mental health

Emily Grossman wants others to know — with the right care, serious mental health challenges don't always have to stand in the way of happiness or a productive life.

Over the last few months, parents reported at BOE meetings that their children were struggling with virtual learning and experiencing anxiety, stress and tantrums over not being able to see their teachers and friends in person. Parents of special-needs children said their children were especially challenged learning outside of the classroom. 

One group offers general COVID-19 support and meets on Wednesdays from 2 to 3 p.m., while the other deals specifically with the holidays during the pandemic and meets on Sundays from 5 to 6 p.m. 

Monday’s number compares with the 519 new cases reported on Friday, Sept. 18. The beginning of fall this week has prompted concerns about increases in cases, with more people spending time indoors as the weather turns colder.

Since the start of the pandemic on March 4, the numbers have declined drastically from their peak in April, when there were daily reports topping 4,000 positive new cases, 8,000 hospitalizations and 400 new deaths, including 72 deaths probably due to the virus, in one day. 

Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said that people, in general, can cope well with a situation that lasts two weeks, but “when it gets to be four weeks or six weeks, everything gets a little stressful.”

New Jersey will allocate $6 million to allow school staff to get training in Mental Health First Aid, to recognize and help students who may be in crisis.

By ERIN ROLL roll@montclairlocal.news Beginning next school year, New Jersey schoolchildren will learn about topics like stress, anxiety, depression and self-esteem as part of their lessons. State legislators passed a law requiring schools to include mental health as part of their health and physical education curricula, beginning with the 2020-2021 school year...

By ERIN ROLL roll@montclairlocal.news Jared Zimmerman’s family and friends remember him as an adventurer who once convinced his siblings to go with him on a midnight hike on a family vacation, and who always had throngs of friends over after school. I...

By ERIN ROLL roll@montclairlocal.news In the lobby at Buzz Aldrin Middle School, you’ll find a bulletin board with two giant hearts on it. Inside the hearts are hundreds of rainbow-colored sticky notes, each one with a suggestion on how students (and adults) can be nice to each other. “...