You Matter Shasta

08/24/2026

💜💙 September is Su***de Prevention Month — and prevention takes all of us.💙💜

As we prepare for Su***de Prevention Month this September, we invite organizations, schools, healthcare providers, businesses, community groups, and other partners across Shasta County to join us in raising awareness, sharing resources, and strengthening our collective commitment to preventing su***de.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) offers resources and ready-to-share materials to help organizations participate in Su***de Prevention Month. Whether you share information on social media, provide resources to staff and clients, start a conversation about mental health, promote 988, or incorporate su***de prevention into your organization’s activities, every action can help create a more connected and supportive community.

📣📣 How can your organization get involved?
• Share su***de prevention and 988 resources throughout September
• Educate staff and community members about warning signs and how to help
• Use your social media, newsletters, websites, and other communication channels to spread messages of hope and connection
• Encourage conversations about mental health and help-seeking
• Explore ways your organization can support su***de prevention throughout the year

Explore SAMHSA’s Su***de Prevention Month resources and find materials you can use in your own outreach:
https://www.samhsa.gov/about/digital-toolkits/su***de-prevention-month

Join us this September, and together, we can help build a Shasta County where people know they matter, help is available, and no one has to face a difficult moment alone. 💜💙

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08/23/2026

🎒🍎 Back-to-school season is a big transition — for kids and parents alike.

A new school year can bring excitement and new opportunities, but it can also bring anxiety, changing routines, academic pressure, social challenges, and uncertainty. For children already navigating mental health or learning challenges, the transition may feel especially overwhelming.

The Child Mind Institute has created a collection of helpful Back-to-School Resources to help families start the school year with greater confidence and support.

Resources include guidance on:
• Managing back-to-school anxiety
• Supporting kids who are struggling
• Navigating the transitions to elementary, middle, and high school
• Helping kids with ADHD, executive functioning, and sensory processing challenges succeed at school
• Building a positive partnership with your child's teacher
• Supporting neurodiverse students

Whether your child is excited to head back or having a harder time adjusting, a little preparation, patience, and support can make a difference.

📚💛 Explore the Child Mind Institute Back-to-School Resources and find tools that may help your family navigate the school year ahead.
https://childmind.org/resources/back-to-school/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=cmi-update-2026-08&utm_content=back-to-school-explore

Find articles and tips to help you navigate back-to-school with a child suffering from mental health or a learning disorder.

08/21/2026

🧡💛 Parenting is rewarding, and it can also be really hard. You don’t have to figure everything out on your own. 💛🧡

BrightLife Kids offers FREE parenting support for California families with children ages 0–12, with practical tools to help parents and caregivers feel more confident, supported, and prepared for everyday challenges.

Through BrightLife Kids, families can access:
• Free video coaching tailored to your child and family
• Secure messaging with expert coaches
• Practical parenting tools and resources
• Support with stress and caregiver well-being
• Strategies for tantrums, behavior and emotional regulation
• Help establishing healthy sleep and family routines
• Guidance for school, social skills, transitions, and more

There’s no cost, no insurance required, and no referral needed.

Parent support isn’t about being a “perfect” parent. It’s about having someone in your corner and finding strategies that work for your family.

🌟 Learn more about BrightLife Kids Parent Support and get started for free:
https://www.brightlife.kids/parent-coaching/parent-support/

Because supporting the wellbeing of parents and caregivers helps create healthier, more connected families.

08/20/2026

🎒✏ School attendance can be about more than simply getting out the door.

For some children, school can bring feelings of worry, fear, sadness, or overwhelm that make showing up difficult. Understanding what may be behind school avoidance or absenteeism can help parents, caregivers, educators, and other trusted adults respond with support rather than frustration.

▶️ WEBINAR REPLAY: Helping Kids Show Up: A Guide to Reducing School Absenteeism

This BrightLife Kids webinar explores factors that can make getting to school challenging and offers practical ways trusted adults can help children build confidence, work through difficult emotions, and reconnect with school.

As students settle into a new school year, this is a great resource for:
• Parents and caregivers
• Teachers and school staff
• Counselors and youth-serving professionals
• Anyone supporting a child who is struggling with school attendance

💻 Watch the webinar replay and explore more free resources from BrightLife Kids:
https://hellobrightline.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_dHi0DU_iTaenGUQQgPsbdQ #/registration

Sometimes helping a child “show up” starts with understanding what is making it hard to get there. 💛

08/19/2026

Local Support for Youth in Crisis: Youth Rapid Response Team

When a young person is struggling with thoughts of su***de or self-harm, knowing where to turn for help can make an important difference.

