04/30/2026
Tomorrow is May, marking the beginning of Mental Health Awareness Month (MHAM)! Organizations can celebrate and honor this occasion by raising awareness, sharing resources, and supporting the individuals and communities who need it most.
Each week during MHAM, BHN will highlight the weekly theme. The first week’s (May 1 – 8) theme is “Understanding Mental Illness, Including Serious Mental Illness: Awareness Leads to Compassion.”
We want to contribute to this theme by drawing attention to the following facts about mental illness and SMI:
Mental illnesses are medical conditions involving changes in emotion, appetite, thinking, or behavior that can affect daily functioning.
Serious mental illness can substantially interfere with major life activities, including work, school, relationships, and self-care.
Economic instability, housing insecurity, unemployment, and limited access to healthcare can increase stress and worsen mental health conditions.
Chronic stress related to financial hardship or unstable housing can contribute to the development or worsening of serious mental illness.
Early support, including access to stable housing, employment assistance, healthcare, and community programs, improves long-term stability and well-being.
When people feel respected and understood, they are more likely to seek care and remain connected to services.
BHN’s Bridges to Care and Recovery (BCR) program also provides a “Pastoral Toolkit,” which includes education to enhance mental health awareness while also educating on available mental health resources. You can view the toolkit at: https://bhnstl.org/our-work/building-community-engagement/
