Focusing on mental health on the International Day of Hope

RENO, Nev. (KOLO) - The International Day of Hope falls on the first Monday of May. It’s a time to recognize the importance of positive thinking.

The nonprofit organization, iFred, has ways to support mental health.

Back in 2019, Reno was declared the first-ever Hopeful City, an initiative from the International Foundation of Research and Education on Hope, to create spaces that show thinking this way is a teachable skill.

The non-profit organization recognizes the impact of depression and ways to change the narrative and the stigma around mental illness.

After being inspired by her personal experience, Kathryn Goetzke, founder of IFRED, saw hopelessness to be the most consistent factor in their research on suicide and how to prevent it.

Through their program, iFred has a step-by-step process, S.H.I.N.E.

This teaches how to manage stress skills, form happiness habits, learn inspired action, how an individual can be a part of nourishing networks, and how one can eliminate negative thought patterns.

Goetzke shared,

“Emotions are normal, they are a normal part of life, and it’s really how we use those emotions and use them and transmute them. Just like you manage your blood pressure, I thought why people aren’t taught what hopelessness is and how to manage that symptom and find their way to hope. So, we created the first global evidence-based program that does that.”

Today also starts iFred’s Five-Day Global Hope Challenge. For the next five days, the community can take part in lessons and activities to learn ways to remain hopeful.

For more information and practice hope in your life, click here.

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