May is Mental Health Awareness Month! In the midst of the COVID-19 global crisis, we know that mental health resources are necessary now more than ever. And it is the mental health professionals across the globe who are on the front lines caring for an increased number of patients suffering from anxiety, stress, and depression as a result of this global pandemic. To recognize and celebrate our own Behavioral Health team’s efforts, we will be profiling one of our clinicians each week in the month of May.
Meet Rachelle Scott, MD
Why did you pursue a career into mental health?
As a child I was pretty quiet, taking in my surroundings, observing and listening to what was happening around me. I always had a natural curiosity about human behavior but I also knew at an early age that I wanted to be a doctor and help care for people. It wasn’t until I took my first psychology class my senior year in high school that I realized I could combine my two passions. Medical school helped clarify that listening to peoples’ stories and bearing witness to their experiences resonated with me and ultimately led to my decision to become a psychiatrist.
What does Mental Health Awareness Month mean to you?
Mental health month means to me a time where we can focus and bring awareness to what mental health is and looks like. It’s a time to help dispel myths around who has mental health issues and what those issues may be. Ultimately, if we can continue the conversation around mental health we can help lessen the stigma that often accompanies it. We can start thinking and talking about mental health as a continuum along which we can implement appropriate intervention strategies.
What do you think will be different because of COVID-19?
From a mental health standpoint, COVID has really brought the idea of a collective experience to the forefront. In COVID, the whole world is experiencing similar feelings of loss, fear and loneliness at the same time. People who may have not had experiences with anxiety, grief or trauma are now asking for help and wanting to talk about how to cope with these feelings. There is more of a normalization of these emotions which were once only talked about privately before. COVID has certainly helped to normalize conversations around mental health.
At Eden Health, we recognize the elevated stress and anxiety people are facing with the world’s current state of uncertainty around COVID-19. Please check out our list of mental health resources below designed to help you and your teams recognize and manage stress and anxiety in the workplace.
- Read our blog on A Guide to Managing Stress and Anxiety from Our Therapists
- Hear from our other mental health clinicians featured for Mental Health Month: Anna Kuzmenko, LMHC
- Watch this on demand webinar Rock star to Rock bottom: Preventing employee burnout in stressful times
- Download the Employee Burnout Checklist
- Read our blog on 7 Ways to Build Company Culture While Working from Home
We know mental health is important and that’s why it’s a critical part of our complete, integrated care solution. To learn more about Eden Health and what we can do for you and your employees, contact us at sales@edenhealth.com.
