Emotional First­­AidThe Importance, Processes, and Awareness of Healing Psychological Wounds

Andrea LloydManvel High School

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Emotional First­­AidAristotle proclaimed the idea that those with tendencies towards brilliance also have

tendencies towards mental illness.1 Geniuses, as we call them, see the world differently than average people. Sir Isaac Newton invented calculus on a dare about why the planets travel in ellipses,2 while “[suffering] from extreme paranoia.”3 Although brilliance and mental illness correlate, Gottfried Leibniz invented calculus independent of Newton,4 proving mental illness is not a requirement for brilliance and vice versa. One out of four people suffer from mental illnesses.5 Although only one in every five teenagers has a mental illness, suicide is the third leading cause of death amongst teenagers.6 NHS estimates that 90% of death by suicide cases correlate or caused by mental illnesses.7 In the novel, It’s Kind of a Funny Story,8 a youth checks himself into a mental­health clinic after dialing the Suicide Hotline and confessing his suicidal thoughts. In the novel, he says “I'm not doing well in terms of being a functional human, you know?”9 to another patient in the clinic. People must learn the equivalent of basic hygiene and simple first aid techniques necessary to use in emotional circumstances in order to decrease risk of lifelong mental illnesses and decrease fatalities.

As science and people’s experience gain knowledge about diseases, bacteria, and health, our hygiene habits evolved. Just like how hygiene techniques such as brushing our teeth and using band­aids improves our health and quality of life, it is necessary for people to improve their psychological health and hygiene. The emotional immune systems of our society improve with an increased knowledge of emotional first­aid tools to treat wounds properly. This significance of emotional health begs the question: Despite the stigma against mental health, what is the importance of emotional first­aid in order to boost our mental health immune systems in our societies? This essay will discuss how to improve one’s psychological health as well as the importance of decreasing the stigma of mental health in order to improve mental health immune systems in our society.

1“The Science of Genius” by Dean Keith Simonton, Scientific American MIND, Nov/Dec 2012, Vol. 23, No. 5, pp. 34–41. Reproduced with permission. Copyright © 2012 Scientific American, a division of Nature America, Inc. All rights reserved.2Neil deGrasse Tyson: My Man, Sir Isaac Newton. (2011, June 3). Retrieved March 30, 2015, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=danYFxGnFxQ3“The Science of Genius” by Dean Keith Simonton, Scientific American MIND, Nov/Dec 2012, Vol. 23, No. 5, pp. 34–41. Reproduced with permission. Copyright © 2012 Scientific American, a division of Nature America, Inc. All rights reserved.4Tomforde, M. (n.d.). The History of Calculus. Retrieved March 30, 2015, from http://www.uiowa.edu/~c22m025c/history.html5 This percentage will vary between 25% to 50% depending on sources viewed. This large range is because of varying differences between studies, including what defines clinical mental illness versus self­diagnoses. Scheid, T., & Brown, T. (2010). A Handbook for the Study of Mental Health (2nd ed., p. 47). New York: Cambridge6Mental Health Facts: Children and Teens. (n.d.). Retrieved March 30, 2015, from http://www.nami.org/getattachment/Learn­More/Mental­Health­by­the­Numbers/childrenmhfacts.pdf7Suicide ­ Causes. (2015, February 9). Retrieved March 30, 2015, from http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Suicide/Pages/Causes.aspx8 Vizzini, N. (2006). It's Kind of a Funny Story. New York: Miramax Books/Hyperion Books For Children.9 Ibid, 29

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A Beginner’s Guide to Emotional First Aid and Emergency ScenariosAbrasions

In our daily lives, abrasions happen constantly: paper cuts, skinned knees, stubbed toes. These abrasions do not damage our overall health, but they do contribute to one’s actions that day, such as avoiding lemon juice. The events affect our attitude for the day, but do not dictate our physical health. Similarly, little emotional events contribute to our emotions, not dictate our day. For a mentally healthy person, rude gestures and name calling heal quickly and lack real attention. A little bit of ointment and a band­aid sufficiently aids our bodies with healing. Generally speaking, skinned knees and paper­cuts can generally be ignored; with no spewing bodily fluids, the day continues like normal.

