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January 2025 Newsletter
Happy New Year!
January
January is Mental Wellness Month
January 18 we are celebrating Mental Health Resources Day in Houston, TX!
Mental Health Resources Day
With Mental Health Resources Day, we aim to educate the community of local, state, and national resources available for mental health support, from local psychiatrists to NAMI. With speakers from SAMHSA, the Houston Recovery Center, and so many other local services, this event is sure to be both fun and informative!
Volunteer Spotlight
This month we are spotlighting Jimi! Jimi has become an Emerging Scholar through the Emerging Scholars Fellowship Program with Active Minds, and we are lucky enough to have him as a volunteer! He is a valued team member and we are so thankful that he helps with our Youtube channel. Thank you, Jimi!
DAISY’s Book Club
Reading has been shown to improve empathy, and it can help us use our phones less, so reading is a great hobby to pick up! This month, DAISY recommends The Anxious Generation by Johnathon Haidt. This book is really informative on the mental health issues that kids, teens and young adults are now facing with the onslaught of technology, social media and ever-changing social pressures.
Thank you for joining us on this mental health journey! Follow us on Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn to stay up to date.
Your friend,
December 2024 Newsletter
December 5 is Light Up a Life Day
Reduce Stress This Holiday Season
The holidays are known to be stressful, and can be even harder if you have lost a loved one you used to spend the holidays with. To help reduce stress around the coming holidays, there are a number of techniques you could try, like yoga and meditation, gratitude practices, baking, and spending time in good company. It can be difficult with the pressures to decorate, buy gifts, or host loved ones, but this season is also a good opportunity to appreciate what you have and those you love. If you choose to give gifts, try doing a gratitude practice beforehand – everyone could even write down what they are grateful for, if you don’t want to verbally say what you’re grateful for. Fostering a sense of gratitude can have positive effects on mental wellness and fortitude, thereby reducing stress and improving mood.
Nami also has great resources on managing your mental health during the holidays:
Surviving Painful Holiday Emotions
Avoiding Holiday Stressors
Mindfulness and Meditations for the Holiday Blues
DAISY’s Book Club
DAISY found Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community by Robert D. Putnam an interesting and informative read. It is, as the title suggest, about the lack of community in America, and some of the reasons Americans have shifted away from community, including politics, TV, and a decrease in church-goers. Many people may feel like social media and cell phones are the main cause, but the author says, “voting, giving, trusting, meeting, visiting, and so on had all begun to decline while Bill Gates was still in grade school.”
Updates in the Mental Health Sphere and DAISY’s World
Studies have shown that gratitude can reduce feelings of loneliness! If you are feeling lonely, try adopting a gratitude practice – whether you say, write or just think about what you are grateful for, it can help alleviate some of your loneliness.
Creative Mental Wellness has been accepted into the Kroger Community Rewards program! When you shop with your Kroger account, you can help support our mission!
Thank you for joining us on this mental health journey! Follow us on Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn to stay up to date.
Your friend,
November 2024 Newsletter
November
November 11-15 is Anti-Bullying Week
November 6 is National Stress Awareness Day
November 12 is Chicken Soup for the Soul Day
November 13 is World Kindness Day
November 23 is International Survivors of Suicide Loss Day
November 25 is International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women
Bullying is out – Kindness is in.
Bullying is a near-universal experience. Most people have been bullied or have bullied others, in one form or another. Bullying can be verbal, physical, or social, so even excluding someone intentionally can be considered bullying. This November, try to include others in social situations and being extra kind to those who you think might be getting bullied.
DAISY’s Book Club
DAISY read you are not alone: The NAMI Guide to Navigating Mental Health by Ken Duckworth, MD. This guide includes real stories on people’s experiences with mental health, various therapies and coping methods, so it is both relatable and helpful. It does not really provide a framework on when/where/how to seek help, but it does explore different mental illnesses and treatment options.
Thank you for joining us on this mental health journey! Follow us on Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn to stay up to date. And check out our YouTube for informational videos from Seanda and DAISY!
Your friend,
September 2024 Newsletter
September
September is Suicide Prevention Month
September 8-14 is National Suicide Prevention Week
September 10 is World Suicide Prevention Day
September 13 is Positive Thinking Day
Volunteering: Healing Through Helping
While self-care and mental health often focus on introspection and self-help, volunteering is a powerful yet often overlooked resource for enhancing well-being. By helping others, we also help ourselves. Volunteering pushes us out of our comfort zones, allowing us to develop new skills and build self confidence as we see the positive impact we can make. Additionally, it fosters genuine connections based on shared values and missions, offering a sense of belonging and camaraderie that boosts our mental health. Through these connections, we are reminded that we are not alone in our struggles, creating a supportive network that enhances our emotional well-being.
Volunteering also helps counteract negative emotions associated with mental health challenges, like depression and anxiety. By focusing on others, we shift our perspective from personal struggles to gratitude for our own blessings, fostering resilience and equipping us to handle life’s challenges. As we seek mental wellbeing, we must recognize the transformative potential of helping others. Embracing volunteering is a win-win strategy that impacts both our communities and ourselves, providing healing for the self through helping others.
Updates in the Mental Health Sphere and DAISY’s World
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, preteen suicide rates have been rising since 2008.
Thank you for joining us on this mental health journey! Follow us on Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn to stay up to date.
Your friend,
Events
MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES DAY 2026
Annual MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES DAY – Houston
The 3rd Annual MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES DAY (MHRD) will be held in Houston, Texas,and hosted by 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization Creative Mental Wellness on Saturday, January 17, 2026, at the United Way Houston (50 Waugh Drive, Houston). The event will take place from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM. MHRD is a mental health fair that puts a spotlight on mental health, behavioral health, and substance use disorder resources for treatment and support that are available in the area. MHRD aims to provide the community with the opportunity to engage with and learn from representatives from mental health, behavioral health, and substance use disorder resources while providing those professionals space to get to know one another better and collaborate more and enable more referrals so that the community can be better and more effectively served.
The event will include vendors as well as speakers. People attending the event should leave with ideas for elevating their mental health, learning about something they did not know about or a resource they were not aware of, as well as the satisfaction that just by attending they are helping support our efforts to support our community in addition to helping us normalize discussions surrounding mental health, behavioral health, and substance use disorder. Vendors/representatives from community organizations will arm attendees with mental health tools (resources for treatment and support they can put in their mental health toolboxes). There will be activities, entertainment, and prize drawings to keep attendees engaged and encourage connection with other community members. “We are thrilled to host the Annual Mental Health Resources Day in Houston,” said Seanda Barrett Blocker, Founder and Executive Director of Creative Mental Wellness. “Our goal is to provide the Houston community with the resources they need to improve their mental health and well-being. We hope that this event will help to de-stigmatize mental health issues and encourage people to seek the help they need.” The event is open to the public. For more information, please visit https://creative-mental-wellness.org.
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