May is Mental Health Awareness Month and the National Alliance on Mental Illness wants everyone to know, especially this year, #YouAreNotAlone.
No matter what your situation has been over the last few months, no one has been able to escape the stress and anguished caused by a pandemic, and for those with a mental illness, getting help now can be a struggle. During May, NAMI is asking people to #ShareYourStory so that everyone can remember that they are not alone.
Another organization, Mental Health America, has a Mental Health Awareness Month Toolkit available for download. The Toolkit includes printable handouts focused on things like creating healthy routines and finding the positive. MHA also reminds us that, "While 1 in 5 people will experience a mental illness during their lifetime, everyone faces challenges in life that can impact their mental health."
Here at BiblioTech Public Library, we have created a Mental Health Awareness Month shelf on cloudLibrary, and we also have some amazing resources for mental health in our Great Courses collection, including a course on Practicing Mindfulness.
Also, while reading has been called "one of the best ways to reduce stress," and we certainly recommend it, if you feel like you can't get through a book right now, you are not alone! Luckily, your BiblioTech library card gives you access to audiobooks, movies, music, language learning and more. Hopefully you can find a stress relief activity that is right for you! (If you don't have a BiblioTech card yet, you can register online in less than two mintues and get your card emailed to you immediately, which gives you instant access to all of our resources!)
Lastly, do remember that #YouAreNotAlone. Come hang out on our Facebook page, or come Tweet at us. We'd love to hear from you.