Why Train With MHFA?
Be ready to help a friend or loved one through tough times with Mental Health First Aid training.
Making a Difference
Mental Health First Aid training gives you the skills to act. You’ll be able to spot the signs that someone might be struggling, and then use proven strategies to help them. Your actions as a Mental Health First Aider help create a healthier, more supportive community.
The Numbers Tell the Story
To make a difference, it helps to know what you’re up against. Mental health and substance use challenges can affect all of us, whether we experience them directly or are supporting a loved one through a difficult time. That’s why it’s important to get trained in MHFA, so you can help when you’re needed most.
4.5M
People Trained
2 in 5
U.S. adults say they don’t know how to respond to a loved one’s mental health crisis.
of Americans don’t know when a mental health situation is serious enough to call 988.
Americans died by suicide per day in 2022, on average
How MHFA Can Help
You may be thinking, why should I get a Mental Health First Aid certificate? How will it help me help others? There are so many benefits to becoming a First Aider or Instructor. You’ll be prepared to help in a crisis, support your community and be part of a nationwide movement to build mental wellbeing.
Why Take MHFA?
Be prepared to help
Mental Health First Aid teaches you how to apply the MHFA Action Plan (ALGEE) to help someone in a variety of situations, from a panic attack to an overdose.
Make recovery a reality
People facing mental health and substance use challenges can and do get well, and they can use their own inner strength to stay well.
Support your community
You can make a difference in your community by teaching your family, friends and neighbors how to help others in need.
Why Teach MFHA?
Find the right words
Our training takes the fear out of talking about mental health by showing you how to safely identify signs of a mental health or substance use challenge and offer help.
Build your own resiliency
MHFA training offers self-help tools that you can share with others or use to support your own mental health.
Build a support system
MHFA’s goal is to train every 1 in 15 people to address mental health and substance use challenges within their circles. You can help ensure that everyone has someone to turn to.
Join a nationwide movement
As mental health awareness grows, so does the need for trained Instructors to teach MHFA. By becoming an Instructor, you can join a field that’s changing lives for the better.
Become a Certified Instructor
Anyone can become a MHFA Instructor. Do you have work or personal experience with mental health or substance use challenges? Have you trained adult learners in the past? Do you believe your community deserves a strong support system? These are the qualities that make the best Instructors, the ones who change lives. Your actions as a Mental Health First Aider ripple out to help create a healthier, more supportive community.
Start Teaching
Jessica Smiley
MHFA Instructor
“Although I am not a teacher by profession, I appreciate being able to teach and empower individuals with MHFA so they can support those around them.”
Pepe Juelle
MHFA Instructor
“The simple act of giving them hope that people with mental health or substance use challenges can recover motivates me every day. And when training ends at 5:30 p.m., the knowledge that 15 or 20 or 25 more people are able to help others gives me inexplicable satisfaction.”
Sydney Snow
MHFA Instructor
“Each class is a step toward realizing the profound difference you can make in someone’s life.”
Eric Weaver
MHFA National Trainer
“MHFA for Public Safety allows officers and other public safety personnel the opportunity to learn much more than they would ever learn in an academy-type setting, especially since most officers being trained in this module have long been out of the academy. The curriculum creates a chance for officers to really understand the importance of empathy, compassion and respect for those living with mental health challenges.”
Captain Joseph Coffey
Rhode Island
“If we can prevent today’s depressed person from becoming tomorrow’s barricaded person, then we’ve done our job on many, many levels.”
Catie Gilman
Mount Holyoke College
“As an athletic trainer, mental health is as much a part of my job as physical health. The opportunity to be a MHFA Instructor for my Athletics department as well as campus community felt as natural as being a CPR/AED instructor. MHFA equips coaches, ATs, admin and any other student-forward employee with the ability to recognize when a student needs support or resources, as well as the confidence to activate proper resources in a crisis.”
Judith LeDoux
Anna Maria College
“As someone who is certified in MHFA, I see firsthand how the concepts and training can be beneficial within college life, as well as in Athletics. For many college athletes, they see the trainers and coaches as their closest and most trusted adult figures on campus. Having them trained in MHFA can only provide a benefit to Athletics staff and student athletes.”
Jennifer Ostrowski
PhD, LAT, ATC, Moravian University
“In this population, I have found that the knowledge gained as part of the MHFA program has helped decrease the stigma related to mental illness in Athletics, and the skills and techniques have empowered coaches to approach athletes with their concerns and encourage them to seek professional mental health services.”
