Nonprofit Founder, Coach Patty Medina, recently completed a 3-day training to become a Mental Health First Aid Instructor.
Our founder, Patty Medina, recently completed a 3-day training to become a Mental Health First Aid Instructor. She hopes to be able to train and certify coaches in the communities that Hooper Mentality serves so that they can better serve their student-athletes. Mental Health First Aid teaches individuals how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental illness and substance use disorders. This training gives them the skills they need to reach out and provide initial support to someone who may be developing a mental health or substance use problem and help connect them to the appropriate care.
Let’s make Mental Health First Aid as common as CPR.
Just as CPR helps you assist an individual having a heart attack, Mental Health First Aid helps you assist someone experiencing a mental health or substance use-related crisis. In the Mental Health First Aid course, participants learn risk factors and warning signs for mental health and addiction concerns, strategies for how to help someone in both crisis and non-crisis situations, and where to turn for help.
Having a serious conversation about mental health with a young person can be challenging, to say the least. How do you start the conversation? What should you bring up? How much is too much information? Should it even be discussed?
The Mental Health First Aid curricula says national studies estimate that 22.2 percent of youth in the United States will have a mental health challenge that significantly impacts their life. This makes it likely that an adult will interact with an adolescent who is experiencing a mental health challenge. Adults who interact with young people need access to information and resources about how to have conversations with kids and answer the tough questions. Youth Mental Health First Aid can help. Youth Mental Health First Aid is designed to teach parents, family members, caregivers, teachers, school staff, peers, neighbors, health and human services workers, and other caring citizens how to help adolescents (age 12-18) who are experiencing a mental health or substance use challenge or are in crisis. YMHFA is primarily designed for adults who regularly interact with young people.
Topics Covered in the MHFA Training
Depression and mood disorders
Anxiety disorders
Trauma
Psychosis
Substance Use disorders
Mental Health First Aid teaches about recovery and resiliency – the belief that individuals experiencing these challenges can and do get better, and use their strengths to stay well.
Recognizing mental health challenges is the first step toward helping a young person. According to MHFA, studies show that with proper care and treatment, children and youth with mental health and substance use challenges get better, and many recover completely.
Information and statistics provided by Mental Health First Aid from National Council for Mental Wellbeing. For more information on how to become MHFA Certified, visit the above website.
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