November 2017 Mental Health Awareness

November includes N-24 Awareness Day

Along with Advocacy & Awareness
for many other mental health (and related) issues

by Madelyn Griffith-Haynie, CTP, CMC, ACT, MCC, SCAC
Part of the ADD/ADHD Cormidities series

I am only one, but I am one.
I cannot do everything, but I can do something.
And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do.
Edward Everett Hale

Found HERE

Each month is peppered with a great many special dates dedicated to raising awareness about important emotional, physical and psychological health issues that intersect, exacerbate or create problems with cognition, mood and attention management.

ALL great blogging prompts!

As October comes to a close, it is almost time for a brand new month filled with days designed to remind us all to help spread awareness and acceptance to help overcome the STIGMA associated with “invisible disabilities” and cognitive challenges — as well as to remain grateful for our own mental and physical health as we prepare for the upcoming holidays.

Mark your blogging calendars . . .

. . . and start drafting your own awareness posts to share here. Scroll down for the November dates, highlighting important days and weeks that impact mental health — as well as those remaining active for the entire month. (The calendar is not my own, btw, so not all mental health awareness events linked below are included ON the calendar.)

If I’ve missed anything, please let me know in the comments below so that I can add it to the list.

Attention Bloggers: If you write (or have written) an article that adds content to any of these categories — or other mental health related days in November — please leave us all a link in the comment section. I will move it into its appropriate place on the list in the article, or into the Related Content section.  It will remain for next year’s calendar as long as the link works.

And please feel free to reblog this post if time runs short.

Found HERE

Awareness in November

Remember, mental health & attentional challenges are NOT always genetic.

The attentional struggles you will hear or read about most frequently are exhibited by individuals diagnosed with one of the ADD/ADHD varietals, usually associated with a genetic component – but EVERYONE struggling with mental health issues, TBI and addiction has attentional struggles that ride the draft.

Related Posts:
Attentional struggles? Not ME! (wanna’ bet)
Types of Attentional Deficits

Almost everyone experiences situational deficits of attention and cognition any time the number of events requiring our attention and focus exceeds our ability to attend. Situational challenges are those transitory lapses that occur whenever our ability to attend is temporarily impaired – when there are too many items competing for focus at the same time.

Just a FEW Examples:

Cognitive lapses and attentional struggles frequently occur when the brain is temporarily impaired or underfunctioning due to:

• Medication, alcohol or other substances
• Grief or other strong emotional responses
• Stress, especially prolonged stress
• Sleep deprivation
• Too much to do and too little time (juggling problems)

NOW let’s take a look at what else for which November is noted.

Don’t forget that you can always check out the sidebar
for a reminder of how links work on this site, they’re subtle ==>

Awareness and Advocacy Dates for November

Remember: If you write (or have written) an article that adds content to any of these categories, feel free to leave a link in the comment section and I will move it into its appropriate category.

National Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month
Geriatric Nursing.org
Alzheimer’s Disease: Time to Take a Closer Look
(Excellent Info-graphic & article)

President Ronald Reagan designated November as National Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month in 1983. At that time, fewer than 2 million Americans had Alzheimer’s.

SINCE THAT TIME, a little less than 3.5 decades later, the number of people with Alzheimer’s disease has soared to nearly 5.4 million – over a million more every decade in the US alone.

Related Posts on this site:
You Don’t HAVE to Lose it as you Age
Good news on brain-aging from The Nun Study
CRS – Mechanisms of Memory – Coaching for those Senior Moments
Executive Functioning & Diseases of Aging

 

National Family Caregivers Month
Caregiver Action Network
(Honoring all the family and friends who do
whatever they can and whatever they must to help)

Autistics Speaking Day – November 1
Autistics Speaking Day

World Kindness Day – November 13, 2017
(included to remind us all that STIGMA,
judgment and “tough love” are unkind)

Veterans Day – November 11, 2017
(included to remind us all to honor the brave men and woman
who keep us safe at home –
MANY of whom are struggling with PTSD)

Related Posts on this site:
When Fear Becomes Entrenched & Chronic
Complex PTSD (C-PTSD) Awareness

American Diabetes Month
American Diabetes Association
. . . and . . .
World Diabetes Day – November 14, 2017
(included NOT ONLY because I lost 2 siblings to diabetes,
but because we all need to be aware that fluctuating blood sugar
can manifest in mental health challenges – attention as well as mood)

International Day for Tolerance – November 16, 2017
(included because intolerance is undeniably NUTS!)

