The Canadian Mental Health Association wants people to #GetReal about mental health next week.
Their campaign during mental health week aims to get people talking. Mental Health Week takes place from May 4 to 10th. And this year it is all about fostering social connections.
In Strathmore, a committee of community organizations have come together to offer a bunch of activities for kids and families throughout the week.
Carmen Erison, Assistant Director of Library Services for Strathmore Municipal Library spoke about the collaboration that went into planning the week.
“It just makes things easier when you're collaborating with other partners and allows us to provide a great variety of programming for all ages."
There will be a number of activity sessions starting on Tuesday May 3 with Managing Fear & Reconnecting After COVID-19, Psychological First Aid, Graffiti Night and Movie & Craft Day.
About Psychological First Aid she said, “It’s also a very good program to go into. I just took the official Red Cross Psychological First Aid training this month and it does really help you to identify the effects of stress and loss, it helps you identify that in other people if they need help.”
“Psychological first aid does not turn you into a counselor, but gives you the tools to help you assess whether a person is in need and then allows you to provide help for those people by directing them to places for help,” said Erison.
Graffiti Night will be hosted by Trellis Commons Family Resource Network, “It is just a simple fun graffiti night for children ages 10 and up. This is a registration program, so you do need to register through Trellis.”
The Movie & Craft Day was created collaboratively with the library and its partners.
Participants will do t-shirt painting, write affirmations and speak to children about mental health and wellness. Afterward they will sit down to watch Disney’s ‘Inside Out.
“Its a great movie for kids to help them understand the feelings that they're having in their minds and their bodies and that these feelings are OK. I think as as adults, we tend to think about mental health as strictly an adult thing. Kids have stress too and we really need to recognize this,” said Erison.
There will be a maximum of 35 participants for the Movie & Craft Day program, which will be held on a first come first serve basis. Families with children under the age of 8 need to be accompanied by an adult.
Erison explained that part of the theme of the Canadian Mental Health Association for Mental Health Week is empathy.
“Before you weigh in, tune in. It's very much about getting real about about how to help, learning about how to help, active listening with your friends and family and choosing empathy. When someone's struggling, you don't necessarily need to fix their pain. Empathy helps to tune in and see it through their eyes,” she said.
Details on all events offered by the library can be found at strathmorenow.com/events.
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