The Youth Rapid Response Team (YRRT) from Lotus Educational Services provides free su***de prevention and crisis support for youth and young adults ages 5–25 who live in Shasta County. Services are designed to provide timely support during a crisis while helping youth and families build safety, stability, and connection moving forward.

The Youth Rapid Response Team offers:
• Same-day crisis response, 365 days a year
• Youth-focused assessment and collaborative safety planning
• Support and resources for parents and caregivers
• Individual crisis counseling and ongoing stabilization services
• Youth and parent coaching and groups
• Connections to additional community resources and services

Anyone can make a referral — including youth themselves, parents and caregivers, educators, healthcare providers, clinicians, and community organizations.

📱 Call or text: 530-440-6717
Available 7 a.m.–10 p.m.

Learn more about the Youth Rapid Response Team and how to access services:
https://lotuseducationalservices.com/youth-crisis/

💙💜Supporting youth through difficult moments takes all of us. Knowing about local resources and sharing them with others can help ensure young people and families know they don't have to navigate a crisis alone.💜💙

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Shasta County’s ERs are seeing hundreds of young people every year who are struggling with self-harm or suicidal thoughts and behaviors.

08/19/2026

Military life is defined by changes—deployment, reintegration, and PCSing (Permanent Change of Station). Each phase brings a unique set of transitions and challenges that can affect children’s emotional wellbeing and mental health. This webinar provides caregivers with tools to manage the emotional cycle of military family transitions and help children feel grounded, even when their world is shifting.

Join MHA for this 60-minute session to discuss:
✅ Techniques for staying connected during long-distance separations.
✅ Managing the “re-entry” phase when a service member returns home.
✅ Building a portable support system & coping toolbox for the whole family.

For registration information, please visit: https://mhanational-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_2fGa5pT1T0CA-nrjruIFpw #/registration

08/17/2026

📘 California’s behavioral health system is changing. What does the shift from MHSA to BHSA mean?

The Behavioral Health Services Act (BHSA) is changing how California prioritizes and invests behavioral health funding — including how resources are allocated and how counties plan for behavioral health needs.

The California Health Care Foundation has created a helpful collection of resources explaining the transition, including:

🔹 An easy-to-follow infographic
🔹 A fact sheet on changing behavioral health priorities
🔹 A brief exploring what the transition may mean for California communities

Understanding these changes can help community members, partners, and behavioral health professionals stay informed as California’s behavioral health system evolves.

🔗 Learn more: From MHSA to BHSA: How California's Behavioral Health Policy Priorities Are Changing https://www.chcf.org/resource/2026/06/25/mhsa-bhsa-california-behavioral-health-policy-priorities/

08/13/2026

Sometimes a new friendship starts with one good question. 🗣🗨

As students head back to school, making friends and finding a sense of belonging can make a big difference in how connected they feel.

The Greater Good Science Center shares 36 questions designed to help young people get to know one another and build connections, from fun conversation starters to questions that encourage a little more openness and understanding.

Parents, educators, youth leaders, and anyone who works with young people can use these questions to help make connecting a little easier.

Because feeling like you belong matters. 💜💙

🔗 Explore the questions: 36 Questions That Can Help Kids Make Friends
https://ggia.berkeley.edu/practice/36_questions_to_help_kids_make_friends

08/12/2026

What if success for young people was about more than grades, achievements, and getting into the “right” college?

A new report from Harvard’s "Making Caring Common" encourages families, schools, and colleges to help young people develop something equally important: meaning, purpose, empathy, curiosity and care for others.

With many teens and young adults reporting that they struggle to find meaning or purpose, the report offers an important reminder: young people don’t need to have their entire future figured out. Adults can help them explore what matters to them, build meaningful connections, and discover how they want to contribute to the world around them.

Helping young people feel that they matter and that they have something meaningful to offer supports their well-being, too.

🔗 Read Turning the Tide in 2026: Making Caring Common at Harvardhttps://static1.squarespace.com/static/5b7c56e255b02c683659fe43/t/6a329f5b5af3993ea5e3ed8f/1781702491224/Turning+the+Tide+2026+-+Making+Caring+Common.pdf

08/10/2026

✏️🎒 Back to school can bring excitement — and stress, uncertainty, and big emotions. 🎒✏️

Crisis Text Line’s Start the Year Connected resources can help high school students check in with their mental health, recognize stress, strengthen connections, and know where to turn when things feel overwhelming.

The site also includes free resources for educators and school counselors, including an SEL activity and printable mental health posters.

📱 Students can text SCHOOL to 741741 for free mental health support.

No student should have to navigate a difficult moment alone. 💙

🔗 Explore the back-to-school resources:https://www.crisistextline.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/CTL_Back-to-School_Toolkit_HighSchool_2026.pdf