Our friends at STAY - Somebody’s Thinking About You have launched a free grief support program, and we at Slush are here to help spread the word.
somebodysthinkingaboutyou.org
Instagram: somebodysthinkingaboutyou
Donate here
First off, what is S.T.A.Y.?
S.T.A.Y. – Somebody’s Thinking About You is a 501(c)(3) non-profit committed to raising awareness, reducing stigma, and educating the action sports community about mental wellness and suicide prevention.
Why did you start S.T.A.Y. - Somebody’s Thinking About You?
I have a lifetime of mental health issues, mostly trauma, depression, and anxiety. I ignored what was going on, and about ten years ago, I tried to kill myself. Before and after this, I’ve watched friends and members of action sports communities suicide. I wanted to create a place where we normalized the conversation and did something proactive about suicide and mental health. There’s a big stigma surrounding asking for help still, so I just wanted to combat that.
What does S.T.A.Y. do?
S.T.A.Y. does a few things. First, we combat stigmas surrounding mental health awareness and suicide by being forward facing to the communities and normalizing the conversations. We go to events, we host events, we use social media, we advertise in slush, we partner with brands, we partner with artists, we collaborate with action sports athletes, and we make relatable merch that shares our message.
Second, we remove barriers to access. We provide free educational materials through our website and events. We also provide access to mental health professionals at events in case anyone needs extra support or has questions. We partnered with a substance recovery center in LA, and offer free treatment scholarships. We also host free community suicide prevention clinics. Finally, we just launched a free grief support program for our community, and it’s available for folks in US and CANADA.
I should note that S.T.A.Y. is not a crisis hotline. So if you are in a mental health crisis, please call or text 988 or go to your local emergency room.
Tell us more about the grief support program:
In action sports cultures, we’re part of a vast, diverse network of people. Athletes, enthusiasts, ambassadors, creatives, leaders, and community members from many walks of life. This deep interconnectedness, while beautiful, also means we face a greater risk of encountering grief. Simply put, we love more, we lose more, and we feel more.
Grief shows up in many forms for us. It can stem from life-changing events, shifts in our communities, transitions in our careers and identities, or the loss of a loved one. Whatever the cause, grief is real, grief is hard, grief is heavy, and addressing it matters.
We at S.T.A.Y. believe that grief support is suicide prevention.
This program isn’t therapy, it’s grief support. So you’re looking at anywhere from 3-5 sessions, and then individuals will receive tools and resources to support their journey through grief.
How can people access this program?
Just go to the website, and click on “grief support,” that will send you to an email intake form and you will be connected with a mental health professional who specializes in grief. It’s all confidential, and our team of grief specialists are individuals who are separate from our core team of therapists. That way people don’t have to fear being connected with someone who they may know or had met at one of our events. All the info is on the website…
What else do you want people to know?
I want people to not kill themselves, and to know that even though it seems like the only option, help is available, and that it can get better. I want people to know it’s okay to want to die, that it doesn’t mean you’re broken or lesser than… but it does mean that you might need to ask for help, that you might have to make some lifestyle adjustments, or that you might need some extra support.
I also want to ask that if anyone has the means, please consider donating to S.T.A.Y.
Every dollar helps us and makes it so we can continue to do this type of work, for free, for our communities and loved ones.