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Helping A Friend

Every day, people are dealing with a variety of experiences and emotions. Connecting with empathetic and understanding people reminds us that we are not alone.  

Mental health concerns are common. When someone finds the courage to reach out to us, we need to know how to be there for them.  Many young people have confided in a friend and/or supported a friend during difficult times, yet often didn’t feel prepared to offer the support that was needed. Most of us would like to learn more about the best ways to support others, know who we can talk to about mental health concerns, and identify where to go for help.  

In today’s Wellness Wednesday, we learn ways to recognize when someone is struggling and how to properly support them. 

 

Try this: 

As a class, group or family: 

  • Start by talking about why it is Important to learn and have the tools to help a friend.  
  • Explore these resources to start learning about how to recognize when someone is struggling and your role in helping a friend.  
  • BeThere.org’s 5 Gold Rules teach us how to support someone struggling with mental health (https://bethere.org/Home). The golden rules are: Say what you see. Show you care. Hear them out. Know your role. Connect to help.   
  • NOTE: There is no formula to make everything better for someone else… and that’s not our job. But we can learn the best ways to support them and know how to connect them to help. 
  • If you think there is an immediate risk of harm to a friend or someone else, respond right away and make sure to connect with support, even if this means waking up a parent or guardian, or calling a crisis line. 

 

 

Ask yourself, there is no wrong answer:  

Think about a time when you faced a difficulty, who was there to help you?  

How did their help make a difference? 

 

Connecting to our faith:  

Turning to God in times of stress can help us manage difficult situations in our lives. Jesus teaches us that all things can be made easier when we ask God for help.  

“I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power.” (Ephesians 1:17-19) 

 

Further learning:  

 

 

Employees of LDCSB check out WorkLifeHealth from EAP Provider Morneau Sheppell.  

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