Mental Health News

The next two Wednesdays in June, Ott will be hosting "Breathe Easy" Lunchtime Plant Therapy workshops at A Little Bit of Local at ArtsWalk, 21 N. Seventh St. in Allentown.

The third annual Revolutions for Inclusion Bike Ride raises money for the Easter Pennsylvania Down Syndrome Center. A local father's memory lives on through the third annual fundraising event.

State Rep. Mike Schlossberg, D-Lehigh, is the architect of a bill that would allocate $100 million of federal American Rescue Plan funding for mental health programs. It passed the House last week and is under state Senate consideration.

The smoke may be clearing, but anxiety from the eerie event may stick with us. A Lehigh Valley therapist has some ways to get past the uneasy feelings left behind after this week's smoke-filled skies.

Allentown school board is considering whether Raub Middle School would benefit from a $1.2 million grant where several community groups would work with at-risk middle school students over two years, under a proposed plan.

The bill, spearheaded by state Rep. Mike Schlossberg, would dedicate American Rescue Plan money to training mental health care providers, creating more suicide prevention programs and supporting specialty courts.

The 21st Century program is to help students with academic support and art and music enrichment.

Loneliness, isolation and social disconnect are a public health crisis in the United States. Brittany Sweeney hosts a community conversation to examine the factors that contribute to isolation — and what we can do to avoid it.

A housing facility for inmates with severe mental illness is now open in Northampton County. The Shiloh Restoration Center will have 8-beds and provide mental and behavioral health support.

The free classes will take place at Cedar Beach and ArtsWalk parks through June, with the Cedar Beach sessions extending through the summer. The classes are a partnership between the yoga studios and the city's Parks and Recreation Department.

Hasshan Batts, executive director of Promise Neighborhoods of Lehigh Valley, has been named a Fulbright Specialist. He will travel abroad to share his expertise with other countries in areas of violence prevention and health care.

After closing its doors in March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, New Bethany South Side Drop-in reopened on Monday.

Chris Yarnell is working to help Veterans.

The offices that help Pennsylvanians keep their Medicaid benefits are facing persistent vacancies and a heavy workload. Advocates and staff fear people could lose coverage as a result.

Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman has left Walter Reed National Military Medical Center after six weeks of inpatient treatment for clinical depression, with plans to return to the Senate in mid-April.

The students of Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts in Bethlehem are planning a mental health awareness social media campaign.

A six-month investigation found the state’s “competency” review system is so broken it often extends incarceration, which can exacerbate mental health issues.

Born without legs and a victim of child abuse, Zion Clark is a motivational speaker and athlete who shared his story through a Netflix documentary. He will be in Allentown to speak to the public.

The number of people experiencing mental health issues went up as a result of the pandemic. Lehigh Valley psychotherapist Shonda Moralis talks about what she is seeing and hearing from her patients.

Advocates and service providers fear a proposed $20 million funding increase for community mental health services would not go far enough.

The Lehigh Valley will host a marathon for the first time since the pandemic started. Registration will open this month for the St. Luke’s D&L RaceFest.

Today, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs announced $52.5 million in grants intended to prevent suicide. Named for Staff Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox, the suicide prevention grant program is now in its second year. Its goal is to fund community-based organizations that work with veterans and their families. Last year, the VA gave awards to three groups in Pennsylvania, including more than $530,000 to St. Luke’s Penn Foundation in Carbon County. Eighty recipients won awards nationwide in the program’s first year. Grant applications are due by May 19 with awards expected to be announced in September. Selected organizations will receive funding for 2024. More information on how to apply is available at mentalhealth.va.gov.