November 9, 2016

#WriteOnSarah: Post-Election Anxiety

Anxiety. It’s a worry about what might happen. A worry about the future. The best way to manage these fears is to stay grounded in the present moment. I have spent the past few years working on my relationship with anxiety and here’s the good news: it doesn’t matter what the worry is about, the… View Article

November 4, 2016

A statement regarding the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention news release from John Draper, Ph. D., Director of the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and Chief Clinical Officer of the Mental Health Association of New York City

Today, the CDC released new data that discusses the death rates of youth aged 10-14. The data compares suicide rates, motor vehicle rates and homicide rates for youth. Dr. John Draper, Director of the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, a program administered by MHA-NYC, shares his thoughts on this release and the statement by the National Action… View Article

November 3, 2016

A Voice Comes On The Telephone

By Jessica Giordano A voice comes on the telephone “How can I help you?” A sigh. “I don’t know. I’m afraid.” A sigh. “What’s going on?” “I don’t know; I’m just scared. I feel like I’m having a panic attack.” Deep breaths. “Ok, it’s ok. Let’s take some deep breaths.” And I go there. Through… View Article

October 12, 2016

parenting with{out} anxiety: bullying

Now that the school year is underway and kids are hopefully settling into the new routines of school, this is often the time of year when relationships start to solidify. And that means that your child, or teen, has probably reconnected with friends and started to make some new friends. It can also be a… View Article

October 7, 2016

parenting with{out} anxiety – series

Being a kid can be exciting, fun and joyful, but it can also be stressful!  As parents, caregivers, and teachers, we strive to enhance the joyful times and curb the stressful ones, but there are many factors over which we have no control.  What we can control is our responses to your children and young… View Article

October 3, 2016

Mental Health Association of NYC response to Here’s How Schools Can Support Students’ Mental Health

Last month NPR published an article titled, “Here’s How Schools Can Support Students’ Mental Health,” where they suggest a ‘multi-tiered system of support’ which can substitute the mental health support needs that are lacking in schools. This multi-tiered system offers support for everyone and builds levels of more and more specialized help. MHA-NYC’s Cristina Harris,… View Article

October 2, 2016

#WriteOnSarah: Cracked, but Not Broken: 5 Lessons from Kevin Hines

Suicide prevention does not take a break now that it’s “Depression Awareness Month.” In fact, as mental health advocate Kevin Hines reminds us, there are thousands of reasons to think of suicide prevention in the context of depression. It was depression, and other symptoms of bipolar disorder including paranoia and mania, that led Hines to… View Article

September 9, 2016

After 15 Years: Reflections on 9/11 from the Center of the Largest Disaster Mental Health Response in World History

I emerged from the subway on that clear Tuesday morning, likely the last train to Manhattan before America’s great city locked down to become a militarized zone. It was about 9:15 AM, just minutes after the second plane hit the Twin Towers, and I could see the smokestacks billowing disaster about 20 blocks south of… View Article

September 9, 2016

Still Coping 15 Years After 9/11

September 11, 2016 marks the 15th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and Shanksville, PA, in which nearly 3,000 people were killed. This event has had far reaching effects on attitudes and perceptions about national security, disaster response, and the impact of traumatic events on both the individual and… View Article