All emotional wounds derive from external or internal stimuli. John Locke, in his book Human Understanding, talks about how all ideas come “from sensation or reflection.”10 Sensations refer to external stimuli (our senses), such as physical aspects: cold, hard, soft, frizzy. Reflections are internal stimuli, pertaining to ideas, such as: thinking, remembering, perceiving. Origins of emotional wounds, exactly ‘where,’ compounds from both sensations and reflections. Abrasions, the exception, usually derive from sensation or reflection. With other emotional wounds, however boundaries blur or even vanish. Some sensations are clearly the cause of the mental illness, such as the case of a death; wounds appear like a knife’s cut: distinct, sharp, and clear. Other wounds appear more gradually despite events, like a war or survivor’s guilt. Lastly, some wounds appear over time, like a bruise, due to a combination of sensations and reflections. Emotional lacerations, avulsions, amputations, and punctures all involve a strong mix of reflection and sensation. The next few sections pertain to a general mix of reflection and sensation. Generally speaking, the more painful and damaging the wounds, the stronger the mix of reflection and sensation. Lacerations

Guy Winch, a PhD in Psychology, wrote a book, Emotional First Aid, on how to deal with basic psychological injuries such as rejection, loneliness, guilt, rumination, and low self­esteem.11 Winch reasons that people lack the tools needed to heal and treat their wounds properly.12 Young children understand chicken noodle soup correlates with colds and ibuprofen dismisses pain and fevers. However, do adults know how to soothe after losing a loved one, or how to cope with a move to a new city? Winch provides information in his book of different methods to begin healing each wound and preventing infections. Winch provides this information because despite having emotional cuts and wounds on ourselves, we lack practice in exercising good coping techniques that helps with psychological healing.13

Just like any lacerations, once identified, care must be implemented immediately. With regards to a physical cut; pressure, sterile dressings, washing, antibiotic ointment, and bandages should be applied in order to stop bleeding and prevent infection. With emotional cuts, rigid procedures rarely apply beneficially. Post­September 11, 2001; a group of psychologists created an online study to analyze the idea of sharing memories and thoughts such as with Critical

10Locke, J. (1825). Chapter I Of Ideas in general, and their Original. In An essay concerning human understanding (A new ed.). New­York: Printed by S. Marks.11 Winch, G. (2014). Emotional first aid: Healing rejection, guilt, failure, and other everyday hurts. New York: Plume.12 Ibid, viii13Winch, G. (2014). Emotional first aid: Healing rejection, guilt, failure, and other everyday hurts. New York: Plume.

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Incident Stress Debriefing.14 This study concluded that forced healing lead to scarring (PTSD) and risk of frequent re­injury (anxiety); therefore, people should not be forced to share their traumatic experiences. Just a tourniquet, improper use of procedures cause more harms than help; people should pursue their natural inclination to coping methods. However, unhealthy behaviors that infect wounds include self­defeating actions. Winch provides an ample number of examples of treatments to decrease our self­defeating behaviors and increase our ability to heal efficiently. He acknowledges the need to develop one’s own “medicine cabinet.” For example, ibuprofen, the generic name for the medication, can be found as name brands such as Advil; Midol; and Motrin.15 Some brands work better than others for some people. Through trial and error, someone’s emotional medicine cabinets fill with the effective items and habits needed to heal. Avulsions16 and Amputations

Now entering the major­wound category, a mental health professional is necessary. Seeing your bones, shredded muscle, whatever your extreme pain is, you must go find help to receive proper care for your wound immediately from a doctor. A band­aid and some ointment provide no help for the hand that went through a meat grinder. In our society, with twenty­five percent experiencing a mental illness, only forty percent of that twenty­five percent will seek out professional mental help (so ten percent of the original population receives help). This lack of people seeking out professional help demands the question, when does one seek out mental health professionals? Signs of avulsions include an increase of hopelessness and despair. If emotional pain interferes with regularly conducting life and coping methods render ineffective, then it would be helpful to see a mental health professional.17 If thoughts have turned to “harming yourself or others,”18 then help must be sought out immediately from an emergency room or a mental health professional.

