The Counseling Connect
May Newsletter
And The Countdown Begins!
Hello parents! May is FINALLY here! What a fantastic year this has been and we hope your student is feeling the same way. This summer, each grade level counselor will be working diligently to get your student's class schedule ready! Please feel free to reach out to your student's counselor about any questions or concerns you may have. If your student is moving on to high school, please reach out to the high school counselors as they will be happy to assist you.
This will be the last newsletter for the year! We will start back up in August when students return to school. For this newsletter, we are celebrating Mental Health Awareness Month with tips and key messages, an article that will help in preparing your student for high school, getting to know your counseling office staff and we celebrate Mrs. Patton on a job well done visiting Allegiance DeMolay for a presentation on inclusion!
Key Messages for Mental Health Awareness Month- From Mental Health America
- Mental health is essential to everyone’s overall health and well-being, and mental illnesses are common and treatable.
- A healthy lifestyle can help to prevent the onset or worsening of mental health conditions, as well as chronic conditions like heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. It can also help people recover from these conditions.
- For those dealing with a chronic health condition and the people who care for them, it can be especially important to focus on mental health. When dealing with dueling diagnoses, focusing on both the physical and mental health concerns can be daunting – but critically important in achieving overall wellness.
- Humor, spirituality, recreation, animal companionship, and work-life balance are important for everyone, but may be of special importance to people also living with chronic health conditions and those who care for them.
- Finding a reason to laugh, going for a walk, meditating, playing with a pet, or working from home once a week can go a long way in making you both physically and mentally healthy
- The company of animals – whether as pets or service animals can have a profound impact on a person’s quality of life and ability to recover from illnesses. A pet can be a source of comfort and can help us to live mentally healthier lives
- Sometimes life is far from funny but finding humor in a situation can lift moods with laughter and help people to better deal with and overcome difficult experiences
- Whether you go to church, meditate daily, or simply find time to enjoy that cup of tea each morning while checking in with yourself – it can be important to connect with your spiritual side in order to find that mind-body connection.
- Living a healthy lifestyle may not be easy but can be achieved by gradually making small changes and building on those successes.
- Finding the balance between work and play, the ups and downs of life, physical health and mental health, can help you on the path towards focusing both #4Mind4Body.
Mrs. Patton visits Allegiance DeMolay for Inclusion Presentation
Message from Allegiance DeMolay....
"LSMS Counselor, Alice Patton assisted Allegiance DeMolay families with education on the very important message of inclusion and tolerance. We were so impressed by the message and her ability to present the topic with special relevance to our families; even sharing her own experiences and making a special effort to “connect” with all the students in attendance. Alice is truly a professional with a heart and a wonderful representative of the insight, thought and care LSMS brings to our community.
Please accept this note as a letter of appreciation for Alice’s efforts and, congratulations to LSMS for having a person of her caliper with your teaching team."
Way to go Mrs. Patton!!!!