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I am thankful AWI began ten years ago helping communities implement depression awareness and prevention programs. I wish it were happening faster but it is happening.
One observation is that, given the opportunity, I see schools outside the USA implementing faster. They seem to place a higher priority on prevention and earlier identification, perhaps because they have fewer options for treating depression and suicidal ideation.
This summer a train-the-trainer workshop AWI delivered was attended by a friend visiting the US from Nigeria. He flew home with a dozen copies of the curriculum and now several schools there are already implementing. When I asked why it was adopted so quickly, he mentioned the limited treatment resources so I looked up the number of psychiatrists per one million population in our two countries: 126 in the US and 1 in Nigeria.
Two other topics:
1) This year I started recognizing other organizations in the AWI newsletter. It is now a regular section below labeled FEATURED GUEST. This month's guest describes offers three one-minute exercises suitable for all ages to enhance mindfulness I hope you find it useful.
2) Clicking this link for a Nov. 8 conference which provides practical resilience building activities for all grades. The conference is hosted by the Boston University School of Medicine. The healthy coping skills it teaches help prevent youth from developing unhealthy coping habits, such as cutting and substance abuse. Karen Lynch, a faculty member from the Creative Problem Solving Institute, and I will be presenting the conference track for grade 4-8 educators. I hope to see you there!
Enjoy Thanksgiving!
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