Mental Health Is A Team Sport

Tools 2 Thrive for Mental Health Awareness Month

Since 1949, Mental Health Awareness Month has been observed every May. According to Mental Health America, “1 in 5 people will experience a mental illness in their lifetime and that everyone faces challenges in life that can impact their mental health.”

This Mental Health Awareness month looks quite a bit different than in previous years. This year, COVID-19 has turned our world upside down, and with that has instilled fear and stress for millions of people.

For many, this pandemic has not only affected people’s physical health but their mental health too. What was once known as our “normal daily lives” has drastically changed with stay-at-home orders, job uncertainty, financial security, and new health & sanitation regulations — to name a few. As we approach cities and towns opening back up, this too is causing mass anxiety for many Americans. For the majority of people, this is something that we never saw coming.

With this pandemic on top of other issues that someone is enduring, it’s important that we continue to talk about the importance of mental health and normalize it within our culture. The more we discuss and connect with others, the more we can help those navigating in difficult times.

Mental Health America’s theme for 2020’s Mental Health Awareness Month is Tools 2 Thrive. Tools 2 Thrive strives to “provide practical tools that everyone can use to improve their mental health and increase resiliency regardless of the situations they are dealing with.”

At Drake Cooper, we realize the importance of our employees’ mental and physical health. To commemorate this year’s Mental Health Awareness Month, we’ve asked our employees what tools they’re using to help them through not only COVID-19 but even in their everyday lives. Here is what we had to say.

So take a walk, talk to a friend, have a virtual therapy session, meditate, do some yoga, have a virtual happy hour with friends, scream into a pillow, look for the positives, and most importantly, support each other. Now more than ever, we need to lift each other up, be one another’s support system, and create a welcoming environment for all. Let’s remember to be kind, as we don’t always know what someone is going through. It’s important. You are important.

For more information about Mental Health America’s Tools 2 Thrive and download your own toolkit, check it out here.