The Reasons we Love Youth Mental Health First Aid Training

Being young is no easy feat, especially the adolescent phase

Not only do our youth have to deal with the awkwardness of adolescent life. But also, our technology-driven world exposes them to various kinds of stimuli. This can prove detrimental to their mental health. Young people are the future, and they deserve our respect, acknowledgement, and support; they also deserve our empathy and our care. This is what Youth Mental Health First Aid Training is all about. Read on for some reasons why we love Youth Mental Health First Aid courses…

Helping Young People Makes a Huge Difference

When adolescents feel like something may be wrong, they rarely ask for help. It’s either embarrassing or scary, or they simply don’t know how to. They lack the skills to help themselves at this point in their development. This is why Youth Mental Health First Aid is so helpful.

To have someone recognise their help-seeking behaviours and support them through their tough time can prove to be life changing. Having a support system at such a crucial time in their lives can improve their wellbeing as they prepare to enter adulthood – as well as teach them crucial life skills to take with them on their journey through life.

Its Evidence Based

Mental Health statistics are alarming; even more so when it comes to young people: Did you know 1 in 7 adolescents experience a Mental Health condition every year? Sadly, for various reasons, including embarrassment, fear of social rejection or isolation, and lack of resources young people are less likely to seek accessing help for their mental health issues than adults are.

In order to provide Youth Mental Health First Aid effectively, it’s important to know the facts. That’s why everything we teach in our Youth Mental Health First Aid Training course is based on solid, well-researched scientific and psychological evidence, and presented by an experienced facilitator with a background in the mental health sector. It’s critical to know everything you need in order to help our young people thrive. This course helps you to do that.

It’s Practical

The Youth Mental Health First Aid course is extremely practical. There’s no super heavy theory, and anyone can participate. The only requirement is that you’re willing to help youth in their times of Mental Health struggles, and if you’re here, you probably meet that requirement!

Once certified in Youth MHFA, you can put your skills to work straight away. There’s no waiting period, just take the valuable skills you’ve learned and start helping! If you already know an adolescent or two that are struggling, you can offer your support immediately.

It’s Based on Australian Data

The Youth Mental Health First Aid course was designed and developed in Australia, based upon Australian data. This means that you’ll be specifically trained on common scenarios that Australian young people are dealing with – this gives you the advantage of offering the most relevant support possible.

While it’s great to be informed on global data, trends always differ from country to country. Hence why it’s so important to be up to date on local issues. Learning how to help Australian youth recognize and acknowledge their Mental Health struggles and support them through difficult times. This is one of the key reasons the Youth MHFA course was created in the first place.

We Cover Eating Disorders

In our body image obsessed society, eating disorders are rampant. Despite efforts to curb this it remains a huge issue, and sadly, our youth are the most affected by it. Image is everything in adolescence, with social pressure and comparing oneself to others being regular occurrences. Combined with an underdeveloped sense of self. Young people sometimes take drastic action, eating disorders being a form of this.

In our Youth MHFA course, we cover eating disorders as part of the training. You’ll learn signs to watch for, along with how to support adolescents going through this struggle. Young people need all the support they can get with their Mental Health, especially with eating disorders.

Great Quality Videos

How many times have you taken a course, and when they showed you a video you thought “this would never happen in real life?” While course facilitators do their best, they often provide video scenarios that are unrealistic, badly put together, or simply just outdated and irrelevant.

Not with our courses! Our learning materials are high quality, realistic, and kept current so that you can provide relevant support after your accreditation. No “cringing” required!

Our facilitators work hard to provide the most recent model of training, which includes several videos portraying scenarios that you’ll actually come across when providing Youth Mental Health First Aid.

We Can Save a Life!

Suicide, unfortunately, is the leading cause of loss of life amongst young people in Australia; and sadly, many lives could have been saved if the right person intervened in time. We can’t bring back the young people we’ve lost. But we can work to prevent losing any more. This is one reason Youth Mental Health First Aid is so valuable.

It’s amazing what you can achieve through a simple conversation. Knowing how to have the right conversations, at the right times, can not only be life changing but lifesaving as well. By taking the Youth MHFA course, you’ll be empowered to spot suicide warning signs. You’ll have a conversation with a young person who’s struggling and in pain. Even save their life.

Conclusion

Youth Mental Health First Aid courses are available to anyone who wants to help our young people with their Mental Health struggles. If that’s you, thank you! We can never have too many wonderful people supporting our youth. If you were wondering if a Youth Mental Health First Aid course could be for you, we hope this has helped. Feel free to contact us with any questions you have, or to enrol in our Youth MHFA course today!