Ways to Recognize World Mental Health Day 2016

World Mental Health Day is October 10, and it’s a day that’s set aside to recognize the fact that roughly 1 in 4 people around the world suffers from a mental illness. The day is also designed to let people know that, by learning about mental health and mental illness, as well as talking more openly about it, millions of people can be helped all over the globe.

How can you recognize World Mental Health Day this year? Keep reading to learn about a few ways that you can embrace what this day is all about.

This Year’s Theme

Every year, World Mental Health Day has a different theme that people can focus on in order to better understand mental illness and help one another get the help that they need to maintain their mental health. This year’s theme is “psychological first aid.” Understanding what this theme is all about is a fantastic way to recognize World Mental Health Day.

What Is Psychological First Aid?
Psychological first aid refers to both social support and psychological support. In the same way that general health care doesn’t only refer to physical support, mental health needs to take a multi-tiered approach to help those who are suffering from a mental illness.

Ultimately, psychological first aid is a longer-term approach that will immediately provide basic support during episodes of acute distress. But in order to succeed, individuals working in a variety of fields, from social services and mental health services, to general health services need to be involved and educated.

Get Involved to Recognize World Mental Health Day
To support World Mental Health Day and its efforts, you can learn about the basic steps that you can take to provide practical psychological support to anyone you encounter who seems to need help. Whether you are a teacher, a community worker, a police officer, a fireman, or someone who works in the medical field, accessing lessons and sharing tips on psychological first aid can help you reach more people and help them before it is too late.

If you want to recognize World Mental Health Day this year, you can start by learning more about what the day is all about, as well as what this year’s theme is all about. Then spread the word. Talk about it on your social media pages, talk about it with your loved ones, friends, and colleagues, and do your part to implement psychological first aid practices in your own life.