When left untreated, such wounds can lead to other physical manifestation, complimenting the emotional manifestations. With regards to chronic loneliness, for example, the Public Library of Science published an article informing how “the influence of social relationships on the risk of death” compared to smoking and alcohol consumption exceeds the influence of factors on “physical inactivity and obesity.”19 Knowing this information shows our emotional and physical health is purposefully intertwined to affect one another. Through vicious cycles, self­defeating habits; self­harming habits; and self­fulfilling prophecies, our reflections based on how we view our sensations are affected. If we have the mentality that we will be

14Seery, M., Silver, R., Holman, E., Ence, W., & Chu, T. (2008). Expressing Thoughts And Feelings Following A Collective Trauma: Immediate Responses To 9/11 Predict Negative Outcomes In A National Sample. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 76(4), 657­667. Retrieved March 31, 2015, from https://webfiles.uci.edu/rsilver/Seery et al JCCP 2008 Expression After Collective Trauma.pdf15Ibuprofen: MedlinePlus Drug Information. (2010, October 1). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/meds/a682159.html#brand­name­116The tearing away of a structure or a part avulsion. (n.d.) Dorland's Medical Dictionary for Health Consumers. (2007). Retrieved March 30 2015 from http://medical­dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/avulsion17Get Professional Help If You Need It. (n.d.). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/get­professional­help­if­you­need­it 18 Winch, G. (2014). Emotional first aid: Healing rejection, guilt, failure, and other everyday hurts. New York: Plume.19Holt­Lunstad, J., Smith, T., Layton, J., & Brayne, C. (2010). Social Relationships And Mortality Risk: A Meta­analytic Review. PLoS Medicine, E1000316­E1000316. Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1000316#pmed­1000316­g006

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lonely at a party, then subtle self­defeating habits we do not acknowledge will appear, like small mannerisms like the look on our face.

Losing the Stigma of Mental HealthPlacing a mark of shame or disgrace on an individual defines stigma, with intentions of

humiliation or dishonor; most recognize the condition by similar names including prejudice, stereotyping, and discrimination.20 Stigma can lead to an increase of loneliness, rumination, and lowered self­esteem.21 Although simple, stigma is lemon juice for wounds, larger wounds more painfully affected. In 1980s, discussion of mental health began, beginning with PMS 22 in 1982. As the years continued, more material23 emerged: Girl, Interrupted24 in 1993, It’s Kind of a Funny Story25 in 2006, Perks of Being a Wallflower26 in 2012, and even Frozen27 in 2013. These are a few examples portraying mental wounds and illnesses accurately­­and the exposure gets people talking.

The National Breast Cancer Foundation dedicated October as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month in 198528 as a way to promote mammograms;29 the iconic pink ribbon appeared forth in 1991.30 This now iconic ribbon transcends its mere color, representing a worldwide organization dedicated to breast cancer research and treatments.31 Survivors share stories and hope; therefore, increasing awareness as a result. Mental Health America observes May as Mental Health Month,32 accompanied by a fresh lime green ribbon. A USA Today article discusses that by voicing true survivor stories, hope for victims and awareness of emotional health increases.33 How can Mental Health Awareness use Breast Cancer Awareness as an example?

