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teen MHFA – Thank You

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teen Mental Health First Aid (tMHFA) is a training program for teens brought to the United States by the National Council for Mental Wellbeing in partnership with Born This Way Foundation. It teaches teens in grades 9-12, or ages 14-18, how to identify, understand and respond to signs of a mental health or substance use challenge in their friends and peers. The training gives teens the skills to have supportive conversations with their friends and teaches them how to get help from a responsible and trusted adult. Learn more about how tMHFA can benefit young people in your community.

There are three ways to teach and learn tMHFA.

  • In-person – Lessons are conducted in person in six 45-minute sessions or three 90-minute sessions.
  • Blended – Teens complete a self-paced online lesson, then participate in six live, Instructor-led sessions. These Instructor-led sessions can be:
    • Video conferences.
    • In-person classes.

Become a tMHFA Site

Any school, youth-serving organization or organization in partnership with a school that wants to bring tMHFA training to teens at their site can apply to become a tMHFA Site. Schools and organizations must be accepted to teach tMHFA.

If you are interested in bringing tMHFA to teens in your community, complete this form to get in touch with a member of our team to learn more about the requirements and begin your application.

Become a tMHFA Instructor

Instructors are on the frontlines of the program, training teens in their communities how to assess, respond and bring in a trusted adult if a peer seems to be having a mental health or substance use challenge. Instructors teach from a national curriculum, tailor discussions to their participants and compile a list of local resources for help. Instructor candidates can be certified to teach tMHFA in-person or online.

The National Council for Mental Wellbeing requires that adults who teach the tMHFA program to teens attend a tMHFA Instructor training to be certified in the curriculum.

If you are interested in applying for a tMHFA Instructor training, complete this form to get in touch with a member of our team. Whether you are still looking for a site to teach tMHFA, or you have an organization in mind, you must speak with a member of our team before you can apply to become a tMHFA Instructor. Our team can assist in answering any questions you may have and next steps. See here for a schedule of upcoming tMHFA Instructor Trainings.

  • Mental Health First Aid training has taught the officer to ask his charges, “What happened?” instead of, “What’s wrong with you?”” –Officer Orlando Singleton
  • So many people are out there wishing for something better, hoping that help will show up. That’s what Mental Health First Aid is – it is help to get people connected to care and ultimately to get them to a better place.” –Tousha Paxton-Barnes, U.S. Army Veteran
  • I wish that every corrections officer could receive Mental Health First Aid training. I believe that our corrections system would be better because of it – the inmates would benefit, the officers would benefit and ultimately our communities would benefit.” –Lt. Virgil Meyer, Lieutenant, Pennsylvania Department of Corrections
  • As adults, we sometimes forget how hard it was being an adolescent. When we see a kid who is just miserable at school, we might think they choose to be that way – or that it’s just part of adolescence. But in fact, they might be in a mental health crisis, one they certainly did not choose and do not want. When a teacher says “how can I be helpful,” that is a powerful question. ” –Alyssa Fruchtenicht, School-Based Mental Health Counselor
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