HONOLULU — The Hawaii State Department of Health, Child & Adolescent Mental Health Division, Adult Mental Health Division, the Children’s Mental Health Acceptance Hui and community partners join forces during May, Mental Health Month, to encourage the public to foster acceptance and take action to change attitudes, behaviors and systems regarding mental health.

What You Need To Know

  • Day at the Capitol public kick-off event for Mental Health Month is scheduled for Monday, May 1, at the Hawaii State Capitol with a Mental Health Resource Fair, 9 a.m.-2 p.m., and sign waving, 3:30-5:30 p.m.

  • The agencies and groups urge individuals to go beyond “term awareness” by talking about the issue as a family and within communities with youths

  • There are several ways people can participate in Mental Health Month through social media

The agencies and groups urge individuals to go beyond “term awareness” by discussing the issue as a family and within communities with youths. Mental health discussions help to destigmatize peoples’ views as well as increase the chances for struggling individuals to seek help and accept resources, services and support, according to a news release.

The DOH cites national statistics showing that mental health affects all ages:

  • One in five youths has a mental, emotional, developmental or behavioral disorder.
  • One in five adults live with a mental illness.
  • One in five older adults, 55 years and older, experiences a mental health concern.

“In the wake of the pandemic, children’s mental health acceptance has never been more important,” said Keli Acquaro, acting administrator for the DOH Child & Adolescent Mental Health Division, in the release.

“The good news is that youth are incredibly resilient. A critical protective factor for our keiki is that they feel connected at home and at school, and the way to achieve that is through strong relationships with adults and peers. We can all do our part by showing the young people in our lives that we care,” said Acquaro.

DOH shared key findings published in the 2021 Hawaii Youth Risk Behavior Survey:

  • Over half of public school students (54% of middle school, 56% of high school students) never or rarely received the help needed (among students who reported feeling sad, empty, hopeless, angry or anxious).
  • 34% of public middle school students have felt sad or hopeless almost daily for two or more weeks in a row, which caused them to stop doing usual activities; 27% seriously considered suicide.
  • In the past 12 months, 35% of public high school students felt sad or hopeless almost daily for two or more weeks in a row, which caused them to stop doing usual activities; 17% seriously considered suicide.

The 2021 National Survey on Drug Use and Health Releases showed that in adults ages 18 and older, 22.8% (57.8 million of 253.8 million adults) experienced “any mental illness in the past year.” In the same age group, 5.5% (14.1 million of 253.8 million adults) experienced a “serious mental illness in the past year.”

Nearly half of the same age group, 48.9% or 6.8 million out of 13.9 million adults living with a serious mental illness in the past year, perceived COVID-19 had a negative impact on their mental health.

Administrator for the DOH Adult Mental Health Division, Dr. Amy B. Curtis, said, “Hawaii residents experiencing a behavioral health or substance use crisis, having thoughts of suicide or anxiety, wanting mental health or emotional support, looking for recovery resources for substance use, or who are friends or family members of someone in need of help may contact “Hawaii CARES 988” to connect with a locally trained counselor who can help with linage to behavioral health crisis or substance use treatment services.”

Hawaii CARES 988 is a free call center open 24/7 offering crisis, mental health and substance abuse support services; call, text or chat 988 to speak to someone. Individuals can also contact the Crisis Text Line by texting ALOHA to 741741. Individuals in an emergency or in danger, call or text 911 or go to the nearest emergency room. For information on the following, click children’s mental health services or adult mental health services.

Show your support

On Monday, May 1, a Day at the Capitol public kick-off event is scheduled at the Hawaii State Capitol, where people can learn about youth and adult mental health promotion and prevention activities, support services, treatment options and community advocacy initiatives. The Mental Health Resource Fair is 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the 4th floor, followed by a sign waving on the sidewalk fronting the Capitol along Beretania St., 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Fill out a form to participate on May 1.

There are several ways people can participate in Mental Health Month through social media.

According to Mental Health America, over 100 landmarks across the U.S. will be lit in green, the national color of mental health, signifying mental health acceptance. It represents hope, strength, support and encouragement for everyone living with mental illness.

Various buildings will be lit in green across Oahu from May 1 to May 26. On Kauai, the Lihue Civic Center and Wilcox Medical Center will sport the color from May 8 to 12.

DOH encourages the public to show their support:

  • Wear green at least once a week throughout the month of May
  • Display green in various ways, such as changing the color of your email signature text or adding a green hashtag to your email signature
  • When in a virtual meeting, incorporate a background with a mental health or green theme

Sarah Yamanaka covers events, environmental and community news for Spectrum News Hawaii. She can be reached at sarah.yamanaka@charter.com.