Attitudes In Reverse® Hosts Events to Drive Culture from Mental Health Awareness to Action
PRINCETON, NEW JERSEY (May 13, 2021) – As part of its mission to save lives through mental-health education, Attitudes In Reverse® (AIR®), a Princeton-based nonprofit, will host events in May, which is Mental Health Month, to educate youth about their emotions, coping mechanisms and suicide prevention.
AIR® Joins National Mental Health Action Day
AIR® is partnering with more than 600 leading brands, government agencies, cultural leaders and other nonprofits for the first-ever Mental Health Action Day, which is sponsored by MTV Entertainment and will be held on Thursday, May 20, 2021.
Suicide rates have increased, particularly among young adults, over the past few decades, and the COVID pandemic has exacerbated this crisis, creating what many mental health professionals are calling the “second pandemic.” Although more people are discussing mental health, and that is certainly a sign of progress, it is still a challenge to find effective resources, and many do not know how to get help.
On Mental Health Action Day, AIR® and the partners will encourage people to take mental health action. This can include personal steps for themselves, such as meditating or doing yoga; reaching out to others they care about, offering support; and, if needed, seek professional help for themselves or encouraging others to do the same. It can also include advocating for change to increase access to mental healthcare services.
“AIR® is proud to be part of this movement. It gives us a platform to send our message about starting conversations, realizing there is hope and encouraging people to speak up and reach out if they are struggling and if they see friends and family members having a difficult time,” said AIR® Co-founder Kurt Baker, YMHFA, CFP®.
“We are eager to be more active on a national level, which Mental Health Action Day enables us to do, and, of course, to do much more throughout New Jersey,” Tricia Baker added.
AIR® and Liberty Martial Arts Partners for Mental Health Action Day Event
As part of Mental Health Action Day, AIR® will give presentations to three groups of children: 3- to 7-year-olds; 8- to 11-year-olds; and 12 years and older. It will be held at the Windsor Athletic Club on May 20th from 6:00 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. Social distancing and mask wearing will be enforced.
“We are so grateful to Liberty Martial Arts for hosting this program for us and we look forward to educating many more youth about mental health and coping skills on Mental Health Action Day and many more days to come,” Tricia Baker said.
AIR® Launches K-4 Program, Achieves Instant Popularity
Recognizing the importance of starting conversations about mental health with young children, Tricia Baker created Miki & Friends Go to School: Exploring Emotions through the Eyes of Dogs for students in kindergarten through fourth grade.
“Mental health struggles and suicide risk are increasingly common among children and teens. The earlier we can start educating youth about mental health, the more likely we can prevent them from having a stigmatizing perspective. As a result, they will be more likely to speak up and reach out for help when needed and offer support to others,” she said.
Within just a couple of months of presenting this new program in elementary schools throughout New Jersey, several teachers have shared their positive feedback: “The best part of the program was the kids getting to interact with the host and the dogs. The entire assembly was filled with opportunities for the kids to engage in conversations." " I loved the book and the message it had, the chance that the students had to pet the dogs, and the fact that they got the trading cards at the end."
