Mental Health Month outreach ideas

Check out our Mental Health Month Planning Guide for sample communications and more to help maximize your impact.

Get the planning guide

We’ve created sample text and graphics to make it easy for you to share on social media and printables to make it easy for you to share in person this Mental Health Month.

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Share information locally

• Ask wellness-oriented businesses like your local gym, yoga studio, or health food store to put up one of the posters from the toolkit.
• Reach out to your personal and professional contacts to encourage them to visit our Mental Health Month page and share resources with their customers and employees through newsletters and social media.
• Think about other groups in your community that could benefit from taking action to improve mental health – doctors’ offices, schools, churches, synagogues, and other religious gathering places are a good start. Direct them to our Mental Health Month page. You can be a tremendous help in getting this information to people who need it!
• Include our Mental Health Month page in Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other platform posts so people can access the resources that have been created for Mental Health Month and other mental health information. Get social media post images here.

Help spread the word about screening

• Put MHA’s screening link in the bio of your Instagram profile. For example, say, “Check up on your mental health at the link below,” and link to mhascreening.org in the website blank.
• Take a screen at mhascreening.org and share that you “took a checkup from the neck up.” Encourage others to do the same!

Create a personal fundraiser

• Be part of MHA’s month-long Be Seen in Green fundraising effort!
• Create a personal fundraiser in just a few simple steps. It’s a great way to share your story, create awareness, and raise money for Mental Health America’s important work. Get started today to make a difference!
  • Share why mental health matters to you, or share your screening story.
  • Incorporate mental health fast facts into your fundraiser.
  • If gaming is your thing, try starting a fundraiser on Twitch.

Call or email your elected officials

Let them know why you think mental health should be a priority.

• Ask your governor or mayor to declare May as Mental Health Month. Use the sample proclamation in the toolkit.
• Get in touch with your senators. Find yours using the drop-down menu in the top left at senate.gov.
• Contact your representative. Find yours using the ZIP code search feature in the top right at house.gov.
• Check out MHA’s most recent State of Mental Health in America report, find out where your state ranks, and share it with your elected officials.
• Share detailed data about suicidal thinking, depression, psychosis, and trauma across your state and county from our website.

Get your employer involved

• Not sure where to start? Visit our Workplace Wellness Resource Center for ideas and resources to share with your company.
• Ask company leadership to recognize and celebrate Mental Health Month in May.
• Share with leadership why mental health is important in the workplace.
• Contact your local MHA affiliate to host a speaker or training in your workplace.

Reach out individually

• Think about who you interact with on a regular basis that would find this information useful for themselves or others.
• Think about friends or family who you have been wanting to talk to about mental health — Mental Health Month is the perfect time to start the conversation.

Show your support

• Shop MHA’s online store to stock up on your mental health merchandise.
• Donate to MHA or one of its affiliates during May.

What organizations can do

• Organize a mental health awareness walk or run (in-person or virtual).
• Host a mental health screening event at a library, community center, or local business.
• Plan an advocacy event, such as a town hall or state capitol day, to discuss mental health policy needs.
• Partner with local businesses to create mental health-focused wellness events.
• Organize a community meet-and-greet with other wellness organizations. Here are 12 tips you can use to start planning.
• Work with municipalities to light up public spaces green.
• Host a scavenger hunt for lime green things and wellness spaces in your area. Use AI to create clues with the prompt: “Create a mental health-themed scavenger hunt in [YOUR CITY/TOWN, STATE].”
• Create pop-up wellness spaces with meditation zones and mental health resources.
• Organize a community art project, such as a mural or exhibit on mental health awareness.
• Start a mental health-focused book club using books like “Where to Start” or A “Mind That Found Itself” by Clifford W. Beers.
• Set up a public bulletin board where people can share thoughts on mental health with sticky notes.
• Contact your local MHA affiliate to discuss ideas or collaborate. Find the location nearest you.

