Mental health takes center stage at Senior Cub Center event

The Olney Senior Center held an event last week to show residents what local law enforcement and mental health professionals are doing to reduce some of the tragic outcomes of the lack of services in Young County.

Olney Police Chief Dan Birbeck, Rebecca Staley of Red River Hospital in Wichita Falls, and Mona Bernhardt, a licensed clinical social worker, spoke to attendees at the Senior Cub Center about the state of mental health services, how to access services, and how to bolster their mental health.

“Mental health in Young County is still a work in progress,” said Chief Birbeck, who has worked actively in the community and the state legislature to try to improve mental health access and services during his nearly five-year tenure.

He described an ongoing effort to fund a mobile mental health unit that would provide in-home mental health consultations and crisis interventions for Young County residents rather than sending them to Young County Jail. He and Ms. Bernhardt pitched the plan to lawmakers in Austin at the 2023 state legislative session and laid the groundwork for a $400,000 grant obtained by the Sheriff ’s Office this year.

That grant will fund a mental health rapid response team and crisis training for Young County law enforcement officers, as well as roundthe- clock nursing coverage for the County jail, where most people experiencing mental health crises wind up.

“It’s a start - a move in the right direction,” he said of the program.

Chief Birbeck urged attendees at the mental health awareness event to be “proactive” and inform law enforcement if they have a family member suffering from mental illness so that calls with police do not escalate to uses of force.

“Sometimes it’s better to be proactive and tell us,” he said. “I find that if I show up and listen and shut up, people feel heard.”

Getting treatment and support for mental illness - rather than trying to hide it - “improves the quality of life,” he said. “Everybody goes through it. The smart ones get help.”

Officers also see people who lose longtime partners or contract chronic diseases slip into depression because they become isolated, he said. “One of the best ways to combat that is coming to the Senior Cub Center,” he said.

Ms. Staley, a business development specialist for Red River Hospital, went over the programs available at the 96-bed private hospital and answered questions about how to get services or admit a loved one experiencing a mental health crisis. The hospital treats psychiatric, behavioral, and substance abuse issues for adolescents and adults, she said. Uninsured patients can receive inpatient services but those receiving outpatient services, such as group therapy, must be insured, she said.

She also said that patients sometimes wait too long to get help because they “don’t think there’s anything wrong with them … or they don’t want to be judged.”

She noted that the hospital has seen a surge in demand for adolescent services, and recently lowered the minimum age of patients to 10- or 11-year-olds. Inpatients are immediately given a treatment plan to learn coping skills and set goals toward their discharge, she said.

Red River has two outpatient group therapy programs that run from 9 a.m. - noon and 9 a.m.2 p.m. and adolescent groups from 4:30 - 7:30 p.m. The hospital will provide transportation to the programs within a 60-mile radius, and serve lunch, she said.

Ms. Bernhardt described coping strategies that people can use to optimize their mental health. Those strategies start with getting enough sleep, eating good meals, and exercising, she said.

“Lack of sleep makes it difficult for people to manage their emotions,” she said. Eating healthy meals such as those served at the Senior Center, as well as bites of protein when blood sugar is low, go a long way to keep emotions balanced, she said.

“Walking 30 minutes a day can make a big difference in your physical and mental health.” Drinking plenty of water, or taking a hot shower when stressed also helps calm the mind, she said.

Nurturing relationships also is important, and attending group activities like the craft classes and game nights offered by the Senior Center fit the bill, she said.

The unending free time of retirement also is hard on mental health, so it is important to schedule a few activities and develop hobbies or volunteer, she said. “You can offer wisdom to the community.”

She also warned that one should “be aware of cognitive distortion” in which people believe “emotions are facts.”

“Feelings are valid but separate emotions from facts and beware of personalizing things,” she said. “Be mindful of the stories you are making up in your head … make them positive stories.”

When an anxiety attack is inevitable, she advised you to do a grounding exercise: focus on something pleasant or neutral in your immediate surroundings that you can see, hear, taste, feel, or touch.

If you or someone you know is experiencing psychological pain, she advised dialing 988 on your phone, the number for the state’s mental health emergency hotline.

Chief Birbeck urged the public to call OPD if they or a loved one needs mental health services. The OPD can be reached at 940-276-2013.