Cook County encourages mental health awareness, connection and prevention
May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and Cook County Public Health and Human Services is using the opportunity to reduce the stigma surrounding mental health and remind the public about the 988 hotline.
Mental health awareness has continued to increase, especially after the pandemic highlighted the challenges people face when isolated and dealing with stressful environments.
“Mental health is influenced by everything around us. It could be stress from work, isolation, grief, anxiety — anything can affect our mental health,” Cook County Public Health Educator Rocio Rivas told WTIP.
In 2019, the Federal Communications Commission recommended to Congress that 988 be designated as the three-digit dialing code for a nationwide suicide prevention and mental health crisis hotline. The National Suicide Hotline Designation Act of 2020 was signed into law in October 2020.
In July 2022, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline officially launched nationwide. Since then, Minnesota’s 988 Lifeline centers have answered more than 290,000 calls.
While mental health challenges affect people everywhere, those living in rural communities face unique obstacles.
“Living in a rural community brings a lot of challenges. One of those is isolation, especially us.” Rivas said. “We live so far apart from a big city, big resources. We know everybody, we don’t want to burden other people with our own problems, or we don’t want people to know about our struggles.”
Stories about mental health crises often receive the most attention, but Mental Health Awareness Month is also focused on prevention and helping people become more aware of their mental health, even if they are not in crisis.
“Staying connected with your friends and family, trying to maintain routines — even though they can get a little boring sometimes — routine is good,” Rivas said. “Spending time outdoors, trying to meditate or exercise — sports are really good because they create the dopamine we all need, and that’s really important when we are affected by depression or other mental health struggles.”
Josh Hinke May 24, 2026
