May is Mental Health Awareness Month, created to educate the public and provide support to people with mental illness and their loved ones.
Mental health was identified as a top health concern for Christian County residents in the 2021 Community Health Needs Assessment. According to the Healthy Communities Index:
- 17.9% of all adults in Christian County have been diagnosed with depression. This includes 15% of the Medicare population, which includes people 65 and older, as well as those under 65 with certain disabilities or end-stage renal disease.
- The age-adjusted death rate due to suicide in Christian County is 20 deaths per 100,000 population, which is higher than the national average.
- In 2020, 12.8% of Christian County adults surveyed said that their mental health was not good for 14 or more of the past 30 days.
“These statistics show how essential mental health services are in Christian County and across central Illinois,” said Diana Knaebe, president of Memorial Behavioral Health. “Treatment can be life-changing. If you are struggling with your mental health, please reach out for help.”
One way to obtain help is to call the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, which is available 24/7, including holidays, for people experiencing a mental health crisis. (The line is answered by crisis counselors from Memorial Behavioral Health from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday.) Veterans who call 988 will be connected with a crisis counselor who is also a veteran. Services are available in both English and Spanish.