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Hope you enjoy reading about my goals, strengths, and what keeps me going which is my daughter Starlyn. Thanks for checking out my roadmap to success! :-)

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Green & Brown Monstera Plant Fun Facts Data Infographic

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Heroin addiction is close to my heart, I have had many friends die from overdosing from Heroin and I am so happy I can share facts, and especially a Foundation that was started by a lady who lost her son to Heroin addiction. There is no HERO in Heroin Foundation is close to home. Hope you enjoy my presentation. :-) Thank you

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Mental Health Social Advocacy Project - Heroin

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Download a PDF 1 in 3 adults don't get enough sleep.

How much sleep do you need?

Most adults need 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night. Kids and teens need even more. Yet the average high school student gets only 6.5 hours per school night, and about 20% get 5 hours or less!

Benefits of good sleep

Healing and repair of cells, tissues and blood vessels

Better brain function including alertness, decision-making, focus, learning, memory, reasoning and problem-solving

More creativity and productivity

Improved mood and energy

Healthy growth and development for kids and teens

Better ability to build muscle

Quicker reflexes

Less risk of chronic disease

Stronger immune system

Your Health

Poor sleep may put you at higher risk for:

Alzheimer's disease

Cardiovascular disease

Cognitive decline and dementia

Depression

Diabetes

High blood pressure

High blood sugar

High cholesterol

Infections

Obesity

Poor sleep can cause:

Accidents

Breathing problems

Hormone imbalance

Memory and cognitive issues

Increased appetite and unhealthy eating

Inﬂammation

Stress

Weight gain

Remember: 7 to 9 will help you feel fine, so get your ZZZs!

Learn more at heart.org/Sleep

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How Sleep Affects Your Health Infographic

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Most adults need 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night. Kids and teens need even more. Yet the average high school student gets only 6.5 hours per school night, and about 20% get 5 hours or less! Learn more about how sleep affects your health.

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Even in the best of times, being a teenager is hard. Add in a pandemic, plus recent political polarization and unrest, and life seems especially difficult for all ages. And these days feel especially difficult. A very recent New England Journal of Medicine article titled "Mental Health and the Covid-19 Pandemic," explains that Americans are not only living with widespread emotional distress, anxiety, depression, insomnia, substance use, domestic violence, and suicidal thoughts during this extraordinary time, but also that many parents are underestimating the level of distress their children are experiencing and should encourage them to discuss their reactions and concerns.

One way to start a mental health conversation with your teen might be to ask if they are interested in entering the third annual Counselors for Change mental health awareness poster contest, Posters for Change, open to area 6-12th grade students. Four middle school (6th-8th grade) and four high school (9th-12th grade) student posters submitted online by March 26th will win $100 prizes. (Complete information and rules are available at counselorsforchange.org/ posters-for-change.)

Counselors for Change, (C4C), is the brainchild of former elementary school teacher and current licensed marriage and family therapist Stephanie Byrd, who has worked with children and families since 1998.

C4C is a shared passion to fulfill the wishes most often uttered from the therapist's couch: "I wish I knew this then and I wish I had done this sooner." Byrd confesses she once uttered those wishes herself as a therapy client and later heard them from countless clients over her 15 years as a therapist.

"These experiences highlight glaring inequities in access to quality care, information, and support, making mental health care on one hand a luxury, and on the other hand a stigma," she said.

C4C's mission is to recognize that mental health is at the center of individual and collective wellbeing and that lasting change takes a community effort, albeit one that starts with each of us. Byrd believes that all people have the power to heal, grow, impact positive change, and advocate for the well-being of others through words and actions.

In addition to Posters for Change, C4C's initiatives include Conversations for Change, panel discussions for schools and organizations seeking to increase mental health awareness and change the conversations to end stigma. Another initiative is Movies for Change, screenings of documentaries focused on mental health education and awareness, each accompanied by a panel of mental health professionals and community volunteers who provide information and resources.

In fact, anyone-regardless of gender, age, or background-can be an agent of change and even a counselor for change. Encourage your favorite Brevard teenager to submit their creation to the Posters for Change contest by March 26th.

ABOUT C4C: COUNSELORS FOR CHANGE

Brooke Deratany Goldfarb

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Advocating for Mental Health: Student Poster Contest Encourages Creativity and Awareness - Space Coast Living Magazine

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Even in the best of times, being a teenager is hard. Add in a pandemic, plus recent political polarization and unrest, and life seems especially difficult for all ages. And these days feel especially difficult.