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Mental Wellness / Self-Care Resources

March 26, 2020

Mental Wellness Resource page

As school leaders know, “You can’t take care of others if you don’t take care of yourself.” There is a lot going on – we’re pulled in many directions and it can be stressful. Practice mental wellness!

Thank you to Dr. Melissa Maras for ongoing assistance to MASA in the area of Mental Wellness.

Dr. Maras’s suggested links:

Staying Calm During Crisis: 5 Tips for Self Care.

While this article is targeted at teachers, the basic premise is the same for all of us. A good read!

https://www.pbs.org/education/blog/staying-calm-during-crisis-5-tips-for-self-care

Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) provides a number of mental wellness resources including self-care and re-energizing

https://schoolguide.casel.org/focus-area-2/learn/self-care-and-re-energizing/

Developing a Self Care Plan

There is no “one-size-fits-all” self-care plan, but there is a common thread to all self-care plans: making a commitment to attend to all the domains of your life, including your physical and psychological health, emotional and spiritual needs, and relationships.

http://socialwork.buffalo.edu/resources/self-care-starter-kit/developing-your-self-care-plan.html

Missouri Department of Mental Health (DMH)

Primary landing page: https://dmh.mo.gov/disaster-services/covid-19-information#community
- Disaster Distress Helpline – call or texting options (brochure is available)
- Behavioral Health Specific Resources - https://dmh.mo.gov/coronavirus-covid-19-information
  - Access Crisis Intervention - https://dmh.mo.gov/mental-illness/program-services/behavioral-health-crisis-hotline
  - Using “We’re in this Together” messaging, but I haven’t seen this anywhere else besides their site
- Self-care page: https://dmh.mo.gov/disaster-services/self-care
- Under “Communication” there are 2 good guides for communicating during a crisis/pandemic