Need Therapy? In West Africa, Hairdressers Can Help.

A policy adopted in Eugene’s 4J School District has been creating safe spaces for transgender students from kindergarten through high school. Gender-inclusive programs at the University of Oregon have marked the school as a national leader in LGBTQ acceptance.

Preventing suicide and helping people when they feel most alone are big goals but they are exactly what 'Crisis Text Line' aims to do. This hotline allows individuals to text trained counselors when they are at their most vulnerable, the counselors can talk to them and reach First Responders if the situation warrants it.

A program called the Safety Planning Intervention is reducing the occurrence of repeat suicide attempts among veterans. The program helps veterans establish a safety plan and identify a support network that they can rely on during times of crisis.

Students in Scottish schools, colleges, and universities will now be able to access free sanitary products. This eliminates the indignity of “period poverty” and helps students avoid missing school due to being unable to afford sanitary products.

In Montana, an elementary school is changing the dynamics around bullying and suicide through the Say Something Assembly program, which helps create an environment for students to feel safe and empowered to speak up. Montana has the highest rate of suicide in the country and the assemblies are designed to help youth understand it's OK to be struggling and to seek help. School officials also offer a companion program of support from trusted adults who can continue engaging and helping students.

Connecting LGTBQ+ teens with peers and adults for support can help reduce depression and the risk of suicide. Organizations like the Four Corners Rainbow Youth Center in Durango, Colorado, and the Gender and Sexuality Resource Center at Fort Lewis College provide safe spaces where youth feel welcome and supported by a network of peers and adults. The centers also act as social spaces where youth, parents, and their communities can come together.

Statistics show that black women do not have their pain taken as seriously as white women, which is a contributing factor why some expectant black mothers are choosing to hire doulas for their pregnancies. The doulas do more than help with childbirth – they provide resources to the mothers leading up to the birth as well as hold health care practitioners accountable for their biases.

Medical professionals throughout the United States are starting to implement mental health screenings during routine care in order to better assess those at risk of suicide. Using a combination of health records and questionnaires to flag which patients should have continued follow-ups, clinics and primary care specialists prioritization of suicide intervention is already showing significant results.

Seven teen suicides in one county over a two-year span prompted residents whose lives were touched by suicide to form DeFeet, an educational and advocacy group devoted to the message that suicide is preventable. Thanks in part to its trainings, public speakers, support groups, public education campaigns, and advocacy for gun safety, local schools now screen all students for suicide risk starting in middle school. A local health clinic now screens all patients and credits DeFeet, named for its annual 5K memorial walk, with creating "an environment where we are not as afraid to talk about suicide."

To enhance rural access to healthcare in Nigeria, the Parkers Mobile Clinic partners with local volunteers, healthcare professionals, educators, and community development advocates to identify and remedy unique healthcare gaps. Outreach programs are then designed to provide localized mental health support, nutritional counseling, and other reproductive health services.