Addiction and Mental Health Services offering support to the community
Everyone reacts and deals with tragic events in their own way, and Addiction and Mental Health Services (AMHS) of Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington (KFLA) are offering support to those in the community.
The following is a message from AMHS-KFLA:
Events like yesterday’s can have an effect that ripples beyond those who were directly involved.
There is a lot that we can do, whether for ourselves, or for those we know and care for, in the aftermath of a traumatic event.
For anyone who was witness to or impacted by yesterday’s tragic events, or knows someone who witnessed or may be impacted by those events, it is important to know that there can be a range of normal emotional responses — everything from shock, to denial, to fear or helplessness.
Everyone who has felt the impact of such a shocking event needs time to heal. In many cases, the love and support of friends and family, giving yourself the time to heal and the permission to feel what you are feeling, can be enough to get through. However, if you or someone you know is really struggling there are signs that might tell you it’s a helpful time to reach for additional support.
Signs could be:
- having lasting feelings of sadness, anxiety or other difficult feelings that are having negative impacts on your quality of life,
- losing sleep
- withdrawing from people or relying more and more on drinking, smoking or using drugs as ways to cope.
In these circumstances, or if you really just need to talk about how you are feeling but don’t have anyone to share your feelings with, one starting point in our community would be calling our 24-hour crisis line (available 7 days a week) to speak directly with a member of our care team. This is a services we always provide and it is free and confidential.
A member of our care team can provide immediate support and referrals to appropriate services as needed.
Our Kingston & Frontenac 24/7 Crisis Phone Number is 613-544-4229 (Toll Free: 1-866-616-6005).
More details on the Crisis Lines are available here.
I sincerely wish there was help. As these events play out over and over again in our community, we who see the effects of mental illness and drugs, whether prescribed or street. on our loved ones, know that this is a crisis and is not being helped by members if community agencies. The treatment goes far beyond a crisis line or frontline message. People are not getting the professional help needed to detoxify the brain so they can rebuild their lives. Rather, they are being preyed on by drug dealers, exploited by others and expected to attend group meetings to discuss what they can do to better improve their living conditions.
More money… more workers… to really help with mental illness. It is a sad life for those who suffer