AgriLife Extension offering mental health first aid workshop

Jan. 23--The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service will offer a free Mental Health First Aid workshop next month.

The eight-hour class is designed to equip participants to help address issues like suicide, drug addiction and mental illness. On average, about 123 people die by suicide each day, according to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate 630,000 people died from drug overdoses from 1999-2016 and nearly a fifth of U.S. adults live with a mental illness, according to the National Institute of Mental Health.

The class will cover how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance abuse disorders, according to a workshop flyer. Participants will leave with skills needed to provide initial support to someone who may be developing a mental health or substance abuse problem.

"Just as CPR training helps a person with no clinical training assist an individual following a heart attack, Mental Health First Aid training helps a person assist someone experiencing a mental health crisis such as contemplating suicide," according to the Mental Health First Aid website. "In both situations, the goal is to help support an individual until appropriate professional help arrives."

Class topics include common signs and symptoms of mental illness and substance use; how to interact with someone in crisis; how to connect the person with appropriate help; and how to administer naloxone in the event of an opioid overdose.

It'll incorporate how to apply the ALGEE action plan: Assess for risk of harm; listen nonjudgmentally; give reassurance and information; encourage appropriate professional help; and encourage self-help and other support strategies.

The workshop will take place 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 13, at the AgriLife Extension office at 301 S. Chestnut St. in Gainesville. Participation is limited to the first eight who sign up by Feb. 1. Register by calling 940-668-5412.

More information about the program is available at mentalhealthfirstaid.org.

___

(c)2020 the Gainesville Daily Register (Gainesville, Texas)

Visit the Gainesville Daily Register (Gainesville, Texas) at www.gainesvilleregister.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.