NAPOLEON, Ohio — Henry County leaders want to help their community members feel more comfortable talking about mental health issues.
Last year, the Henry County Health Department's community health assessment found that more people in the county are struggling with mental health.
While adults showed more signs of anxiety and depression, the data showed that 33% of the youth in the county felt hopeless almost every day for two or more weeks in a row, which was a 19% increase from 2019.
In response, the health department launched the Henry County, Let's Talk initiative to help combat the growing mental health crisis and develop a common language in the community to better talk about what everyone is dealing with.
"Because the more we can talk to people and have trust in one another, we're probably going to improve our mental wellness overall," Henry County Health Commissioner Joy Ermie said.
The county used funding from an opioid settlement to bring in the non-profit RemedyLive, which talks to people who are struggling and teaches people how to talk about mental health and healthy coping mechanisms.
RemedyLive held four community events at local schools where more than 2,000 students and community members attended.
"Mental health, we see a lot of that in our emergency department," Kristi Barnd, CEO of the Henry County Hospital, said. "So, taking a proactive approach is really good for everybody."
Though it seems incredibly simple, the health leaders in Henry County said the most effective way to combat mental struggle is to talk about it, whether it be to a loved one, a friend or a mental health professional.
"Just take that opportunity to have that conversation with someone that they care about and just kind of share what their struggle is, what they're dealing with and it helps get it off of their chest," Sharon Meece, Henry County Health Department director of community health services, said. "Sometimes, that's all the help they need."
The hope is this will get a conversation started across Henry County and build up a system of support.
"I think history shows us that grassroots efforts are the best efforts," Ermie said. "Local needs to take care of local, community needs to take care of community and the more that we can talk with each other, and have a common language and break down the stigma, the more we're going to see in our community."
For Henry County residents, visit this link for a full list of available mental health services in your area.