{"id":595,"date":"2020-12-07T14:36:57","date_gmt":"2020-12-07T14:36:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ncssinc.org\/news\/?p=595"},"modified":"2020-12-17T19:55:01","modified_gmt":"2020-12-17T19:55:01","slug":"wcax-coverage-for-covid-support-and-mental-health-at-large","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ncssinc.org\/news\/wcax-coverage-for-covid-support-and-mental-health-at-large\/","title":{"rendered":"WCAX Coverage for COVID Support and Mental Health at large"},"content":{"rendered":"

COVID Support VT complements the mental health and community services and supports that already exist throughout Vermont.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Funding is provided through a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Vermont Care Partners (VCP)<\/a>, of which NCSS is one of 10 Designated Agencies, is administering the grant under contract with the Vermont Department of Mental Health.<\/strong><\/p>\n

As virus numbers rise, Vermonters urged to take care of mental health<\/strong><\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.wcax.com\/2020\/12\/04\/as-virus-numbers-rise-vermonters-urged-to-take-care-of-mental-health\/<\/a><\/p>\n

MONTPELIER, Vt. (WCAX) – You are not alone — That was the message from the governor and Vermont health officials on Friday as the pandemic continues to weigh heavily on people\u2019s minds.<\/p>\n

Help is always a quick call away. And the voices on the other line have all of Vermont\u2019s resources on hand. Dial 211, then 2, to hear from counselors like Sunny Naughton.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe really do want to hear that phone ring,\u201d said Naughton, one of three COVID support counselors who\u2019ve fielded 744 calls to 211 since the beginning of October. That\u2019s when the state adopted the FEMA-funded COVID support Vermont hotline.<\/p>\n

Naughton says it\u2019s clear the holidays and impending winter are taking a toll on many\u2019s mental health. \u201cIn the last few weeks, just getting into November, we really do have people calling, especially around the holiday last week, we were offering services during Thanksgiving,\u201d Naughton said.<\/p>\n

COVID Support Vermont reports they picked up the phone 455 more times in November than October and website visits have doubled. Mental Health Commissioner Sarah Squirrell says Vermont is seeing an uptick in opioid-related fatalities this year compared to last. She projects that may be because people are isolated and therefore using alone.<\/p>\n

She says the social connection is key — checking in on the people in your life regularly who may have already suffered or you suspect are suffering now.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s okay not to feel okay right now. There are many valid reasons to be worried, overwhelmed, anxious, and exhausted, and if these feelings are beginning to impact you, seeking help can be very supportive,\u201d Squirrell said.<\/p>\n

Squirrell stresses that tending to your mental health is just as important as protecting your physical health. \u201cTo control the virus, it\u2019s all about testing and tracing. And for mental health and suicide prevention, it\u2019s all about outreach and screening,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

And support doesn\u2019t always come in the form of one-on-one counseling at one of the state\u2019s 10 community mental health agencies. Naughton says simple solutions can have a significant impact. \u201cWe\u2019ve referred people to wellness centers. I recently referred a young businesswoman to a business association. So, we really try to look at the whole person and help them get what they need in the moment,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Naughton says her three-person team of counselors is capable of handling a higher volume of calls and are prepared. She says 80 percent of the time, calls last only 15 minutes before the person on the other end is connected with the service that suits them.<\/p>\n

For help, contact \u201cCOVID support VT,\u201d by dialing 2-1-1.<\/a><\/p>\n

Copyright 2020 WCAX. All rights reserved. <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

COVID Support VT complements the mental health and community services and supports that already exist throughout Vermont. Funding is provided through a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Vermont Care Partners (VCP), of which NCSS is one of 10 Designated Agencies, is administering the grant under contract with the Vermont Department of Mental […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":596,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ncssinc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/595"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ncssinc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ncssinc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ncssinc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ncssinc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=595"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.ncssinc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/595\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":597,"href":"https:\/\/www.ncssinc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/595\/revisions\/597"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ncssinc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/596"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ncssinc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=595"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ncssinc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=595"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ncssinc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=595"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}