Mental Health Awareness Is More Important Than Ever

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. This year, as we continue through the pandemic and so many individuals and families continue to face isolation, stress, financial challenges, and other disruptions, it’s more important than ever to raise awareness of mental health issues, fight the stigmas around mental illness, provide support, educate the public, and advocate for policies that help individuals and families stay mentally healthy.

We spoke to two women with kids in our Rising New York Road Runners programs about their mental health concerns as they continue to navigate through challenging times, and the strategies they use for themselves and their families.

Learn more and connect to resources at the National Alliance on Mental Illness website; call the NAMI Helpline at 800-950-6264, M-F 10:00 a.m.–8:00 p.m. ET; or in a crisis text “NAMI” to 741741 for 24/7 confidential, free crisis counseling.

Suzanne Albert

“There’s an idea that mental health issues are not real health issues”

Suzanne (below, left) and her husband are the parents of two teenage daughters, Emma and Julia. Emma trains with the Rising New York Road Runners Youth Wheelchair Training Program.

In the past year, the combination of the pandemic, working from home, remote learning, racism, xenophobia, racial injustices, and police violence have really challenged all of us and our mental health. While we are all together, there is still a sense of isolation from extended family and friends, which is extremely difficult.

You feel like time is passing, but you are making no progress. The country is so divided and the news is so disturbing with such horrible acts of violence. We seem to have lost our sense of humanity and a feeling of unity.

Our community has stigmas around mental health—there’s an idea that mental health issues are not real health issues to be treated by a professional, and that you can just shake them off, move on, and will yourself to feel better.

As a family we’ve found ways to navigate through the tougher days:

• Having a pet. Having a dog has been great for the family. She provides unconditional love to everyone and she always helps us come together during challenging days.
• Getting out and moving. It’s really important to spend some time on our own—to take time for ourselves. When we do that, it makes us better together.
• Reflection. We take moments to reflect on our family and our children’s development. We love to look back at family photos and videos.
• Conversation. The challenges of the past year have created a space for robust and healthy discussions within the family and allowed the girls to really form strong beliefs.

Simone Martin

“Awareness is the greatest ally”

Simone is a wife and the mother of three sons, Qalib, Tobias, and Jazeer, pictured with her below. Qalib was a Rising New York Road Runners Youth Ambassador in 2019-20.

I am African American, my husband is Jamaican, and in both cultures we grew up not really addressing mental health awareness. We had informal names such as “crazy” or “sick in the head” to describe someone with a disorder. I also was never taught about mental health issues that I might have myself. Having a mental disorder would come across as weak; even if one was diagnosed with a mental health issue the stigma would be to keep that to yourself. In my community generally it is not an option to go to a therapist due to lack of suitable insurance, and we would prefer to not be on medication.

Later I realized that we all to a degree have some form of mental disorder. I read a book more than a decade ago that said, “Welcome to the insane asylum and congratulations on not pretending that you are not part of the club.” I am paraphrasing, but that struck me.

Awareness is the greatest ally and knowing that I am not alone has been what I use to deal with my struggles with anxiety. This past year has been overwhelming. I experienced losses, and it came to a point where I was frightened to answer the phone because it felt as if it would be about yet another loss. While grieving my own losses, the world was going through so much loss and our nation was and still is fighting racial systemic injustice. It became too much to process, and I honestly am not sure how or when I will deal with the trauma.

Here are some strategies I’ve used:

• Meditation. The key is to focus only on breathing—deep breaths repeated until you feel lighter—then journal why you are feeling the way you are.
• Diet. This includes not only what you eat and drink but what you read and watch and listen to, which all can affect your mental clarity. Guard what you consume.
• Optimism. I use affirmations such as “I choose to not only focus on the tasks that I have to do but applaud myself for all that I have already done” and “I choose to search for beauty in my life even with all the chaos that surrounds me.”
• Support. I have a diverse support system of moms from all backgrounds. It is beautiful to learn about our different cultures and also observe our similarities.