Springfield Public Forum to Present Webinar on Youth Mental Health

SPRINGFIELD — The Springfield Public Forum will host a webinar with Dr. Alfiee M. Breland-Noble on empowering youth mental health. The free event is slated for Thursday, Oct. 28 at 6 p.m.

During the pandemic, there was a 31% increase in the number of young people in the showing up in emergency rooms for psychiatric or mental-health concerns. The biggest issues were remote schooling and the isolation and loneliness experienced during the pandemic compounded by the normal pressures of growing up. Data coming from the CDC shows around 30% to 40% of young people in this age group are experiencing depressive and/or anxious symptoms.

Breland-Noble is an internationally recognized scientist, author, speaker, and media contributor. As founder of an innovative 501(c)(3) mental-health nonprofit, the AAKOMA Project Inc., she translates complex scientific concepts (developed over more than 25 years as a disparities researcher at Duke and Georgetown Psychiatry) into useful, everyday language for communities of color.

A sought-after mental-health expert, she is host of the video podcast Couched in Color with Dr. Alfiee, addressing mental health in intersectional BIPOC youth and young adults. Her media work includes appearances on CNN, NBC, NPR, PBS, CGTN, and publications ranging from the New York Times and Business Insider to the Huffington Post. In all of her work, she embodies her belief that there is enough love and light (informed by strong, culturally relevant science) to help everyone achieve optimal mental health.

Pre-registration is required by clicking here. This event is jointly sponsored by the Behavioral Health Network, Gándara Center, MLK Family Services, Stop Access Springfield Coalition, and the Public Health Institute of Western Massachusetts.