Issue link: https://blog.providence.org/i/958890
This is a promising moment for our nation, as the importance of mental health and well-being become obvious to growing numbers of Americans and awareness of mental health disorders, addiction and related conditions are emerging from the shadows and moving onto the front page. For a long time, diseases of despair— depression, anxiety, addiction, thoughts of suicide—have been stigmatized as character flaws or moral failures, and even today are widely viewed as a personal matter, something to be covered up, kept out of sight, never talked about. The responsibility for caring and healing still largely falls on the individuals involved and their friends and family. But this is changing. Conversations about mental health and substance misuse and the search for solutions are now happening everywhere, across age groups, sectors and political lines. This, in turn, is fostering a new awareness that the answers to mental health and well-being are found not only in clinics and public agencies but also at school, at work and in communities. There is a realization that we need policies that build neighborhoods that have a sense of hope, meaningful opportunity and paths out of poverty. This shift in thinking is arising at just the right time. As American people, we are not all faring well. While the most fortunate among CHAMPIONS OF WELL-BEING EVERYWHERE March 2018 2 Well Being Trust | Annual Report | Letter from Tyler Norris