If someone you know is choking on their dinner, you’ll probably jump into action and perform the Heimlich maneuver. If they’ve fallen down and are badly bleeding, you call 911 and apply pressure to the wound while waiting for help to arrive. If they’re in cardiac arrest and have stopped breathing, you attempt CPR.
These are life-saving tips that many of us learned in a standard first aid class while growing up. They’re practically common knowledge. But what about when a person is under emotional duress or having a mental health crisis?
Mental health first aid came from the idea that in addition to learning how to take care of someone during a physical health emergency, people should also be taught how to care for someone during an emotional or mental emergency. Physical first aid classes are a requirement for some job positions and often even taught in schools, so why not mental health first aid?
Two Australian medical professionals took this challenge to task back in 2001 when they created their own Mental Health First Aid training program, and since then their work has caught on and expanded worldwide. They estimate that more than 3.5 million people across the U.S. have since been formally trained in Mental Health First Aid by a dedicated base of more than 15,000 instructors. You can learn more about the program here.
Thankfully, all of us can learn how to take better care of people experiencing mental health crises without taking a course. It’s as easy as learning a simple acronym: ALGEE. Just like the slimy stuff you see in and along Minnesota’s 10,000+ lakes!
There are five components to ALGEE: assess, listen, give, encourage, and encourage. Yes, encourage is included twice!
Here’s what ALGEE looks like in practice:
Assess: The most important thing to do first if someone you know is struggling with their mental health is to assess the risk of physical harm or suicide. Share with them that you’ve noticed changes in their demeanor and are worried about them. Depending on how well know you know the person, you might even ask them directly if they’ve considered harming themselves, if they’re dealing with suicidal ideation, or if any of these are things they’ve experienced in the past.
Listen: No matter what the person shares with you, be sure to listen without judgment. Let them talk and express themselves to the extent that they’re comfortable. Sometimes just knowing that someone cares about them enough to listen to their story makes all the difference. Try not to interrupt them, even if you don’t agree with what they’re saying.
Give: After they’re done sharing, offer the person reassurance and hope. Remind them that there are resources and supports available to them. You might suggest that they call or text 988 to access the Suicide and Crisis Helpline, where they’ll be connected with someone professionally trained to connect them to the resources they need.
Encourage Professional Help: Ongoing support is crucial to recovery and management of mental illness. Encourage the person to pursue therapy or another form of professional treatment. If you have personal experience in this area, you might share how you’ve benefited from this kind of support. Let them know they can call Guild South – Maureen’s House to be screened for residential crisis services at (612) 267-5242. They can also reach out to Guild’s Crisis and Recovery Center at (651) 347-9889.
Encourage Self-Help: While professional support is important, other forms of support can be helpful, too! Encourage them to tap into their personal neworks, whether that’s friends, family, or other loved ones. Now is the time for them to lean on their people.
It can be hard to know exactly how to help when someone is experiencing a mental health crisis or just generally struggling emotionally. Remember: Some amount of support is better than none. By keeping ALGEE and mental health first aid in mind, you have the tools in your toolkit to help steer the person in the right direction and get the support they need.
To learn more about Mental Health First Aid, visit www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org.