June is quickly coming to a close and many families are finalizing their plans to celebrate America’s independence on the fourth of July. Good times, right? Well … Yes and no. While you won’t get an argument from us on celebrating the good ol’ US of A, for some in our Give an Hour community the fireworks that typically go along with the holiday festivities can pose a certain amount of discomfort and anxiety and even create emotional reactions related to post-traumatic stress disorder. To learn more about what may cause certain triggers and how to cope, this article may be helpful.
In addition to our nation’s birthday, July is also Minority Mental Health Awareness month. According to the American Psychiatric Association, racial/ethnic, gender and sexual minorities often suffer from poor mental health outcomes due to multiple factors including inaccessibility of high-quality mental health care services, cultural stigma surrounding mental health care, discrimination and the overall lack of awareness about mental health.
We’ll explore some of these issues this month in a blog as we talk with Dr. Celestine LaVan, a Give an Hour ambassador, who is also a Navy veteran and an African American woman.
Later in July, we will host a FREE webinar titled, “How Culture Impacts Our Emotional Well-being.” Panelists will discuss moving past generational barriers and stigmas by taking charge of their personal well-being. They will offer suggestions for how we can work together to move forward in a healthy and productive way.
Keep an eye out for a registration link coming soon!
