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To celebrate Mental Health Month this May, the Tri-State K-9 Crisis Response Team returned to Oaks Integrated Care for a 2nd year to teach us about their therapy dogs and the different services they provide! The therapy dogs serve children, families, neighborhoods and communities that are in crisis in an effort to provide comfort, stress relief, emotional support and crisis intervention services. Teams will comfort victims of trauma, disaster, or violence fostering resilience and self-efficacy. When asked about the process of becoming a handler/dog team on the crisis response team explained, “Each dog must have been a therapy dog for at least a year. The dog and handler need to have basic obedience skills, manners and be able to pass [...]

As Mental Health Month comes to a close, it‘s important to continue to focus on mental wellness throughout the year. So often we place emphasis on improving physical wellness, that mental wellness does not receive the attention it deserves. Mental wellness, defined by the World Health Organization, is a state of well-being in which every individual realizes their own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and is able to make a contribution to the community. The state of one’s mental health can influence the ways in which they look at themselves, their life and others around them. Without a healthy mental state it can be extremely challenging to live life to the fullest extent. [...]

September marks Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. The month gives us time to connect with those affected by suicide, reflect on how suicide has touched our own lives and to share resources to better support individuals, families and their communities in efforts to prevent suicide. According to the CDC, each year more than 41,000 individuals die by suicide, leaving behind thousands of friends and family members to navigate the tragedy of their loss. Too often people considering suicide are afraid to ask for help, and those who think they see the signs of trouble are reluctant to be wrong and then offend, or cause embarrassment. NAMI reports that suicide is the 10th leading cause of death among adults in the U.S. [...]