It's National Children's Mental Health Awareness Week

At noon today, about 50 people who work at the school system’s Administration Building launched balloons to bring attention to National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week.

People across the country did the same. Local groups participating in the balloon release included the Mental Health Association in Forsyth County and CenterPoint Human Services.

The National Federation of Families for Children’s Mental Health celebrates the week each year during the first full week in May. “The week is dedicated to increasing public awareness about the triumphs and challenges in children’s mental health and emphasizing the importance of family and youth involvement in the children’s mental health movement,” according to the federation.

Points the federation wants to make include:

• Mental health is essential to overall health and well-being.
• Serious emotional and mental-health disorders in children and young people are real and treatable.
• Children and young people with mental-health challenges and their families deserve access to services and supports that are family-driven, youth-guided and culturally appropriate.
• Values of acceptance, dignity and social inclusion should be promoted throughout all communities for children, young people and families.
• Family and youth voice is a valued asset in determining appropriate services and

 

More information about the federation is available at http://ffcmh.org/