May is Mental Health Awareness Month and advocates are hoping Gov. Gavin Newsom will prioritize the issue in his revised budget, due by Sunday.

The governor's January budget proposed $4.7 million to fund the California Parent and Youth Helpline annually for three years. The helpline connects people with a trained counselor for free from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week.

Dr. Lisa Pion-Berlin, president and CEO of Parents Anonymous, which runs the California Parent and Youth Helpline, said additional funding is needed to keep up with demand for their services.

"With greater resources, we could have more trained clinicians to answer the phone," Pion-Berlin explained. "The demand outstrips our capacity right now. We have people on waiting lists to get into our free online weekly support groups."

The service has helped more than 40,000 people in California since it started two years ago, but they would like to help more of the Golden State's 9.3 million children.

Last week was Children's Mental Health Acceptance Week, when people are encouraged to take action and reach out to another person who might be struggling. Pion-Berlin emphasized no one should be blamed or shamed when they ask for help.

"Parents need support in identifying and accepting that change in behavior, mood swings, sleeping patterns, change in friends, that their child looks sad, and that they may need to seek help," Pion-Berlin outlined.

A 2021 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found child suicide rates have been rising in recent years, and suicide is the 8th leading cause of death among children aged 5 to 11.

From inflation to climate change, Wisconsin farmers face numerous sources of stress that can't help but affect their health. And one program is offering mental and emotional support to farm operators who need it.

The Farmer Wellness Program, an initiative of the state's Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, offers in-person and remote counseling for farmers across the state.

Dan Bauer, program supervisor for the Wisconsin Farm Center, which administers the program, said they also have a 24/7 emergency line.

"So, that 24/7 line is available to farmers," he said, "and really, what it's designed to do is to get them through a terribly tough time. It's not for ongoing care, or not for long-term treatment."

In a December poll of farmers and farm workers commissioned by the American Farm Bureau Federation, more than 60% of respondents said they felt more stress in 2021 compared with the previous year. They cited financial issues, fear of losing their farms and an uncertain future among their greatest stressors.

According to a 2020 report from the National Institutes of Health, about 6.5 million rural Americans struggle with mental-health issues, but counseling services tend to cluster in urban and suburban areas.

Dr. Rhonda Randall, UnitedHealthcare executive vice president and chief medical officer, said technology has made inroads in improving rural access to mental-health services.

"Tele-Behavioral Health has really been beneficial in helping equal out that access, because now licensed mental-health professionals can practice and care for people in communities that may have otherwise had a very long drive to get to see them," she said, "so, think about people in rural areas."

The NIH report estimated as many as 65% of non-metropolitan counties lack a psychiatrist. Bauer said DAT-CAP's "Rural Realities" podcast also can offer helpful tips to farmers looking to prioritize their mental health.

As Kentucky students head into the unofficial start of summer this weekend, children's advocates are urging families to prioritize physical activity, practice healthy eating, stay up to date on vaccines and find positive ways to manage stress and emotions.

Ben Chandler, chief executive of the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky, said the group's statewide campaign, called "High Five for Health," is aimed at ensuring kids are equipped to get back to learning in the fall.

"High Five for Health is a prescription for whole body and mind health," he said, "and we think that if young people follow this prescription, they're much more likely to have a successful school year. And ultimately, that leads on down the line to a successful life."

Chandler urged parents to get summer doctors' appointments scheduled for their children, for wellness visits and vaccination updates before school starts in August. According to state data, 23% of children ages 5 to 11 and almost half of kids ages 12 to 15 have received a first dose of the coronavirus vaccine.

Jim Tackett, Healthy Schools Project director at the Kentucky Department of Education, which funded the campaign, said he hopes families have honest conversations in the coming weeks about how they can stay active and engaged this summer, and shrink the number of hours spent in front of screens.

"Continue to start those conversations," he said. "Continue to explore new behaviors that will set them on course to have a successful school year starting in August."

Research has shown that among adolescents, even moderate screen time is associated with lower psychological well-being. And heavy use is linked to worsened mental health, poor sleep, increased behavioral problems and decreased academic performance.

Starting in July, Florida students and families will receive more information on the mental health services they are entitled to.

Rep. Christine Hunschofsky, D-Parkland, served as the mayor of Parkland during the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, where 17 students were killed. She said her time as mayor influenced her decision to sponsor House Bill 899.

"If a student is receiving behavioral health services in the school, the school is then required to let their family and/or caregivers know about the services that are available to the family and caregivers, both at the school and in the community," Hunschofsky outlined.

The measure was signed into law last week. Florida and the rest of the nation continue to observe National Mental Health Month during May, as they have for seventy years.

This year, the observation comes as schools and families grapple with the COVID lockdowns and the threat of mass shootings. Hunschofsky argued more needs to be done to provide mental health services to all Floridians, as well as a change of attitude toward mental health.

"We've seen the toll the pandemic and just life has taken on the mental health of so many," Hunschofsky noted. "It's always interesting to me that people separate mental health from physical health. And they're incredibly interconnected."

Dr. Rhonda Randall, chief medical officer of UnitedHealthcare employer and individual, said southern states often have much less access to mental health services.

"In New England, those states have a tendency to have very high numbers of licensed mental health care professionals per capita, and in the Southeast, we see lower," Randall pointed out. "In fact, in some states, that can be a sevenfold difference."

Last year, the Florida legislature created a Commission on Mental Health and Substance Abuse to examine how the Sunshine State provides mental health and substance abuse services. It expects to make recommendations to lawmakers.