In partnership with Augusta University’s Mu Xi Chapter of the Delta Sigma Theta Society and the Lucy Craft Laney Museum of Black History Health Initiatives, the Augusta Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority will be hosting its ninth annual Mental Health Summit in mid-January.
On Wednesday, Jan. 18, the four-hour informational session will include self-help exercises and five professional presenters in the field of Mental Health and Wellness. After each presentation, every professional will allow the audience to ask questions.
According to Linda Johnson, co-chair of the sorority’s Physical and Mental Health Committee, the event is to raise awareness of mental health’s effects on the community while providing a link to local resources for those in need.
“We’re focusing on the mind-body connection because there is a connection between being physically healthy and mentally healthy. We have three goals that we focus on,” said Johnson. “We try to impact a person’s mental health and wellness, we try to provide professionals who can give information on that, and we also invite resource partners with a link to the community resources that deal with mental health and wellness.”
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Whether an attendee is a college student or a working professional, Johnson said the seminar will center around the importance of taking care of one’s self in order to achieve a balanced wellness in the New Year. She said the sorority feels strongly that health is highly influenced by a mixture of beliefs and thoughts about ourselves, emotions and one’s circumstances.
Johnson said mental stressors which are left untreated and unaddressed can lead to physical implications such as frequent stomach pains and headaches.
“For example, how we react to stress can impact our health. When we worry about our jobs, our finances, our family and ultimately the issues that we still have with COVID and the isolation,” she said. “It’s caused a variety of problems.”
In addition to directing individuals to seek local professional help and current trends in the field, Johnson said one of the speakers will discuss how individual exercises can be done at home to help – such as facial and muscle relaxation.
With so many still recovering mentally from effects, the program is aiming to continue last year’s theme of looking past our individual outer masks.
“As of now, there’s not a lot of workshops in this area for the community … we just feel it’s very necessary, and every year we try to come up with a topic that is relevant to what’s going on right now,” she said. “There’s a lot of people that are hurting, and they’re smiling but you don’t know what’s behind that smile – all that pain that’s going on.”
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Based on outer input and interest, this year, professionals will also be touching on how virtual reality, the internet and cyberbullying affects mental health.
Augusta University will be hosting the event at the Summerville Campus’ Jaguar Student Activities Center Ballroom from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., and tickets are free online.
“They’ll leave with skills that they can not only apply to their own life, but their family’s lives as well,” she said. “We try to be inclusive in making sure we’re covering all of our bases.”
For more information or to reserve a free ticket, visit: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/mental-health-summit-ix-tickets-484835143967?aff=ebdssbcitybrowse
Liz Wright is a staff writer covering education and general assignments for The Augusta Press. Reach her at liz@theaugustapress.com
