Health / Wellness

Don’t Phone In Your Mental Health, Call 9-8-8 Instead

I think the cultural competency training will go something like 'Now, are we talking deadass? Or *deadass*?'

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The week or so after Christmas but before the New Year can be a rough one. A celebration’s gone and one is to come, but in the interim you’ve got a couple days worth of dead time where the minutes and hours just feel a little more viscous than usual. The hope is that everyone can use the time to rest and recuperate. However, some of us ruminate. And the thoughts aren’t always pleasant.

There is a big talk about mental health awareness in law schools and law firms. Thankfully, a recent New York law will make it just a little easier to do some talking (or texting!) to someone when the thoughts get heavy again. Federal guidelines will require states to have infrastructure that will direct callers who dial 988 to resources that will connect them to help with mental health and substance abuse issues. It’s kind of like how people can call 911 to be connected to police officers who will help them with lost property. Or wellness checks for some reason. Or not sharing their food at the movies apparently. Look — cops get called as first responders for way too much and this is a step in a better direction. It’s a beautiful thing that New York is taking some initiative on the matter months before the July 2022 federal deadline.

So get the word out. Billing 2000 hours a year or defending tenants at risk of losing their homes is stressful enough. Seasonal Affective Disorder is real, not to mention the plethora of other mental malaise, like the probability that the Eagles won’t be winning another Super Bowl any time soon. You aren’t alone and you aren’t beyond help. You will have to say something to get it though.

If a loved one, co-worker, or you feel stuck in Cravath hell despite the Cravath scale, reach out. What you need could be just a call (or text!) away.

New State Law Creates 9-8-8 Suicide Prevention Number, Training [Daily Freeman]

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Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s.  He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who cannot swim, a published author on critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at cwilliams@abovethelaw.com and by tweet at @WritesForRent.

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