By Laura R. Gabbay
Although we are in the dark of winter, here is a bright spot for kids who may be struggling: I Matter Colorado.
The winter holiday season can be stressful. Winter break is also a time when students do not have the support of school services. You can make a difference by making sure youth in your community know about the new free I Matter Colorado program. In October, the Colorado Department of Human Services, Office of Behavioral Health launched I Matter, a program that provides free counseling sessions for any Colorado youth.
Youth and their parents can visit the I Matter platform to take a confidential online survey about their mental health and schedule sessions with a licensed behavioral health clinician, primarily via telehealth. All Colorado individuals ages 18 or younger — or 21 and younger if receiving special education services — are eligible to receive free services. More than 1,450 counseling appointments have been scheduled or delivered since the program started. The growing list of participating I Matter therapists numbers 77 clinicians.
To facilitate services in English and in Spanish, the Spanish language version of the I Matter site has launched. The URL is YoImportoColorado.org
The program has clinicians who can provide services in Spanish as well.
Informed by feedback from youth across the state, the program name I Matter says — in times where we often are told to care about others more than ourselves — self-care can and should be a priority. One easy way to share news of how Colorado kids can access these three free mental health sessions is by sharing the social media graphics in our new digital toolkit. Another neat way to promote awareness is to send us a picture of your colorful new I Matter banner (download it here) if you have hung it at your school or community center. Email your banner photos to Laura.Gabbay@state.co.us
Laura R. Gabbay is Marketing and Outreach Manager with Colorado Office of Behavioral Health.