The Great American Smoke Out – November 16, 2017
the third Thursday in November – a week before Thanksgiving
(included because smoking is seriously rotten for your brain)

Related Post on this site:
Smoking and ADD – why it’s so HARD to quit

International Survivors of Suicide Day – November 18, 2017
(always the third Saturday in November)
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

Related Posts on this site:
Suicidal Kids linked to ADD/ADHD more than Depression
Focus on Suicide Prevention

Non-24 Sleep/Wake Disorders – November 24th Duh!
CSD-N.org — The Website of the Circadian Sleep Disorders Network

Related Posts on this site:
When Your Sleep Clock is Broken
Non-Profit Supporting Broken Sleep Clock
Living with JetLag: JetLagged for LIFE – my own story
November 24 is N-24 Awareness Day
Sleeping with the Enemy: Mom’s N-24 – Tink’s post

International Day for Elimination of Violence against Women – November 25th
UN Site for Violence against Women Elimination
Read the history of this day on John Fioravanti‘s Site
(John’s Believe it or NOT)

ADD Poster Girl Day – November 29th!!!
Okay, so it’s my birthday –
but it’s a good way to remind everyone that I don’t write these posts
from a lofty perch in some well-appointed ivory tower.

 

© 2017, all rights reserved
Check bottom of Home/New to find out the “sharing rules”
(reblogs always okay, and much appreciated)

Thanks to Terri Mauro, Parenting Special Needs Expert from the VeryWell.com site for many of the links that formed the genesis of the Awareness articles. Other links to other lists can be found below (in the Related Content section at the bottom of the majority of my articles), with my appreciation.

---

As always, if you want notification of new articles in this Series – or any new posts on this blog – give your email address to the nice form on the top of the skinny column to the right. (You only have to do this once, so if you’ve already asked for notification about a prior series, you’re covered for this one too). STRICT No Spam Policy

IN ANY CASE, do stay tuned.
There’s a lot to know, a lot here already, and a lot more to come – in this Series and in others.
Get it here while it’s still free for the taking.

Want to work directly with me? If you’d like some coaching help with anything that came up while you were reading this Series (one-on-one couples or group), click HERE for Brain-based Coaching with mgh, with a contact form at its end (or click the E-me link on the menubar at the top of every page). Fill out the form, submit, and an email SOS is on its way to me; we’ll schedule a call to talk about what you need. I’ll get back to you ASAP (accent on the “P”ossible!)

---

You might also be interested in some of the following articles
available right now – on this site and elsewhere.

For links in context: run your cursor over the article above and the dark grey links will turn dark red;
(subtle, so they don’t pull focus while you read, but you can find them to click when you’re ready for them)
— and check out the links to other Related Content in each of the articles themselves —

Related articles right here on ADDandSoMuchMore.com
(in case you missed them above or below)

• Brain-based Coaching with Madelyn Griffith-Haynie
• Peer Coaching LinkList
• Brain waves, Scans & Attention
• The ADD “ADHD” Club is Open for Membership – No Application Needed
• Types of Attentional Deficits
• Symptoms of Attentional Struggles
• Executive Functioning Disorders – not just kid stuff
• Healthy minds have healthy HEARTS

Related Articles ’round the net

• What is ‘attention’ and where is it in the brain?
• ADHD Awareness – Attention Deficit Disorder Association
• Circadian Sleep Disorders Network (from Delayed2Sleep)
• National Day Calendar
• Attention Deficits are Common after a Stroke
• PTSD from repeatedly lousy medical care (on TheSickandTheDating)