Affiliates in action

MHA of Hawaii (MHAH) hosted its 2024 Mental Health Awareness and Awards Celebration in May. The event celebrated MHAH Mahalo Award recipients across six categories, highlighting achievements in mental health care, advocacy, leadership, and support. Additionally, MHAH, in partnership with PBS Hawai`i, presented the Student Voice Award to two schools and three young people from across the state.

A group of 100 artists from the New Jersey music industry united to create a groundbreaking song and music video project called “Jersey for Mental Health” to raise awareness and funds for the Mental Health Association in New Jersey during Mental Health Month in 2024. The project, spearheaded by videographer and photographer John Pullara, featured 73 vocalists and 27 supporting roles expressing their personal connections to mental health struggles through the lyrics. Read more here.

Partners in action

Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. took a bold step to center mental health at its 2024 biennial gathering. Recognizing the growing need for mental health awareness and resources in their community, they integrated MHA’s “Where to Start” book and “Stigma Stops Here” bracelets. Zeta Phi Beta supplements events and meetings with encouragement to their sorors to utilize MHA resources to prioritize their mental health. Their decision not only enriches the event experience but also sets a precedent for how accessible tools can transform mental health advocacy.

What businesses can do

• Organize a Be Seen in Green fundraiser among employees and match funds raised.
• Build and distribute employee wellness kits with self-care items from the MHA Store.
• Hold a workplace wellness event, such as a walk, fitness challenge, or “lunch and learn” with a mental health professional. Here are 12 tips you can use to start planning.
• Share information about mental health benefits and resources available in your workplace.
• Share our Mental Health Month Wellness Calendar and other printables with staff as a way to drive action toward individual well-being.
• Encourage employees to take a free, anonymous mental health test at mhascreening.org.
• Feature mental health topics in company-wide communications. Use the samples in MHA’s Mental Health Month Planning Guide!
• Connect with one of MHA’s affiliates and bring a speaker to your workplace
• Donate a portion of your proceeds to MHA or one of its affiliates during May
• Invite a wellness professional, like a clinician, to do a social media takeover
• Develop or improve workplace policies that uplift workers, ensure they are valued and heard, and improve an organization’s overall culture of well-being
• Download MHA’s Workplace Mental Health Toolkit for more ideas on improving mental health in the workplace
• Use our sample posts and images or share posts from MHA’s social media accounts to your followers, and make sure to tag MHA so we can see it!
• Become a corporate partner for Mental Health Month (PDF)

Business in action

In 2024, General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT) recommitted to its “How Are You, Really?” initiative, focused on encouraging meaningful conversations about mental health while building a stronger sense of community among employees. The initiative included hosting mindfulness sessions led by GDIT Health Coaches, a downloadable mental health checklist with resources and activities, and a video for staff showcasing employee experiences.

Bell Seal for Workplace Mental Health

MHA’s Bell Seal is the nation’s leading certification for employers committed to creating mentally healthy workplaces. Join Barilla America, Citizens, L.L.Bean, Nationwide, and hundreds of other employers with Bell Seal certification.

Learn more and apply

• Host a Q&A session with a school counselor or mental health professional.
• Invite peer specialists to speak about personal experiences at an assembly.
• Create “Ask Me Anything” online events for parents featuring behavioral health experts.
• Share mental health resources (PDF) and ensure students know where to get help.
• Share mental health-themed books, movies, and media with students, display them in the library, and create a featured reading list (PDF). Offer discussion and project opportunities afterward.
• Incorporate emotional well-being into lesson plans with these classroom activity guides.
• Encourage storytelling by hosting student mental health monologues or video projects.
• Coordinate a school-wide art project that raises mental health awareness. You could ask students to create artwork that symbolizes the things that bring them peace of mind and use them all in an exhibit or paint a mural together.
• Dedicate a professional development day to mental health.
• Offer a morning yoga or meditation class for staff.
• Provide a wellness space for teachers with stress-relief items like weighted blankets and aromatherapy or items from the MHA Store.
• Arrange for employee benefit providers to educate staff on available mental health resources.