NAMI Minnesota

12/13/2025

School closures are linked to significant mental health problems – depression, anxiety, ADHD – among children during the COVID-19 pandemic, a new study reports. Kids whose schools reopened sooner during the pandemic had lower rates of mental health problems than those whose schools remained closed

Key Takeaways

12/13/2025

En NAMI Minnesota alentamos a todas las personas a planificar con anticipación. En una crisis, tener guardado el número correcto puede marcar una diferencia crucial. Visita JustCallMN.com para encontrar la línea de crisis más cercana a tu comunidad y agrégala a tu teléfono ahora. Saber a dónde acudir antes de que ocurra una emergencia es un paso sencillo que puede ayudar a salvar una vida.

12/12/2025

Learn how to help prevent su***de with a simple, effective approach that can save lives.

QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer) is like CPR—but for mental health crises. In just 90 minutes, you’ll learn three critical steps anyone can take to help someone in crisis. This evidence-based training is open to all community members 16 and older.

CEUs are available for social workers, and this training meets the continuing education requirement for teachers.

Multiple sessions are available this winter. Sign up today and be ready to make a difference.

📅 See all upcoming dates and register here:
https://namimn.org/education-and-public-awareness/classes/https-namimn-org-education-and-public-awareness-classes-all-scheduled-classes/

12/12/2025

The heirs of an 83-year-old Connecticut woman are suing ChatGPT maker OpenAI and its business partner Microsoft for wrongful death, alleging that the artificial intelligence chatbot intensified her son’s “paranoid delusions”.

The heirs of an 83-year-old Connecticut woman are suing ChatGPT maker OpenAI and its business partner Microsoft for wrongful death.

12/12/2025

At NAMI Minnesota, we spent years advocating, coordinating, and pushing to make sure every community in our state had access to a clear, easy way to reach crisis support. JustCallMN.com represents the result of that work — a single place where anyone can quickly find the crisis line for their county. Please use it, share it, and encourage others to keep it saved. These numbers exist for you, and they can make all the difference.

12/11/2025

Each December, we highlight that the year-end holiday season does not bring an increase in su***de – in fact, statistics show that rates tend to fall in December. And this year is no different, according to the Annenberg Public Policy Center.

As the center reports, “The month of December typically has the year’s lowest average daily su***de rate. And yet each year at this time, some news publications repeat the persistent but incorrect belief that su***des rise around the holidays."

The Annenberg Public Policy Center, part of the University of Pennsylvania, has been attempting to dispel this myth for more than two decades – with some success.

Their concern is in part “based on the risk of su***de contagion, which is a documented phenomenon,” according to APPC Research Director Dan Romer. Most years, center researchers find more stories perpetuating the myth than debunking it – which might be why a 2023 survey found that 4 out of 5 adults believed December to be the “time of year in which the largest number of su***des occur.” But, when analyzing stories from last year’s holiday season, the center was pleased to find only 19 stories in newspapers propagating the myth, compared to 82 stories debunking it.

Research 8 Dec 2025 Lowest Su***de Rate Is in December but Some in Media Still Promote Holiday-Su***de Myth A new media analysis by Annenberg Public Policy Center found 19 stories in print media outlets that spread the false myth that su***des increase during the holidays. By Annenberg Public Policy...

12/11/2025

he U.S. su***de rate dropped slightly last year from some of the highest levels ever reported, preliminary data suggests. Experts say it’s hard to know exactly why, or whether the decline will continue. A little over 48,800 su***de deaths were reported in 2024, according to provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, roughly 500 fewer than the year before. The overall su***de rate fell to 13.7 per 100,000 people.

The U.S. su***de rate has fallen after years of hovering at some of the highest levels ever reported, according to preliminary data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

12/11/2025

Join us for a conversation focusing on one practical skill that can change the trajectory of your relationship with your child. Included in your time with us, you will receive a brief introduction to the skill, be offered hands-on practice, and be provided resources to support you.

Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/pFeslI38QPqL07DQdPH1lA #/registration

12/10/2025

We’re grateful to Minnesota Live for inviting our new Executive Director to talk about mental health, recovery, and where NAMI Minnesota is headed next. You can watch the interview at this link.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness Minnesota or NAMI is an organization close to Ken Barlow’s heart. Marcus Schmit, the new visionary at NAMI Minnesota, joins us to talk about their important work.

12/10/2025

Over the past decade, emergency room visits for youth mental health crises have surged, leaving hospitals nationwide struggling to meet the demand. Known as emergency department boarding, this practice keeps children waiting—sometimes for days—until an appropriate placement becomes available or there is a plan to support a safe return home. During 2024 alone, Children’s Minnesota saw more than 1,200 such visits. To address this, Children’s Minnesota and Washburn Center have launched a new collaborative. Washburn Center for Children has hired an acute response therapist who will work with Children’s Minnesota emergency departments to support families in crisis by connecting them with critical services and mental health care faster and more effectively.

Children’s Minnesota and Washburn Center for Children are tackling one of the most distressing trends in children’s health care: the growing number of kids c...

12/10/2025

Mental Health Care Is a Human Right — Today and Every Day! On this International Day of Human Rights, we at NAMI Minnesota reaffirm what we know to be true: access to quality mental health care is a human right.

Every person deserves dignity, support, and care — yet for too many, mental health services remain inaccessible. That’s why NAMI Minnesota is advocating for real change: protecting and expanding Medicaid and public-insurance coverage to ensure care for all; increasing funding and support for crisis services, community-based care, and outpatient mental health; and fighting to close disparities in rural, underserved, and vulnerable communities.

We also push for mental health parity, affordable access to treatment, and supportive housing — because mental illnesses affect us all, and care should not depend on where you live or how much you earn.

Join the conversation. Advocate with us. Share your story. Because everyone deserves the right to heal, belong, and thrive.

Minnesota

12/09/2025

Today, state official released results from the 2025 Minnesota Student Survey, which show students reporting stronger connections to their schools and improvements in overall physical and mental health and wellbeing. Minnesota students across the state reported encouraging improvements compared to 2022 when asked about school climate, bullying, out-of-school activities, healthy eating, mental health, substance use, connections with school and family, and many other topics.
https://www.health.state.mn.us/news/pressrel/2025/survey120925.html