For the past seven years, the NFL has thoroughly supported Breast Cancer Awareness Month by ‘pinking­out’ everything­­the balls, gloves, penalty flags.34 As the American Sport, football gains attention for breast cancer. Money raised by ‘pink items’ goes towards raising cancer awareness through the American Cancer Society.35 Mental Health America or the

20What is stigma? (n.d.). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://www.mentalhealth.wa.gov.au/mental_illness_and_health/mh_stigma.aspx 21Ibid. Winch, G. (2014). Emotional first aid: Healing rejection, guilt, failure, and other everyday hurts. New York: Plume.22Brozan, N. (1982, July 12). Premenstrual Syndrome: A Complex Issue. The New York Times. Retrieved March 1, 2015, from http://www.nytimes.com/1982/07/12/style/premenstrual­syndrome­a­complex­issue.html23 See Appendix A24Kaysen, S. (1994). Girl, Interrupted. New York: Vintage Books.25 Vizzini, N. (2006). It's Kind of a Funny Story. New York: Miramax Books/Hyperion Books For Children.26 Chbosky, S. (2012). The perks of being a wallflower (MTV Books/Gallery Books trade pbk. ed., Movie tie in ed.). New York: MTV Books/Gallery Books. 27 Frozen [Motion picture]. (2013). Walt Disney Pictures.28National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. (2012, August 23). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://www.cancer.org/cancer/breastcancer/moreinformation/national­breast­cancer­awareness­month 29Ibid. 30Fernandez, S. (1998, June 1). Pretty in Pink, (Think Before You Pink). MAMM.31Home | Susan G. Komen®. (2015, January 1). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://ww5.komen.org/32May is Mental Health Month. (2015, January 1). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/may#mayorg33Szabo, L. (2015, January 1). Cost of not Caring: Stigma set in stone. USA Today. Retrieved March 30, 2015, from http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/06/25/stigma­of­mental­illness/9875351/34NFL.com/pink. (2014, January 1). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://www.nfl.com/pink

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National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI) could promote Mental Awareness through a sport­­baseball. According to the NAMI, Major League Baseball has set a standard in sports by “ supporting athletes who contend with mental health conditions,”36 specifically stating how stigma prevents athletes from receiving mental health help.37 With Major League Baseball already in support of mental health, how hard is it to get the ball rolling? In 1999, a wife of the Redskins’ owner handed out pink ribbons to every fan in the stadium­­thus spurring NFL’s pink­out years later.38 One person begins change. By involving Major League Baseball with Mental Health Awareness, information spreads effectively.

ConclusionIn order to improve our mental health, we must educate the public about accurate mental

health hygiene and decrease stigma. One, become educated about how to heal one’s emotional wounds. This is a Red­Cross and Boy Scouts approach, preparation for when the emergency occurs. Although these techniques are necessary to know in order to improve our happiness levels and living emotionally, no one will find this information with the current stigma we have. In order to decrease stigma and increase awareness, Major League Baseball potentially can be used to broadcast to a large audience to increase awareness. As awareness increases, MLB teams can sell merchandise and items pertaining to Mental Health Awareness, similar to NFL’s pink­out for Breast Cancer Awareness. Awareness begins with small actions, like an ad during baseball games or having a willing player talk about their mental health,39 such as Dontrelle Willis40 and Zack Greinke41 who have both discussed anxiety disorders in past interviews. By decreasing stigma and increasing awareness through baseball, routes will open for people to be prepared to apply mental health first aid techniques and be prepared for them or their loved one’s personal mental health emergencies, thus improving our standard of living.

Word Count: 2538Appendix A

35 Ibid.36Armstrong, C. (2010, June 1). Athletes and Mental Illness: Major League Baseball Steps Up to the Plate. Advocate.37Ibid. 38Fleming, K. (2013, October 7). The Woman Who Made the NFL Think Pink. New York Post. Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://nypost.com/2013/10/07/the­woman­who­made­the­nfl­think­pink/39SABR. (2012, April 12). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://sabr.org/latest/history­mental­illness­baseball40Johnson, R. (2010, April 12). Mind games: The Dontrelle Willis case. ESPN. Retrieved March 30, 2015, from http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/commentary/news/story?id=506795941Edes, G. (2009, June 3). Acknowledging anxiety made Greinke a torchbearer. Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved March 30, 2015, from http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ge­fullcount060209

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Recently, more material has been exposed about self­injury, depression, and suicide in particular. Sometimes, after particular sources from the media appear, ‘trends’ appear. For example, after the book and film Girl, Interrupted emerged an increased amount of self­injury cases emerged as well. The following are more sources that contribute to the idea of an increased amount of material:

