Health & Wellness is Critical to Overall Well-Being!
Let's look at understanding what the words "Mental Health and Wellness" actually mean. Mental Health and Wellness is our emotional and psychological well-being. It is how we understand and manage our emotions in the world around us. With so much going on in the world right now, SMCPS wanted to connect with parents on this topic and provide some helpful resources and tools. Check them out below.
Stress Management
Our world has changed so much in the last two years. Many people feel stressed, overwhelmed and experience worries that just seem to not go away. Stress is normal and we all experience it! Stress can have a positive or negative impact on us. Sometimes, stress can get out of balance and we feel it to the point where it interferes with our life or daily activities. It can impact our education, our relationships with friends/family, and can even contribute to medical issues due to an imbalance of stress hormones. Take some time to learn about what stress, anxiety, and worry are and learn some strategies to help manage them. There is help and hope!
We know that many people are stressed right now . . .are you? Try using our SMCPS Calming Room below to help relax. Take a few minutes to explore and find what helps you calm!
COPING SKILLS for STRESS MANAGEMENT
Having healthy coping skills is the key to managing stressful or upsetting events in our lives. Can you identify the coping skills you have? Your students? Take a look at the image below to generate ideas. Click here for more information on helping students embrace their emotions. Click here to learn how to make stress relief part of your students' lives
Sometimes, parents can also feel overwhelmed and stressed. Click here to take a quick Behavioral Health Wellness Screening from the St. Mary's County Health Department that is designed to inquire about YOUR mood. It only takes a few minutes.
YOU matter too!
Anxiety . . . When Worry Becomes Too Much
what-is-anxiety.pdfDo you wonder if your child worries too much? Are you curious about the signs of anxiety in children? Check out this video below or you can read the flyer to the left.
Mindfulness is a strategy that helps you slow down and focus on the here and now. It calms the brain and body to help manage stress and anxiety. Learn more by watching this video.
If you think your child is having difficulty with managing anxiety and you want to know what you can do to help, check out this link. It will help with some simple do's and don'ts. If you need additional support, please reach out to your School Counselor, School Psychologist, or School Social Worker.
Depression
Depression is often seen alongside anxiety. However, it can present independently. When Sadness persists, it can become Depression. Feeling sad is a natural reaction to situations that cause upset or pain. Depression is a longer-term mental illness that impairs daily functioning. Sadness typically goes away on its own where depression persists and becomes more chronic. Depression usually needs intervention and support.
Depression Awareness and Support is critical. How do you know if your student is depressed? Take a look at the videos below to help you understand the warning signs and when to seek help.
Suicide Prevention Awareness
We can't talk about Depression without talking about Suicide and Suicide Prevention. This section will take a look at when sadness becomes more serious and turns into depression that causes thoughts of self-harm. We will also take a deeper look into suicide prevention and awareness. We will review what it looks like, what it feels like, and where to go for help. There is HOPE! Explore below to learn more . . .
Sometimes, we realize that we, or someone we know may need more support and resources to manage their struggles. Below are some great options to help support mental health & wellness concerns.
Call 911 in case of an emergency
Call 211, Option 1 (MD 211 Helpline)
Call 988 - National Suicide Prevention Hotline
Text 988 - National Suicide Prevention Hotline
Text 741-741 - Suicide Prevention Hotline
Call 1-833-MD-B-SAFE (1-833-632-7233)
For non-emergency student-based support, please contact your child's School Counselor, School Psychologist or School Social Worker.
Other Mental Health & Wellness Topics
Sometimes, people are diagnosed with mental health and behavioral health disorders. It is important to understand these diagnoses in ourselves and in our students. We have developed a Mental Health Media Room if you would like to learn more about different mental health conditions. The videos are short and you may find the information helpful for you, your family, or your students, etc.
Substance Misuse & Abuse
Did you know that the St. Mary's County Health Department has developed a FREE online learning course for parents and guardians concerned about drug use in our community!
The course has the following 6 modules:
Understanding teen drug use and addiction
Prevention conversations (for children of all ages)
Preventing teen drug use: spot warning signs
What to do if you think your child is using drugs
Navigating treatment & recovery
Responding to overdose
SMCPS also provides numerous links to vaping resources. Check out our SMCPS School Health Council's Vaping/Tobacco Free google site! Find it HERE
The St. Mary's County Health Department also has Behavioral Health Prevention Resources on their website. This includes information on some local initiatives such as Suicide Prevention, Opioid Misuse, Vaping Prevention, and Underage Drinking Prevention. Please check them out HERE.
Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention
This issue impacts everyone, not just teens. Parents, students, staff, and communities are all impacted. Together, we can raise awareness and provide support to our students and encourage healthy relationships. Check out the resources below for more information.
Healthy Relationships
The OneLove Foundation seeks to educate young people about healthy and unhealthy relationships. They seek to empower students to identify and avoid abuse and learn how to love better.
Check out their website HERE
Domestic Violence
The Maryland Network Against Domestic Violence seeks to support people impacted by domestic violence. If you need support or want more information Click HERE
Additional Resources
SMCPS School Health Council has put together a few resource links for parents & students. Topics include - Suicide, Depression, Anxiety, Grief & Loss, ADHD, Autism, Bullying, and Substance Use. Click the link below or the picture to the left to access these resources.
RESOURCES
Local Tele-Health Resource Guide
St. Mary's County Health Department has great access to Mental & Behavioral Health Resources. Take a look to know what's out there!
