Mental Health for Emotional Stability, Spotlight: Relief Nursery
Despite the stigma around it, mental health is equally as essential as any other aspect of one’s health and well being. Mental health determines your ability to function, your thoughts, behavior, and emotions, which all affect your ability to be productive, maintain relationships, and cope with challenges. Emotional and mental health disorders are characterized by a change in mood, outlook, and behavior that is a result of distress and/or impaired functioning. This includes depression, anxiety, eating disorders, and many more. Mental health affects people of all ages, and takes a toll on families and other people around you. It is essential to recognize when yourself or someone you know might be suffering from mental distress or a disorder.
The first, most important steps are to be educated about mental health, and if needed, to talk to someone. Connecting with friends, family, or other individuals that care and help provide emotional support can provide you strength and make you feel less alone. If problems persist, there are many institutions within Lane County that can further help. Here are some we recommend:
- Looking Glass
- Willamette Family, Inc.
- Catholic Community Services of Lane County
- American Hero Adventures
- Relief Nursery
Remember, mental illness is common and can be treated. Good mental health results in better physical health, improved productivity, lesser strain on the family, and a happier life, so seeking out help when needed is vital for yourself and your loved ones.
We will now hone in on the special services of one institution in particular, Relief Nursery. The following portion is submitted by Kristen Bartels.
Relief Nursery is dedicated to addressing the pressing mental health concerns of high risk children and families. Relief Nursery serves many children birth to 6 years of age that are not able to participate in traditional “classroom” environments due to aggressive, violent or disruptive behaviors that create a safety concern in those environments. The Therapeutic Early Childhood Program (TECP) is a core program that focuses on positive behavioral support, emotional regulation, collaborative problem solving, communication and social skill development. The goal of the TECP is for children to enter kindergarten equipped with the necessary social and emotional skills to be successful in larger class sizes requiring fewer resources.
Relief Nursery addresses the social and emotional needs of children and their families as a whole, offering services such as parenting education, counseling for both parents and children, adult addiction recovery support and home-visiting, among others. Relief Nursery also removes barriers that may prevent families from accessing services through grants for utilities, transportation to and from services, food, clothing and other critical day to day necessities.
To learn more about how Relief Nursery strengthens families and keeps children safe, visit their website HERE.