Purington, A., & Whitlock, J. (2004, August 1). Self­Injury. Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://www.actforyouth.net/resources/rf/rf_selfinjury_0804.cfm

T. Pusey, personal communications, February 19, 2015 SERVICES, U. (2002). Chapter 2 Culture Counts: The Influence of Culture and Society

on Mental Health. In Mental Health: Culture, Race, and Ethnicity, Executive Summary A Supplement to Mental Health: A Report of the Surgeon General, 2001. Washington, DC: Dept of Health and Human Services. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK44249/

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BibliographyArmstrong, C. (2010, June 1). Athletes and Mental Illness: Major League Baseball Steps Up to the Plate. Advocate.

Advocate was the National Alliance of Mental Illness’ (NAMI) magazine. NAMI is a foundation that creates awareness for mental illness. Their main website, www.nami.org, provides information about different mental illnesses. Another component of their organization is providing opportunities for survivors to share their stories and creating opportunities for people to help increase awareness. This article from Advocate stimulated the idea of Major League Baseball as a source of increased awareness for mental health. It can be found at the following web page: http://www2.nami.org/Content/ContentGroups/Advocate/Fall_2010/Athletes_and_Mental_Illness.htm

avulsion. (n.d.) Dorland's Medical Dictionary for Health Consumers. (2007). Retrieved March 30 2015 from http://medical­dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/avulsion

This dictionary was used to define avulsion.

Brozan, N. (1982, July 12). Premenstrual Syndrome: A Complex Issue. The New York Times. Retrieved March 1, 2015, from http://www.nytimes.com/1982/07/12/style/premenstrual­syndrome­a­complex­issue.html

Through a conversation with Mrs. Shawna Lloyd, she talked about how through her lifetime the image of mental health has changed. In this New York Times article, it confirms our conversation about PMS first being discussed in the open during her childhood. This article was used in the essay to provide credibility to the changing image of mental health in recent decades.

Chbosky, S. (2012). The Perks of Being a Wallflower (MTV Books/Gallery Books trade pbk. ed., Movie tie in ed.). New York: MTV Books/Gallery Books.

This fictitious novel includes ideas of trauma and coping techniques. A character in the book was molested multiple times as a young child, but these memories are repressed; he has some strange behaviors and actions that lead to admittance to a mental hospital. This novel’s popularity has helped increased awareness of mental illness.

Edes, G. (2009, June 3). Acknowledging anxiety made Greinke a torchbearer. Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved March 30, 2015, from http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ge­fullcount060209

Gordon Edes is an American sportswriter and covers baseball for ESPN Boston. In this article he writes about Zack Greinke, who suffers from depression and anxiety disorder, returning to baseball with the Kansas City Royals. Greinke has set a new precedent for sports and mental illness. Edes’ article is used to name potential baseball advocates for mental health awareness.

Fernandez, S. (1998, June 1). Pretty in Pink, (Think Before You Pink). MAMM.Sandy M. Fernandez reports how the iconic pink ribbon came to be in MAMM, a

magazine for breast cancer survivors and their families. Although no longer printed, the intent of the magazine was to spread stories and hope, in order to help people cope with their situations. This article was used to gather information about ‘pink ribbon’ and breast cancer awareness

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history. The article can be found at the following address: http://thinkbeforeyoupink.org/before­you­buy/history­of­the­pink­ribbon/

Fleming, K. (2013, October 7). The Woman Who Made the NFL Think Pink. New York Post. Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://nypost.com/2013/10/07/the­woman­who­made­the­nfl­think­pink/

Kirsten Fleming wrote an article about the beginning of ‘NFL Pink.’ She is a senior writer for the New York Post, a newspaper primarily distributed in New York City. This article was used to gather some information about how the ‘NFL Pink’ movement occurred.

Frozen [Motion picture]. (2013). Walt Disney Pictures.A Disney Major Motion Picture, Frozen, touches on depression. Elsa exhibits some

depression symptoms at the beginning of the movie including withdrawal and isolation. This film was used as an example of an increased amount of media that portrays mental illness. Although subtle, this film does include some elements of mental illness.

