Mental health awareness beyond May

This content is provided to Johns Hopkins employees through a partnership with mySupport and Resources for Living.

Mental health awareness does not have to end after May, the month in which it's annually brought to the public's attention, because mental illness doesn't affect just the people with the disease—it also affects anyone who cares about or works with them. Chances are mental health concerns have touched your life in some way. If you want to learn more about mental health resources and how you can help raise awareness, consider these resources. It is important to know at all times what support is available to help ourselves and those around us.

Mental health first aid

Do you want to learn more about mental health problems and how to respond? Similar to CPR and first aid courses, Mental Health First Aid is skills-based training that helps people identify, understand, and respond to mental health issues. You can find local training at mentalhealthfirstaid.org.

General mental well-being

Campaign to Change Direction
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Mental Health
Mental Health America
National Institute of Mental Health
Person-First Language

Mental health concerns

Anxiety and Depression Association of America
Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance
National Alliance on Mental Illness
Parenting Well: Resources for Healthy Families
Postpartum Support International
Schizophrenia and Psychosis Action Alliance

Addiction

Al-Anon/Alateen
Alcoholics Anonymous
Gamblers Anonymous
Narcotics Anonymous
SAMHSA National Mental Health Information Center—Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

Children's resources

Autism Society of America
Bipolar Children
Center for Parent Information and Resources
Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
Prevent Child Abuse America

Suicide

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
Stop a Suicide Today
Suicide Prevention Resource Center

Hopkins-specific resources:

Reach out to mySupport for professional support from a licensed counselor. MySupport provides confidential counseling for up to five visits at no cost for Johns Hopkins employees and household members.

In the month of May, mySupport brought to the Hopkins community a mental health awareness webinar series. The sessions, each of which was recorded, were Mental Health in the Workplace, Anxiety Disorders and Mindfulness, Professional and Personal Perspectives on Depression, What We Think and Say Matters: How Unconscious Stigma May Worsen Our Mental Health, and Mental Health Awareness and Ethnic Minority Clients. To review or share them with others, go here.

For tracking mood, use myStrength, a behavioral platform that provides self-care resources to manage and overcome challenges with depression, anxiety, stress, balancing intense emotions, and COVID-19. Create a myStrength account at mystrength.com using access code JHU.

Download the myStrength app from the Apple App store or Google Play. Log in with the email you used to create the account.

Try the Calm account for mindfulness practices. JHU students, faculty, and staff have free access to the Calm app and can take advantage of its meditation instruction, sleep assistance, videos on mindful movement and stretching, and relaxing music. To create an account at calm.com/jhu, follow these steps:

• Use an @jhu.edu or @jhmi.edu email to create the account.
• Click on the confirmation email sent to your inbox.
• Download the Calm app from the Apple App store or Google Play or go to calm.com.
• Log in with the email you used to create the account.

Need more resources?

Resources for Living has more information and resources in support of mental health awareness. Username: JHU. Password: JHU.

Make your mental well-being a priority. Johns Hopkins' employee assistance program, mySupport, is here 24/7, 365 days a year, for you—and your household family members and children living away from home up to age 26. Call mySupport at 443-997-7000, option 2, for free, confidential help and referrals for any emotional or mental health concerns you may have.