Providing outreach and support to districts, schools, parents and high risk youth populations – Los Angeles County Youth Suicide Prevention Project
— Read on preventsuicide.lacoe.edu/
Suicide Spike Alert: children and teenagers are attempting and dying by suicide at younger ages, and far more often.
Children and teens, especially young girls, are attempting and thinking about suicide far more often than they were a decade ago.
See article in TIME MAGAZINE:
time.com/5279029/suicide-rates-rising-study/
Reach Out. Ask.
Connect that Friend or Family Member with Support.
You’re not alone.
Tel #: :1-800-273-8255
24/7 365:
1.800.273.8255
Online Chat: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/chat/
More kids are showing up in ERs with mental health crises
More children are showing up in U.S. emergency rooms in the throes of a mental health crisis, researchers found. Black and Hispanic kids, in particular.
— Read on www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/more-kids-are-showing-ers-mental-health-crises-n930506
Diving Grandma
Click here to see Diving Grandma doing backflip. Retired school principal dives and does flips in Berkeley, CA. Mary is 79! 
Trauma Informed Practices through the Lens of Equity
Trauma Informed Practices Through the Lens of Equity. Professional Development Training Conference Workshop led at the Equity Cultural Competence Summit in Vallejo, CA.
Mental Health at Work
Mental Health at Work is important for all of us. Shout out to Prince William, link below.
www.prevention.com/health/mental-health/a23104961/prince-william-mental-health-at-work/
Staff Wellness Program operates out of the Wellness Center.
Positive work environment, appreciation, climate, diversity, breaks & celebration, culture, equity, gender respect, shared vision, meeting in circles, Wellness Center, “work friends” with inclusiveness.
“Package of 5 Wellness Model”
We avoid the simple solutions. We try not to say “If we could just…” because that reinforces a consumer mentality. What’s your Fave 5 when it comes to mental health and work wellness? Five (5) things, when combined together, make a big difference in our own health and wellness.
Oh yeah.
SYLVIA MENDEZ at renaming of Sylvia Mendez Elementary in Berkeley, CA
Mendez Fought California’s Segregated Schools. Sylvia Mendez was a young girl in the 1940s when her parents fought for Latinos to have access to white schools in the California court case Mendez v. Westminster. They won in 1947. Tonight we honor Sylvia Mendez at the renaming of a school in Berkeley, CA – SYLVIA MENDEZ ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
We have far to go, it’s wonderful to celebrate inclusion and diversity in our schools.
Ray Charles
“I could tell that she was smiling, over the phone.” Positive school climate begins before our parents, foster parents, and guardians arrive at school. Oh yeah. 
How Writing Can Help You Cut Your Math Anxiety by 50%
Self reflection can be a magical tool. Writing a memoir about one’s journey with math has been shown to lower anxiety. See link to article.
The next step is to combine writing reflections with other supports. Peer-to-Peer cohort group experiences, for example, help to validate and normalize common childhood experiences. “Oh you too” moments help to increase emotional wellness, and social connections around shared experiences. Facilitated dialogue, reflection, and supporting others increases behavioral health.
Writing about math can be especially helpful for girls, young women who often decide by 7th grade if they are “smart” or not, using math as a measure.
Hats off to teachers of math who inspire, scaffold, and support the learning of each student. It’s a small distinction, through the lens of equity, “each student” vs. “all students.”
Behavioral health vs mental illness. “Packages of support.” Let’s work on child and adolescent wellness together.
Fail successfully to lower anxiety
www.independent.co.uk/voices/ways-to-help-with-anxiety-science-medication-study-a8310406.html
“Anything worth doing is worth doing poorly.”
Make this 1/5 of your approach to lower anxiety? Don’t let need for perfection get in the way of doing something okay the first time, kinda okay the next three times, then working toward doing it well.
“Don’t always believe what you think.” Positive thinking, and behavior, takes practice. We’re carving new neuro-pathways.
The younger the client, the more therapy is interactive. The first time we do something, or talk openly about how we feel, it may feel awkward. The 19th time will come much easier.
Positive Vocabulary
www.buzzfeed.com/tomvellner/words-and-phrases-to-help-mental-health
Practical suggestions and good advice is always welcome. This isn’t a panacea for mental health concerns. Avoid saying, “If I could just…”.
“If I could just exercise more, find the right partner, change jobs, new medication…”. Mental health takes work. Therapy can be difficult, challenging, and part of the “package of support” that leads to lasting change. It’s the combination of things that make a difference.
This is for all the lonely people, thinking that life has passed them by.
This is also for people who are married, and lonely.
Restorative Practices, Equity in Education
Site administrator uses thorough investigation as part of restorative practices.
Link to article:
Mental Health in the NBA
Adonal Foyl writes about the Mental Aspects of The Game.
James Combes Wogan MFT, LCSW 
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