Youth mental health first aid session June 4 in Dexter

DEXTER — If you are a parent or guardian of an adolescent between 12 and 18, or if you teach or interact with that age group as a member of the clergy, coach, club leader, counselor, educator, group home leader, police officer or in any capacity, consider attending Youth Mental Health First Aid from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Monday, June 4 at the Dexter VFW on Cedar Street.

Research shows that over 90 percent of those who die by suicide have some form of mental illness. Seventy-five percent have untreated depression. On May 16 Time Magazine featured study results published in the journal Pediatrics indicating that youth suicide attempts and ideation have risen in the 15-17 and 12-14 age groups. Since 2008, 115,800 youth suicide attempts or thoughts occurred as found in the Pediatric Health Information Database. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that youth suicides are on the rise.

The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention has stated that the suicide rate for Maine is 17.7 suicides per 100,000 as compared to the U.S. rate of 14.6 per 100,000. The national CDC reported in 2015 that youth suicide for people between the ages of 10 and 24 is the third leading cause of death, while in Maine it has been reported to be the second cause of death for people between the ages of 15 and 34. Use of firearms accounts for 5l percent of the suicides in Maine.

Unfortunately, nearly every year, a suicide of a young person in or from the Maine Highlands is reported to me. The questions are, “How can parents and other members of a community interact with young people to provide mental health support, lead them to mental health professionals if necessary, and prevent mental health crises and suicides? What kinds of compassionate steps can be taken by everyone to stop this kind of event that leaves permanent scars on those left behind?” Everyone who interacts with impressionable adolescents from the grocery clerk to the librarian, can make a difference.

If you attend Youth Mental Health First Aid on June 4 you will learn how to recognize depression, anxiety disorders, psychosis, substance abuse and trauma, conditions that can lead to a mental health crisis or suicide. You will learn how to interact with a youth who might be at risk for a mental health crisis or for suicide and how to encourage them to seek professional help. You will learn how to take the stigma from mental illnesses and view them as just that — illnesses — that can be treated. People can and do recover from mental illnesses with either professional or supportive help or both. You will learn about how to help a youth build resiliency, which is necessary for good recovery. You can earn eight CEUs and a three-year national certificate to do this important work.

Youth Mental Health First Aid is a distinguished SAMHSA Evidence-Based Program taught by experienced professionals at the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Maine. Local and state NAMI members, leaders, and instructors have “lived experience” with mental illness in their families and bring that expertise to their work. Local NAMI leaders engage in continuing education regularly to bring up-to-date knowledge in public forums and to support groups. The YMHFA program’s cost includes materials and lunch. To register for Youth Mental Health First Aid in Dexter, go to namimaine.org or call Michael Morang at 622-5767 extension 2312.