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The Many Faces of PTSD

This article was written by the staff of the Region Five Crisis Call Center: Tim Griffin,  Shelley Shelton, Casey Mewborn, and Staci Young. As we enter June, which is PTSD awareness month, let’s take a moment to discuss the many ways and forms that PTSD can present....

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Making Mental Health Care Accessible For Everyone This Mental Health Awareness Month

May is Mental Health Awareness Month (MHAM), a time dedicated to raising awareness about mental health. It’s a time that we can all come together to talk about how mental health and the stigma that still surrounds it impacts our communities, as well as how we can stay mentally healthy. It’s also the perfect time to talk about how we can make mental health care more accessible in our country and in our local communities.

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How Do We Reduce the Stigma of Mental Health in 2023?

We can improve the outlook for mental health in our families, communities, and across the nation by reducing the stigma that prevails today. We can be successful at making this happen in 2023 by gaining personal knowledge, awareness, educating others, and by supporting mental health care.  

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Alcohol Abuse and Veterans: Larry Veale’s Story

In this video, Larry Veale, a Peer Support Specialist with Western Tidewater Community Services Board and former U.S. Marine, shares his recovery story with us. Larry’s experience taught him how important it is to have support when going through recovery. He realized that recovery was something that he couldn’t do alone. He says it “took a 12-step program and another person that had my best interest in heart to give me some direction.” Now, as a Peer Support Specialist, Larry is that person for others who are ready to recover and take back their lives.

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Caring for the Caregivers: Burnout in Public Mental Health Care Professionals

Professionals working in mental health have been in a state of burnout since COVID. When the pandemic hit, the need for essential critical healthcare providers dramatically ramped up. The resulting emotional toll continues to make its mark today, and it especially affects public behavioral health care clinicians who are vulnerable to burnout due to the intensity of the job itself. With our mental health caregivers already subject to burnout, and continuously in high demand, we must ask who is caring for our caregivers? Who is looking out for those caring for others?  

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4 Ways That Trauma-focused Therapy Is Different From Regular Mental Health Counseling

Trauma-focused therapy, also known as trauma-informed therapy, recognizes that traumatic experiences in the lives of clients have an impact on their current mental, behavioral, emotional and even physical wellbeing. This could be trauma that happened recently or a while ago – it can even be trauma that happened in childhood. Mental health conditions experienced in adulthood are sometimes due to unresolved childhood trauma. 

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Mental Health, Substance Abuse, and Grief Support Groups in the Coastal Virginia Area

Support groups are a place where you can share your emotions and circumstances with others who understand how you feel and will not judge or criticize you. Support groups help you to feel less lonely by giving you a safe space to be open with your feelings. They also help you to develop healthy coping skills and to stay motivated to make positive change in your life.

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Does Therapy Have To Be Expensive? 5 Ways To Pay for Mental Health Counseling

We’re more informed and aware about our mental health than ever before, and that’s especially true for younger people. Yet, while we may be more open to the idea of therapy, a lot of people think that it’s too expensive to even consider. It’s true that mental health services can be unaffordable for many people, but there are several resources that can help you pay for mental health counseling. 

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Recovering Is Easier with a Friend Who Understands – Connecting with Peer Supports

In general terms, a peer is defined as someone who we can identify with. A friend is much more. A friend is a peer whom we can trust and rely on, and a person who understands where we are in life and where we are going. In mental health and recovery, a peer refers to someone who shares the experience of having lived with a mental disorder or addiction and has successfully recovered. Peer supports provide a human aspect of real connection with people through shared understanding and respect, and ultimately this supports abstinence and success in the recovery process.

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