“The Science of Genius” by Dean Keith Simonton, Scientific American MIND, Nov/Dec 2012, Vol. 23, No. 5, pp. 34–41. Reproduced with permission. Copyright © 2012 Scientific American, a division of Nature America, Inc. All rights reserved.

“The Science of Genius” provides information about how ‘geniuses’ are categorized, ranging from accomplishments to IQ levels. Published in the Scientific American MIND, a leading source for technology and science information, Dean Simonton is a psychology professor at the University of California. His article provides a reliable, neutral source of information by analyzing the origin, denotation, and connotation of ‘genius.’

Get Professional Help If You Need It. (n.d.). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/get­professional­help­if­you­need­it

Mental Health America (MHA) is an advocate of mental health awareness. As an advocate, MHA provides ample amount of information about identification, intervention, and treatments. This webpage was used to accompany Winch’s Emotional First­­Aid’s information about when to receive professional help.

Gotsulias, S. (2012, April 18). Manicball: A history of mental illness in baseball. Retrieved April 6, 2015, from http://baseballpastandpresent.com/2012/04/18/manicball­history­mental­illness­baseball­2/

Gotsulias wrote an article concerning the history of mental illness in baseball. the Society of American Baseball Research uses portions of this article as their information for history of mental illness and baseball. Gotsulias a senior MLB editor for AerysSports.com and wrote the biography on Mike Schmidt for the BPP All­Time Dream Project.

Holt­Lunstad, J., Smith, T., Layton, J., & Brayne, C. (2010). Social Relationships And Mortality Risk: A Meta­analytic Review. PLoS Medicine, E1000316­E1000316. Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1000316#pmed­1000316­g006

Julianne Holt­Lunstad works for the Department of Psychology and Timothy Smith works for the Department of Counselling Psychology, both at Brigham Young University. This

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peer­reviewed article appeared originally in the Public Library of Science Medicine Journal and as a reference in Winch’s Emotional First­­Aid. The study connects the effects of loneliness and isolation to similar effects of physical addictions, such as cigarettes. This article was used in order to show the impacts that emotional and psychological wounds can have on our physical bodies.

Home | Susan G. Komen®. (2015, January 1). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://ww5.komen.org/

Susan G. Komen Foundation is an organization to promote awareness and research for breast cancer. This website was used to discover information about Susan G. Komen foundation, which began the iconic ‘pink ribbons.’ Ibuprofen: MedlinePlus Drug Information. (2010, October 1). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/meds/a682159.html#brand­name­1

The National Institutes of Health, a government agency, runs the ‘MedlinePlus’ website to provide information about different over the counter and prescription medications. This source was used to find more information on Ibuprofen in particular.

Johnson, R. (2010, April 12). Mind games: The Dontrelle Willis case. ESPN. Retrieved March 30, 2015, from http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/commentary/news/story?id=5067959

Roy S. Johnson is a well­known freelance sportswriter, contributing to ESPN and New York Times articles. In this article, he discusses Detroit Tigers’ Dontrelle Willis’ anxiety disorder. Along with reporting about Willis, he includes a list of other baseball professionals who have had mental illness troubles during their career. This article was used to name potential examples of baseball professionals who could advocate the importance of mental illness and awareness.

Kaysen, S. (1994). Girl, Interrupted. New York: Vintage Books.Susanna Kaysen wrote an autobiography about her experiences with self­harm and

mental illness, including an 18­month stay at a mental institution. Interestingly, after the book, and later the movie, appeared, self­harm trends skyrocketed. This helps show how mental illness can have ‘trends.’ This book was chosen because of the events and setting of the novel, that helped open the world to more awareness of mental illnesses and how they affect lives.

Locke, J. (1825). Chapter I Of Ideas in general, and their Original. In An essay concerning human understanding (A new ed.). New­York: Printed by S. Marks.

