It is National Prevention Week, and Pennsylvania has some exciting news! 2020 is the first year CPA has a dedicated Prevention Week for PA. Join CPA at 10:00 a.m. daily for a series of 15-minute discussions with state and community leaders focusing on the following topics.

Daily Discussions

Mon., May 11: The History and Science of Prevention
Tue., May 12: PAYS and Data Driven Decision Making
Wed., May 13: Intensifying Primary Prevention in Communities
Thu., May 14: Youth Involvement in Primary Prevention Conversations - highlights Mifflin County Communities That Care and the student led PAWSitive Vibes MCSD club.

Fri., May 15: Weekly Recap with an Advocacy Twist

These videos will premiere on the CPA Facebook Page. If you miss the live broadcast, please check out the CPA website for archived videos and lots of additional information regarding prevention in PA.

Allow yourself to feel. Sometimes there are societal pressures that encourage people to shut down their emotions, often expressed through statements like, “Big girls don’t cry,” or “Man up.” These outdated ideas are harmful, not helpful. Everyone has emotions. They are part of the human experience, and you have every right to feel them, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, socio-economic status, race, political affiliation, or religion.

Don’t ignore how you’re feeling. Most of us have heard the term “bottling up your feelings”. When we try to push feelings aside without addressing them, they build strength and make us more likely to “explode” at some point in the future. It may not always be appropriate to process your emotions at the very moment you are feeling them, but try to do so as soon as you can

Talk it out. Find someone you trust that you can talk to about how you’re feeling. You may find that people are eager to share about similar experiences they’ve had or times that they have felt the way that you are feeling. This can be helpful, but if you’re really only interested in having someone listen, it’s okay to tell them that.

Build your emotional vocabulary. When asked about our feelings, most people will usually use words like bad, sad, mad, good, or fine. But at the root of “good, bad, sad, mad, or fine” are many words that better describe how we feel. Try building your emotional vocabulary by writing down as many “feeling” words as you can think of and think of a time that you felt that way.

Try journaling. Each night write down at least three feelings you had over the course of the day and what caused them. It doesn’t need to be a “Dear Diary” kind of thing. Just a few sentences or bullet points can help you practice being comfortable with identifying and expressing your emotions.

Consider the strength of your feelings. By thinking about how intense your emotions are, you may realize that what you thought you were feeling at first could better be described by another word. For instance, sometimes a person might say they are stressed when what they are really experiencing is something less severe like annoyance. Alternatively anger might really be a stronger, deeper feeling like betrayal.

See a mental health professional. If you are taking steps to be more in touch with your feelings, but are having trouble dealing with them, mental health providers like counselors and therapists have been trained to help. Some free or low cost options are also available. Your employer might have an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) that offers a limited number of free counseling sessions, and your Human Resources department can help you access this resource. If you don’t have an EAP through work, the leaders of religious organizations like churches, synagogues, and mosques often have experience with counseling.

NATIONAL MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS MONTH

National Alliance on Mental Illness and other mental health organizations across the country continue to bring awareness, support and education to the public about the impacts of mental illness. Visit nami.org.

Locally there are many resources as well. Take the time to check out the Juniata Valley Healing Connections and the Mifflin Couty School District information.

The school mental health professionals of the Mifflin County School District have been working with staff and students to provide social and emotional support during a difficult time. Through their collaboration, they have created a website of mental health resources, videos, and information. The target audience for the resources have been students and parents of the district, but the strategies involved are good practices for any member of the community. We invite all members of the community to make use of the resources we have created at the following address: bit.ly/2YzIR67"

To find more information and watch additional videos check out bit.ly/2YzIR67"