History of Mental Health Awareness Month
History of Mental Health Awareness Month
Happy May! We cannot believe we are nearly halfway through the year. It feels like we just started 2023 a month ago. As some of you may know, today marks the 74th annual Mental Health Awareness Month. We are excited to share some tips, information, and resources with you. Mental health is vital and should be taken seriously. Unfortunately, we live in a society that has not previously promoted mental health, but we are working on that, and with your help, we can make more significant strides together. But before we move forward, let’s go back down memory lane and learn how one man’s experiences got us here. Here is a brief history of Mental Health Awareness Month.
History of Mental Health Awareness Month
Mental Health Awareness Month, also known as Mental Health Month, was started by Mental Health America in 1949 after the death of its founder Clifford Whittingham Beers. Clifford Beers was born to Ida and Robert Beers on March 30, 1876, in New Haven, Connecticut. He was one of five children, and unfortunately, he and all his siblings suffered from mental illnesses.
Beers graduated from the Sheffield Scientific School at Yale in 1897. It was then he realized his mental health was failing, and he was sick. Unfortunately, Beers did not feel he could afford to rest and had become accustomed to his mental ups and downs. He continued to push through since he had gotten a job as a clerk in a tax office in New Haven right after graduation. His goal was to continue working there until he secured a position in New York, which he did eight months later. His mental health condition only worsened and took a severe change in June 1900.
Beers took his health matters into his hands and returned home to rest, but his condition did not change. He was later the first to be institutionalized at a private mental facility for depression and paranoia. He would later be hospitalized at another private hospital and later a state institution for his mental conditions.
While hospitalized at several institutions, Beers witnessed and experienced staff maltreatment. These unfortunate events influenced him to write his book A Mind That Found Itself in 1908. In his book, he shares his story and accounts of the abuse he suffered while hospitalized. His work became highly known and favored by many. It is a bestseller and is still in print today.
History of Mental Health Awareness Month
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After the publication of Clifford Beers’s book, he gained recognition and support from medical professionals who wanted to work with him to reform mental illness treatment. In 1908, Beers founded the Connecticut Society for Mental Hygiene, now called Mental Health Connecticut. In 1909, he founded the National Committee for Mental Hygiene, which we know today as Mental Health America, to continue the reformation efforts of treating the mentally ill. In 1913, Clifford started the Clifford Beers Clinic in New Haven, the first outpatient mental health clinic in the United States. And he became an honorary president of the World Federation for Mental Health before retiring in 1939. Clifford Beers died in Providence, Rhode Island, on July 9, 1943, nearly six years before Mental Health Awareness Month was established.
History of Mental Health Awareness Month
Mental Health Awareness Month Theme
We can learn so much from Beers, and we are grateful for his efforts. Had he not spoken up about the abuse he experienced while institutionalized, we may not have worked towards reformation. We would also likely not know Mental Health Awareness Month as we know it today. As we continue his legacy, we will join others and celebrate this year’s mental health theme, Look Around, Look Within. We will also share information, tips, and more, so stay tuned.
Happy Mental Health Awareness Month from Guide to HR.
Mental Health Awareness Month
Mental Health Awareness Month