John Locke is an English philosopher and physician of the 1650s. In this essay, he discusses the foundation of knowledge and understanding. This book was used to help further define ideas of internal and external stimuli, labeling as John Locke does, respectfully, reflection and sensation.

May is Mental Health Month. (2015, January 1). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/may#mayorg

Mental Health America (MHA) promotes May as Mental Health Month. Mental Health America (MHA) is an advocate of mental health awareness. As an advocate, MHA provides ample amount of information about identification, intervention, and treatments. This webpage was used to find more information concerning May as Mental Health Month.

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Mental Health Facts: Children and Teens. (n.d.). Retrieved March 30, 2015, from http://www.nami.org/getattachment/Learn­More/Mental­Health­by­the­Numbers/childrenmhfacts.pdf

National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI) is a foundation that creates awareness for mental illness. Their main website, www.nami.org, provides information about different mental illnesses. Another component of their organization is providing opportunities for survivors to share their stories and creating opportunities for people to help increase awareness.

National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. (2012, August 23). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://www.cancer.org/cancer/breastcancer/moreinformation/national­breast­cancer­awareness­month

The American Cancer Society (ACS) provides information about the history of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (NBCAM) and the ACS’s role with NBCAM. As a foundation for cancer research and awareness, ACS provides accurate information about NBCAM, breast cancer information, and treatments. ACS is not limited to breast cancer, but helps raise awareness and distribute information for all known cancers. This webpage was used to learn information about NBCAM.

Neil deGrasse Tyson: My Man, Sir Isaac Newton. (2011, June 3). Retrieved March 30, 2015, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=danYFxGnFxQ

Neil deGrasse Tyson earned a BA in physics at Harvard and a PhD in astrophysics from Columbia. He is a well­known author to the general public, publishing non­fiction books and television shows. Due to his position at the position as head of the Hayden Planetarium, he understands the history of physics as well as current information. His video provides information about Sir Isaac Newton’s life work and how Newton’s discoveries occurred.

NFL.com/pink. (2014, January 1). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://www.nfl.com/pinkNFL Pink’s official website was used to gather basic information about the NFL’s actions

during October.

Purington, A., & Whitlock, J. (2004, August 1). Self­Injury. Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://www.actforyouth.net/resources/rf/rf_selfinjury_0804.cfm

As mentioned through communication with Tanya Pusey, mental illness can have trends. ACT for Youth of Excellence published findings about how self­injury has increased in ‘popularity.’ These findings confirm Pusey’s interview and establishes her credibility.

SABR. (2012, April 12). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://sabr.org/latest/history­mental­illness­baseball

The Society of American Baseball Research (SABR) has a small history on mental illnesses and baseball, from an article that Stacey Gotsulias, a SABR member, wrote for her blog. Gotsulias a senior MLB editor for AerysSports.com and wrote the biography on Mike Schmidt for the BPP All­Time Dream Project. The original source can be found in this bibliography as well. This webpage was used to find baseball players who have been affected by mental illnesses, including Jimmy Piersall.

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Scheid, T., & Brown, T. (2010). A Handbook for the Study of Mental Health (2nd ed., p. 47). New York: Cambridge

Teresa Scheid, from the University of North Carolina, and Tony Brown, from Vanderbilt University, published the textbook A Handbook for the Study of Mental Health. This textbook compiles studies and information into a single research reference. A copy of the textbook can be found at the following website: http://hmid.basijmed.ir/public/hmid/books/mental%20health/A_Handbook_for_the_Study_of_Mental_Health__Social_Contexts__Theories__and_Systems___2nd_edition.pdf

Seery, M., Silver, R., Holman, E., Ence, W., & Chu, T. (2008). Expressing Thoughts And Feelings Following A Collective Trauma: Immediate Responses To 9/11 Predict Negative Outcomes In A National Sample. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 76(4), 657­667. Retrieved March 31, 2015, from https://webfiles.uci.edu/rsilver/Seery et al JCCP 2008 Expression After Collective Trauma.pdf

