Sound of Silence is a program created for youth, to help dismantle and break the stigma related to mental health and give access to mental health services that our youth so desperately need.
Over the past year Northern Lights Against Substance Misuse has been working hard to get this Assembly into all Anne Arundel County Public Schools. As COVID-19, like most things, has made this a slower start than we would like, we are finally getting to a point of scheduling with schools again.
Sound of Silence otherwise known as SOS, is a targeted assembly for all Middle and High Schools students. We work alongside each school’s principal and staff to carve each event to perfectly fit each school’s current needs around mental health. We provide a panel of mental health and substance misuse professionals along with representation From SADD (Students Against Destructive Decisions) Department of Health, Crisis Response and the leading Prevention Coalitions that represent Anne Arundel County. We talk about target topics that can lead to mental health disorders, how to prevent self mediating through substance misuse, suicide prevention, maintaing healthy relationahips and many more. We encourage our youth to talk and ask questions and also provide services using each school’s Behavioral Health Facility following if our youth should need the help.
Our goal is to make this an annual program for schools, so we can continue to have that conversation each year with our kids. Help them speak up and speak out. Give them their voice and teach them how to use it, whether it’s for them, family or a friend.
Learn more about Sound of Silence and how to bring the program to your school or community center by contacting Northern Light Against Substance Abuse at NLASA@PreventSubstanceMisuse.org.
