July 2021 Newsletter

You’re invited… AGAIN!

Don’t miss the KSPHQ Grand Re-Opening celebration on Thursday, July 29th! Come enjoy refreshments, tours, wine, friends, and words from some of our favorite partners and community leaders.

RSVP and save your seat so you don’t miss out!
Learn more and RSVP at ksphq.org/grand_reopening

Hello again! It’s July!

The heat is starting to pick up, and so are all of the Summer activities! Whether you’re enjoying the sun and playing sports, getting a tan, traveling the country, or taking a break, Summer-time in Kansas is an exciting and busy time for all of us.

Amidst all of this Summer-time fun, it is important to keep health and safety in the forefront of our minds. As we enjoy the fun activities that we used to long before the global pandemic, remember to stay safe and avoid areas that make you feel at risk. Moreover, be sure to take some time for your mental health; quarantine and pandemic life are strenuous on our emotions and sense of self. Continue to take emotional and mental inventories of yourself and reach out to others when you need a shoulder to lean on. If you need to talk today, call 785-841-2345, 800-273-8255, or visit KSPHQ.org/help to learn more.

Extending this idea of safety, our own Jared Auten is here to share some ideas on proper safety planning for moments of crisis. Be sure to read his article below to ensure that you, your loved ones, and your friends are prepared if a crisis does strike.

Until next time,

MWH

Michael W. Hutton

Communication & Marketing Coordinator, KSPHQ

Education | Support | Crisis Services

Hope today for a better tomorrow.

Safety is certainly a concept on many people’s minds as we continue to reopen our country in the wake of the global pandemic. This current transitionary period highlights how a crisis, at a minimum, discombobulates us and leaves us feeling out of sorts. Instead of feeling calm and collected during these times, we might be figuratively filling the car with toilet paper or denying the fact that there is a problem in the first place (maybe this analogy is just too literal). The point is that planning for safety doesn’t have to be a reactionary response or an afterthought.

Now, safety planning as it relates to suicide prevention and intervention isn’t the same as getting ready for a global pandemic like a doomsday-prepper, but it does entail the same basic principal: If we thoughtfully prepare and plan for a crisis, then the outcome can be improved and the intensity of the experience can be reduced.

Safety planning is a preventative strategy for managing individual suicide risk and mental health crises. It is something we can do for ourselves or collaboratively with a loved one or mental health/ healthcare professional. Using basic strategies and thinking about and writing out a plan, we’re working to recognize existing protective factors and reduce risk factors during a crisis.

It goes like this:

Consider a moment of crisis. It doesn’t have to be a crisis that includes suicidal thoughts, but it can. As we profess, a crisis is self-defined and unique to the individual.

Now, what are your personal warning signs that lead up to that moment of crisis? Are there feelings of worry, anxiety, panic, or fear? What bodily sensations or thoughts will you notice? Are there specific situations, like an unexpected financial expense or job related stress that activate these feelings or thoughts? Do suicidal thoughts trickle in or hit you like a wave? What’s your experience and how will you know when a safety plan will be useful?

**Read the full article HERE or by visiting ksphq.org

Erica and Roxie are modeling our newest gift to our monthly donors: Limited edition lapel pins! To show our support and love for our donor community, we’re giving all monthly donors a new, limited edition lapel pin with the KSPHQ logo! We are super excited to share some love back to our community.

KSPHQ is dedicated to serving our local community’s mental health needs. This Spring, we are raising awareness and donations to increase the number of volunteers and services so that our local community can feel safe, supported, and protected 24/7, 365.

For more information on monthly giving or donations, visit ksphq.org/monthly_giving

These training are provided free of charge to participants thanks to a grant from the KDHE Zero Suicide Initiative

Interested in a training? Click the links or the picture to sign up!

By this time next year, the 988 crisis line will be fully active!

Though the full release is a year away, there are a numerous amount of preparations and planning that still needs to happen!

What is 988?

By July of 2022, 988 will be the new number for anyone in crisis to call. Much like 911 is known as the emergency number for police, fire, or medical help, 988 will be the crisis line for a mental health crisis or suicide prevention.

988 will work exactly like the existing National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. All calls from 988 will route to National Suicide Prevention Lifeline Centers, like KSPHQ!

KSPHQ’s counseling center (aka, Headquarters Counseling Center) is the local crisis center serving all 105 counties in Kansas. If the counselors at HQ are helping others or aren’t able to answer, the call “rolls” to another crisis center in the 170-center Lifeline network.

Anyone can call for any reason. If you’re thinking about suicide, experiencing a mental health crisis, concerned for a friend, grieving, feeling hopeless, or just need to talk to someone about something that’s going on in your life, you can call.

Our counselors volunteer their time because they care about you and want to help.

What does this mean for Kansas? 

The most recent report from Vibrant Emotional Health projects the Lifeline’s call volume will significantly increase somewhere between 300-800%.

As the only crisis center serving all 105 counties in Kansas, KSPHQ’s counseling center, Headquarters Counseling Center, will need a large, enthusiastic, and energized group of volunteer counselors to answer the phones so that all Kansans who need help can get help. If you are interested in helping others, please learn more about our volunteer counselor program by clicking here.

Currently, the creation of 988 is an unfunded mandate. H.B. 2281, or the LIVES Act, is a bill in the Kansas Legislature that will fund Kansas suicide Lifeline services and crisis stabilization services to create an alternative to hospitalizations and reduce the need for law enforcement to respond to mental health crises.

Though HB2281 did not pass through the Kansas House Appropriations Committee, the bill will have another chance to be acted upon during the next legislative session which starts in January of 2023. This is why we ask YOU to Click here to find your legislator. Contact them and ask them about their plan to fund 988 and for their support of the LIVES ActAll Kansans need this bill to pass so that KSPHQ is able to answer the call when our friends, family, and neighbors need to be connected to someone who cares and can help to resolve their mental health and/or suicide crisis.

Learn more about 988 at 988ks.org

Entries are in–and the results are amazing! Thank you to all of the Kansas middle and high school students who participated in the suicide prevention art contest. The talent we have across the state is truly amazing.

Check out the submissions in our online gallery!