Mark D. Seery is an associate professor in psychology at the University at Buffalo, the State University of New York. Roxane Silver is professor of psychology and social behavior, medicine, and public health at the University of California in Irvine. E. Alison Holman is an interim director and associate professor of nursing science at University of California in Irvine, with special interests in mental and physical health consequences of trauma; genetic vulnerability to stress­related mental/physical health problems; and cognitive, social and emotional response to trauma. Whitney Ence is a psychologist at the University of California in San Francisco. Thai Q Chu is a professor at the University of California in Santa Barbara. Collaboratively, these professors published an article in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology in 2008 about the effects of coping methods for trauma victims, using the events of September Eleventh as the traumatic event that occurred.

SERVICES, U. (2002). Chapter 2 Culture Counts: The Influence of Culture and Society on Mental Health. In Mental Health: Culture, Race, and Ethnicity, Executive Summary A Supplement to Mental Health: A Report of the Surgeon General, 2001. Washington, DC: Dept of Health and Human Services. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK44249/

This book and executive summary is reported by the Surgeon General, an American government agency. The entire book discusses recent knowledge about discrepancies between white and minority races including quality of mental health care, access to mental health care, and awareness of mental health care. This source also acknowledged mental illness ‘trends,’ similarly to Pusey, Purington, and Whitlock; this source was also used to assess the validity of their assertions. Suicide ­ Causes. (2015, February 9). Retrieved March 30, 2015, from http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Suicide/Pages/Causes.aspx

NHS is a national government organization in the United Kingdom that provides information on physical and emotional ailments, along with other ways to keep healthy. As a government entity, NHS keeps information current and reliable, meeting “the Information Standard.” This website was used to collect information on causes of suicide.

Szabo, L. (2015, January 1). Cost of not Caring: Stigma set in stone. USA Today. Retrieved March 30, 2015, from http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/06/25/stigma­of­mental­illness/9875351/

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USA Today provides four articles that make a series about mental health stigma. The articles combine interviews with congressmen and mental health victims/survivors stories, government data, photos, and videos. These articles were used to conclude helpful tactics to promote mental health awareness.

T. Pusey, personal communications, February 19, 2015 Mrs. Tanya Pusey, a social worker for LDS Family Services, answered my initial

questions about trends in society with regards to mental illness. LDS Family Services provide addiction recovery, adoption resources, counseling and therapy, and other services. This brief communication with Pusey helped find sources of information concerning media sources that have increased awareness and that have affected trends.

Tomforde, M. (n.d.). The History of Calculus. Retrieved March 30, 2015, from http://www.uiowa.edu/~c22m025c/history.html

Mark Tomforde currently works at the University of Houston in the Mathematics department. After earning a PhD in Mathematics at Dartmouth in 2002, he worked at the University of Iowa and the College of William and Mary. While at Iowa in 2003, he created a webpage with information about the History of Calculus, concerning Isaac Newton and Gottfried Leibniz.

Vizzini, N. (2006). It's Kind of a Funny Story. New York: Miramax Books/Hyperion Books For Children.

Ned Vizzini suffered from depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts for many years. He wrote many pieces concerning mental illnesses, and even spoke about mental illnesses at schools. Despite years of suffering from and battling his illness, he committed suicide at age 32 in 2013. His novel was used to help understand thought processes for those with mental illnesses, along with recognizing an increased amount of media concerning mental illnesses.

What is stigma? (n.d.). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from http://www.mentalhealth.wa.gov.au/mental_illness_and_health/mh_stigma.aspx

The government of Western Australia has a Mental Health Commission that publishes information concerning mental health symptoms, intervention, and awareness. This webpage was used to accurately define stigma.

Winch, G. (2014). Emotional first aid: Healing rejection, guilt, failure, and other everyday hurts. New York: Plume.

Guy Winch, a psychologist; author; and TED Talks speaker, is currently is working on his postdoctoral fellowship at the New York University Medical Center. His book, Emotional First­­Aid, talks about different ways to heal psychological wounds. This source was used in the essay as a way to find different articles and journals, as well as key information about healing emotional wounds.