Tag: suicide prevention
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StoryTeller Project features local storytellers
Quietly stunning, the unleashing of stories told by locals who speak of mental health challenges heightens the drama of the StoryTeller Project. In the video, people share stories of domestic abuse, suicide attempts, postpartum depression, feelings of abandonment or loss of childhood for the project filmed on scene. A partnership of the Teller County Mental…
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Suicide/Resilience Awareness Symposium in September
The stigma of asking for professional help still lingers but Teller County residents are more open about discussing mental health struggles. The 4th annual Teller County Suicide Awareness & Resilience Symposium Sept. 19 features residents who share their experiences of trauma from substance abuse, depression, postpartum depression and thoughts of suicide, for instance. Each has…
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Crank hears concerns about veteran health care during federal push for change
The Department of Veterans Affairs is planning to offer $1 trillion in contracts over 10 years to fund more community care for veterans, an initiative intended to give veterans more choice in their health care. U.S. Rep. Jeff Crank and staff who work for the chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Rep. Mike…
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New mental health initiatives in Colorado Springs filling system gaps
Several local organizations have started new boots-on-the-ground programs in Colorado Springs to meet mental health demands and fill gaps in addressing clinician shortages, providing LGBTQ+ care for traumatized youth, expanding adult addiction recovery and preventing suicide among all ages. Safe Passage Marking its fourth anniversary of locating multiple independent services in one building that specialize…
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Veteran suicide declines after years of focused prevention in El Paso County
Those who are in crisis or facing suicidal thoughts are encouraged to call the 988 crisis hotline. Former Marine Corps Sgt. Heath Miller was facing prison for theft when he decided to get clean. Like many others, his introduction to opioids started with a prescription. He received oxycodone while in the Marines to treat an…
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Sober softball league hits home runs for mental health, addiction recovery in Colorado Springs
It’s early on a Friday evening in August this summer, and Anna Martinez takes home plate on field No. 4 at the Skyview Sports Complex. Her eyes are locked on the softball just pitched toward her. As it speeds closer, Martinez projects onto that ball every frustration, annoyance and worry on her mind that day. Her grip…
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CU Anschutz receives jumpstart donation of $50 million for mental health initiative
A $50 million donation to the Colorado University Anschutz Medical Campus will launch a mental health collaborative to improve access and treatment options for mental health therapies around the state. The Anschutz Foundation made the donation on Tuesday as part of the launch of a mental health collaborative with Colorado Children’s Hospital and UC Health.…
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Parents pursue accountability in Air Force Academy graduate’s rape, subsequent suicide
When Cailin Foster was an Air Force Academy freshman in 2018, she confided in her close friend that she had been raped. The assault had happened the night before, after she had been drinking in the dorms, she told him through tears. A sophomore had provided alcohol to a group of cadets, including Cailin, and…
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‘The opposite of shame’: Pride Parade celebrates LGBTQ+ community despite hardships
Thousands of LGBTQ+ revelers and supporters lined the streets of downtown Colorado Springs for the annual Pride Parade on Sunday. Unity has long been one of the prevailing themes of the Pikes Peak Pride Festival’s culminating event — perhaps the only place where church members can be seen marching behind a dozen or so Satanists,…
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Colorado crisis call center set to lay off 330 employees in Denver
The Rocky Mountain Crisis Partners call center is preparing to lay off the majority of its staff after seemingly losing out on the procurement of a new contract with Colorado’s Behavioral Health Administration (BHA). The nonprofit announced the upcoming permanent layoffs of 330 employees in a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) listing on…