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Mental Health First Aid Certificate Training Scheduled in New Milford

Voices - 8/26/2017

NEW MILFORD - A free Mental Health First Aid certificate training will take place from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, September 5 and Thursday, September 7 at the New Milford Youth Agency's facility, The Maxx, 94 Railroad St.

September is National Recovery Month with programs scheduled to increase awareness and understanding of mental health and substance use disorders and to celebrate the people who recover.

Mental Health First Aid trainings are available in Litchfield County under a federal grant, the SAMHSA Project AWARE Community Grant, awarded to Mental Health Connecticut, Inc.

Like CPR, Mental Health First Aid 8-hour certificate training provides community members with tools to respond to someone who is in crisis.

It also helps participants recognize the signs and symptoms of a developing mental health problem and provide an important bridge to care.

Those who receive this certificate training are not professionals and do not diagnose or provide therapy; instead, the program offers concrete tools and answers key questions about what to do and where someone may find help in a crisis situation.

Available in the U.S. for 10 years and managed by the National Council for Behavioral Health, more than one million First Aiders have been trained to date.

Studies have shown the training to be evidence-based, reducing social distance while increasing participants' mental health literacy, confidence and tools in reaching out to those in need, awareness of local professional and self-help resources for mental wellness and awareness of individual mental health needs.

Early intervention supports early recovery, so community members can play an important role in an individual's journey to recovery by using tools learned in the training.

"We're working hard to make Mental Health First Aid as common as CPR in Connecticut and nationwide," said Valerie English-Cooper, community educator for Mental Health Connecticut, "and each of us can help others reach recovery by becoming certified in Mental Health First Aid."

Those who wish to register may visit www.mhconn.org/education/mental-health-first-aid.

Those seeking more information may contact Mental Health Community Educator and Certified Mental Health First Aid Instructor Valerie English-Cooper at 860-471-6715 or venglishcooper@mhconn.org.