Emotional Toolboxes

Parents & Caregivers

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MHA Programs and Services

ParentVOICE

Family Support Specialists, also known as Family Partners, work closely with families who are navigating the education, child welfare, mental health, and juvenile justice systems.

Counseling

Free short-term counseling is available for youth and adults in Cabarrus and Mecklenburg who don’t have insurance or employment, and have been impacted by the pandemic. To learn more about eligibility, contact MHA’s Care Coordinator Rachel Rosenfeld at 704-899-1839.

Education

Programs to increase knowledge and awareness surrounding mental health risk factors, signs and symptoms, and ways to assist someone experiencing a mental health crisis.

Mental Health Screening Tools

MHA National’s online screening tools to help identify potential symptoms of a mental health condition.

Directory of Mental Health Professionals

Online listing of local mental health care professionals who are members of the MHA of Central Carolinas directory.

Family Caregivers Toolkit

Mental Health America national resource in honor of National Family Caregivers Month 2021

MHA National 988 Suicide and Crisis Line

Information on the 988 line and how it works

Local Resources

Council for Children’s Rights

Council for Children’s Rights works to defend and promote the rights of children to be supported and treated with fairness, compassion, and respect by envisioning a community that is solely committed to standing up and speaking out to ensure every child’s right to be safe, healthy, and well-educated.

Disability Rights and Resources

Disability Rights and Resources is a non-profit, community-based Center for Independent Living that strives to create a fully inclusive community where any individual, with or without disabilities, have the freedom to pursue their own goals and choices for living and working together.

HOPE4NC Helpline

1-855-587-3463 is there to connect North Carolinians in all 100 counties with emotional support and mental health resources free of charge. Immediate crisis counseling for people affected by COVID-19 is available, and someone will answer your call 24/7. HOPE4NC provides services in English and Spanish

NC Medicaid Ombudsman

If you receive Medicaid and need an advocate for quality care

North Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Association

The Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services (DVRS) aims to help individuals with disabilities to achieve their goals for employment and independence. DVRS strives to connect individuals that have a disability that prevents them from achieving career success to services and resources to help meet their goals.

Smart Start

Smart Start of Mecklenburg County envisions all children successfully entering kindergarten and helping them become ready to advance by mobilizing resources, forging partnerships, and supporting families in order to improve early childhood health, education, development through early care, education quality and accessibility, family support, health, and early literacy for child from birth to five.

Teen Health Connection

Teen Health Connection provides resources for adolescents in order to improve their health through education, advocacy, leadership development, adolescent medicine, and behavioral health services, and research through connections among adolescents, parents, and the community.

Monarch: SECU Youth Crisis Center

24/7/365 serving ages 6 – 17 years old
Phone: 704-206-2342 – Option 8

National Resources

Protecting Youth Mental Health: 2021 Report by the Surgeon General

Mental health challenges in children, adolescents, and young adults are real, and they are widespread. But most importantly, they are treatable, and often preventable. This Surgeon General’s Advisory shows us how.

MHA National Youth Data

The MHA National Youth Data serves to raise awareness about mental illness in the youth population by providing data on the prevalence of mental illness and access to care in the United States.

Public Policies on Children’s Issues

MHA provides information that focuses on the public policies on children’s issues. These policies address the Youth Mental Health Crisis and the urgent need for more education, services, and support.

Youth Mental Health

Youth Mental Health is a source provided by MHA national, addressing children’s mental health and why it matters. This information educates individuals about how consequences of mental health illness may be prevented, knowing and evaluating the signs, and what parents, teachers, and doctors can do to take initiative.

Suicide Prevention

The National Suicide Prevention Hotline hears you and ensures that help is available. Are you an attempt survivor, disaster survivor, Spanish-speaking individual, deaf/hard of hearing, LGBTQ+, or loss survivor in need of answers and help? Visit now to learn about how you can take care of yourself and how to help others.

YOUTH Suicide FACTS & STATS

The Jason Foundation provides updated facts and stats on youth suicide and how to identify the warning signs and risk factors and screening tools that are accessible such as the Youth Risk Behavioral Surveillance System (YRBS), a survey conducted by the CDC to monitor priority health-risk behaviors that lead to the leading causes of death, disability, and social problems among youth in the United States.

The Trevor Lifeline for LGBTQIA+ Youth

Call: 1.866.488.7386

The Trevor Project was founded in 1998 and it offers accredited life-saving, life-affirming programs and services to LGBTQ+ youth. The Project is committed to producing innovative research that brings new knowledge to the field of suicidology.

8 Ways Parents Can Help LGBTQ+ Youth Take Care of Their Mental Health

Experts recommend being supportive by listening to your kids and validating their experiences.

Children’s Mental Health

On Our Sleeves promotes the Movement for Children’s Mental Health and is the national movement to break stigmas around children’s mental health. Their goal is to envision the idea that kids don’t wear their thoughts on their sleeves and their mission is to provide free mental health educational resources to every community in America to educate families and empower advocates.

A Crisis Guide for Caregivers of seniors with Alzheimer’s or Dementia

A guide including signs to watch out for, helpful tips and resources for caregivers of someone with Dementia

National Suicide Prevention 24-Hour Call Center:

Chat with a crisis counselor by calling: 988

Or chat online by visiting this link

Recommended Reading for Youth

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