March

March is Self-Injury Awareness Month¹
March 1 Self Injury Awareness Day² and Zero Discrimination Day
March 10-16 Sleep Awareness Week
March 18-24 National Drug & Alcohol Facts Week
March 30 World Bipolar Day

¹ *trigger warning: discussion of self harm* https://www.inspiremalibu.com/blog/mental-health/march-self-injury-awareness-month/

²*trigger warning: discussion of self harm* https://www.lifesigns.org.uk/siad/

Mental Health Resources Day

January 13th is Mental Health Resources Day, and we celebrated this year with our inaugural MHR Day Fair. We are so pleased that we were able to pull off this event, and we could not have done it without the dedicated members of the Houston community and the mental health space. We would like to thank the following individuals and groups:

Be Smart (Isha Archer)
Disability Rights Texas (LaRita Lockhart-Brown)
Houston CIRT/Houston Police Department Mental Health Division
Janssen Neuroscience (Hannah Yterdal)
Kingwood Pines Hospital (Monica Garcia-Guinessey)
Mosaic Tree Counseling (Warren Barrett)
MoveNation Dance Academy (Jennifer San Miguel)
Once Ann Again Therapy (Jessica Johnson)
Westpark Springs (Marie Morrow) James Ellis Jr. – NAMI
Zayna Fulton – SAMHSA
Niesy Bevilacqua – MuttsTraing
Margaret Alvarez – My Artsy Coach
Jessica Johnson, Psycotherapist/CEO – Once Ann Again Therapy

“Pawsitive” Mental Health Practices

How pets and pet therapy can benefit your mental health

Having pets or visiting with animals can be beneficial to your mental health in a myriad of ways. Petting or cuddling can help you feel happier, calmer, and less anxious¹. Some pets can also provide you with a sense of purpose, a routine, and a reason to go outside or play more. If your pet needs to be fed every day, taken for a walk, etc., it can give you more motivation to have healthy practices.

For those that don’t have a pet of your own, there are some other ways to benefit from animals or pets, like going to your local zoo (you could even look for a petting zoo!), volunteering at a local animal shelter, walking in a neighborhood where a lot of people walk their dogs (you could make two friends – a dog and their owner!). Going outside in general is a great way to feel connected to animals – could you learn what birds live in your area and practice identifying them? Animals and pets are more beneficial for your mental wellness than you may even realize!

1. Barker, Sandra B., and Kathryn S. Dawson. “The Effects of Animal-Assisted Therapy on Anxiety Ratings of Hospitalized Psychiatric Patients.” Anthrozoös, vol. 20, no. 2, 2007.

DAISY’s Random Acts of Kindness

These are some ways DAISY is spreading kindness this month

Cooking a meal for her sick friend. DAISY loves to try to make nutritious, healthful foods, so she is preparing something special for her friend that is sick. Could you bake or cook something for your friends? Or better yet, could you cook something together?

Complimenting people. DAISY is really good at picking out things to compliment – she always tells people how much she likes their outfit or smile, or she tells her friends how funny and smart they are. She also tries not to point out “flaws” or things that cannot be fixed within two minutes – she might tell someone they have a piece of lettuce in their teeth, but she would not tell them their teeth are crooked.
Reaching out to someone she hasn’t heard from in a while. Maybe you have an old friend or cousin who would like to chat and reconnect!

The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation has some other great ideas, and they even have a calendar with a different act of kindness every day!

Thank you for joining us on this mental health journey! Follow us Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn to stay up to date.

Your friend,