For more than 50 years the month of May has been dedicated as Mental Health Month. The purpose of this month is to raise awareness about mental health conditions and the importance of mental wellness for all. This year's theme is focused on social connectedness as it pertains to maintaining and protecting mental health and wellness. There are many ways of creating connections that support mental health:

· Get connected to family and friends to feel close and supported.

· Get connected to your community to feel a sense of belonging and purpose.

· Get connected to professional help to feel better when you're stressed and having trouble coping.

As the Victim Services Network, our mission involves connecting agencies to one another in an effort to serve victims of crime in the best way possible. VSN agencies address a number of issues in working with their clients, including physical health, safety concerns, and mental health.

Although the most prominent needs of a victim immediately following a crime tend to involve physical health and safety concerns, mental health concerns often arise as a result of victimization. For instance, many survivors of crime experience Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). PTSD is an anxiety disorder that can develop after exposure to a terrifying event or ordeal in which grave physical harm occurred or was threatened. Traumatic events that may trigger PTSD include violent personal assaults, natural or human-caused disasters, accidents, or military combat. As an example, below is an excerpt taken from National Institute of Mental Health's article on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder ( http://www.nimh.nih.gov):

"I was raped when I was 25 years old. For a long time, I spoke about the rape as though it was something that happened to someone else. I was very aware that it had happened to me, but there was just no feeling."

"Then I started having flashbacks. They kind of came over me like a splash of water. I would be terrified. Suddenly I was reliving the rape. Every instant was startling. I wasn't aware of anything around me, I was in a bubble, just kind of floating. And it was scary. Having a flashback can wring you out."

"The rape happened the week before Thanksgiving, and I can't believe the anxiety and fear I feel every year around the anniversary date. It's as though I've seen a werewolf. I can't relax, can't sleep, don't want to be with anyone. I wonder whether I'll ever be free of this terrible problem."

This type of reaction is very common among survivors of all crimes. For this reason, it is important to know about, and have access to, professionals who are well-versed in dealing with such reactions. Below is a limited list and description of some VSN agencies that offer mental health services.

Rocky Mountain Survivors Center (RMSC) is a nonprofit organization that assists survivors of torture and war trauma, and their families, to heal and rebuild their lives. The goal of their mental health services program is to address emotional, cognitive, psychosocial, and somatic consequences of torture and/or war trauma; and to support strengths and empower participants to build new futures in the community. Mental health services include assessment, treatment, psychiatric evaluation (as needed), and medication management (as needed). ( http://www.rmscdenver.org/)

The mission of Denver Indian Health and Family Services is to provide culturally competent services that promote personal, community, and environmental health and wellness for American Indian families and individuals in the Metropolitan Denver area. Mental health services available for adult and adolescent populations include individual therapy, screening, and referral. Treatment is culturally sensitive and provided by a Licensed Professional Counselor and a Master's level Transpersonal Counselor. This program is not designed for seriously mentally ill or emotionally disturbed populations due to the current unavailability of psychiatric follow-up. ( http://www.dihfs.org/)

The Asian Pacific Development Center is a community-based organization founded in 1980 to serve the needs of a growing population of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AA/PI) residents throughout Colorado. Their Mental Health Clinic provides outpatient mental health services to all age groups, in the following languages and dialects: Hmong, Japanese, Khmer, Korean, Laotian, Mandarin, Taiwanese, Thai, and Vietnamese. Services include: individual, couples, family, and group psychotherapy and counseling; psychological assessment and testing; psychiatric medication evaluation and monitoring; case management services; and senior outreach programs. Mental health consultation, education and information activities are also provided by clinical staff. ( http://www.apdc.org/)

Unlike the other agencies described above, HealthBridge Alliance does not directly serve victims of crime. This agency focuses on the mental health of service providers. The HealthBridge Alliance is a nonprofit organization that exists to improve the effectiveness of helping professions by providing tools, training, and support to people at risk of or experiencing secondary trauma. It is their vision to create a culture of care in individuals, organizations, and communities. To do this, they have developed the F.I.R.S.T. Workshop: Finding Inner Resiliency for Secondary Trauma, which exists to provide professional caregivers support and tools to help manage their responses to the emotional difficulties of their work. The goal of this intensive training experience is to help caregivers feel revitalized, refreshed, and ready to continue their amazing work. ( http://www.hballiance.org/)

Similar to the workshops offered by HealthBridge Alliance, the Denver Center for Crime Victims (DCCV) also offers an experiential workshop called H.E.L.P.: Health Enabling for Language Professionals. This workshop is specifically geared towards interpreters who regularly work within the victim services field. These interpreters are often called upon to translate for victims of crime and are consequently exposed to stress and trauma as they interpret others' pain. The workshop teaches these professionals to practice stress management techniques, create a personalized self-care plan, and be a stronger, more positive person overall. ( http://www.denvervictims.org)