Mental Health Month kicks off in Frankfort
FRANKFORT, Ky (WTVQ)- May is Mental Health Month and state leaders and advocates gathered in Frankfort Friday to kick off the celebration.
“There’s no one untouched by mental health issues,” says Marcie Timmerman, the executive director of Mental Health America of Kentucky.
Timmerman says she saw 28,000 mental health screenings last year online. The results were troubling.
“So folks under 25 scoring high on depression, anxiety, telling us they’re coming to us because they’re lonely, because they’ve been in domestic violence relationships, things like that. We’re also seeing an increase in older folks, men over sixty are dying by suicide in a high number in Kentucky,” says Timmerman.
That’s why she says mental health education is important.
“I think we’re finally understanding that you don’t have health without mental health. And bringing that to the big picture. Societally, we’ve had a lot of economic issues, and housing issues in Kentucky. Our disasters have affected mental health. So there’s a lot going,” says Timmerman.
The organization is gearing up for Mental Health Month by offering webinars, special events and training. It’s all leading up to Wear Green Day on May 12th. Buildings across the state will be lit up in honor of mental health.
The recent mass shooting in Louisville is putting a spotlight on mental health.
“We know that everyone deserves to have access to mental health. But after an event like that, we actually need to utilize that access. But if we can utilize it early, then we can take care of those issues,” says Stewart Bridgman, the CEO of Bridgehaven Mental Health Services in Louisville.
Bridgman says more awareness needs to be raised about the resources available to everyone who suffers from a mental health issue.
“We just don’t have enough information out there about where to go for mental health. And some people really wait until it’s a crisis. And so, like stage 4 cancer, when you can intervene a lot earlier, and really kind of help people live a better quality life, it helps everybody. All the people of Kentucky,” says Bridgman.
For more information about Mental Health America of Kentucky, click here.
If you’d like to learn more about Louisville’s Bridgehaven Mental Health Services, click here.
You can also visit the following sites for resources:
Kentucky Mental Health Coalition
Dial 9-8-8 for the National Crisis Lifeline
