Catholic association launches online courses to equip faithful for mental health ministry

A U.S.-based Catholic association dedicated to mental health ministry has launched two new online resources to help Catholics better understand the signs of mental health struggles and how to accompany those suffering from it in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month.

The International Association of Catholic Mental Health Ministers presented a trailer for the new online courses at the Vatican on Oct. 10 — World Mental Health Day — during its international meeting being held in Rome and at the Vatican, which was titled “A Healing Presence: The Church’s Call to Mental Health Ministry.”

The online courses include a one-hour course and a two-hour course. The one-hour course focuses on mental health literacy and aims to help people recognize the signs and symptoms of the most common forms of mental illness such as depression, addiction, trauma, and bipolar disorder.

The two-hour course is titled “Psychological First Aid” and equips individuals with the actual skills and knowledge to be able to help someone in distress.

The video states that the courses are not meant to train people on how to diagnose problems or on how to provide treatment; instead, they merge faith resources…