Rev. Dr. Christian Frazier
Youth MHFA Instructor
“Mental health remains a topic many avoid, but Team: Changing Minds provides a platform that makes learning both engaging and impactful. My background in acting and stand-up comedy allows me to bring humor and storytelling into the classroom. I strive to make my trainings immersive, and when participants say, “You’re the best teacher I’ve ever had,” it affirms that learning mental health skills can be enjoyable while saving lives.”
Chris James
Youth MHFA Instructor
“I was inspired to apply for the Team: Changing Minds grant for Youth MHFA because I wanted to be even more equipped to do this work we do daily. I wanted to be able to serve the parents, educators and community members who serve these boys. I knew how much Youth MHFA inspired me and felt obligated to take that same feeling and inspiration back to my community.”
Cathy Muse
Director, Public Promise Procurement, NACo EDGE
“Our partnership with MHFA is giving counties tools to take action — not just awareness. This training is necessary for a thriving workforce.”
Dow Constantine
County Executive, King County, Washington
“We started offering MHFA to our supervisors. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive. Employees feel confident in recognizing and responding to challenges.”
Toni Holmes
Toni Holmes, Director, Talent Management, Rockdale County, Georgia
“We brought it into all our trainings — public safety, supervisors, leadership. MHFA provided a different level of support alongside the Employee Assistance Program.”
Alyssa Fruchtenich
School-based Mental Health Coordinator, UnityPoint Health
“It can be scary for an adult who suspects a child is thinking of hurting themselves. Where do you start the conversation? When a teacher says, ‘How can I be helpful?’ it can be a lifeline to that kid.”
Nikki Karber
President, Speak Out Against Suicide
“Our small community has been greatly affected by suicide. While mental health is a topic that many wish to not discuss, we feel that Mental Health First Aid was essential in bringing the knowledge and awareness our community is striving for. Without it, we would have continued to feel helpless.”
Captain Joseph Coffey
Ret., Rhode Island Municipal Police Academy and MHFA National Trainer
“My Mental Health First Aid training helped me save a life, and regular incidents serve as reminders of how public safety officers fall back on their training in times of crisis.”
Ruth Kaluski
Director of Career Connection, Employment Resource Institute at the Mental Health Association in New Jersey
“People who completed the older adult training found it extremely valuable. That’s helped us build a case for the need to increase mental health literacy and reduce stigma in New Jersey’s communities.”
Pepe Juelle
Desarrollador de negocios, Olympic Agency, S.A.; Instructor de PASM
“Mi mayor inspiración para continuar ofreciendo estos adiestramientos y capacitando a personas comunes es saber que estoy ayudando, directa o indirectamente, a los pacientes de salud mental. No hay mayor satisfacción que culminar un adiestramiento a las 5:30 p.m. y ver la expresión de los participantes al salir felices, con una mochila repleta de herramientas para ayudar a sus familias, amigos y compañeros de trabajo.”
Tiffany Edouard
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
“MHFA built a foundation that has really helped the campus culture.”
Michael Allora
Retired Deputy Fire Chief, Clifton (N.J.) Fire Department
“Since completing training, I’ve noticed that there is more conversation about mental health, and that is helping reduce the stigma associated with behavioral health issues. People at our fire department are using what they learned in their personal lives as well as their professional lives.”
Ava Sapolski
Student, Amherst Steele High School
“I was surprised by how much I learned about taking care of my own mental health, being kind to those around me, supporting my friends through rough patches and how to potentially save a life.”
Michaela Hjelm
Wellness Program Manager, Trident Seafoods Corporation
“The trainings opened the door for employees to share their ideas on how we can further our mission as an organization to raise awareness and caring. As a result, we’ve enhanced our paid time off policies and hosted professional on-site counseling sessions.”
Brooke Castillo
Director, Learning and Talent Development, Xylem Inc.
“Mental Health First Aid at Work training has helped people leaders, human resources and environmental health safety and security colleagues find the courage to handle situations that arise. These situations are on the rise, and this training makes it possible to address them with empathy and care.”
Alyssa Fruchtebicht
Mental Health Coordinator, UnityPoint Health – Black Hawk Grundy Mental Health Center
“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.”
Tousha Paxton-Barnes
U.S. Army Veteran
“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.”
Taryn Bird
Executive Director of Social Impact, Kate Spade New York
“Over the last five years, kate spade new york has partnered with the National Council for Mental Wellbeing to provide Mental Health First Aid training to our nonprofit community partners, as well as over 130 kate spade new york corporate employees. We believe that mental health is a fundamental human right and know the foundational importance it has to our overall empowerment, especially in the workplace. We are thrilled to be a launch partner for MHFA at Work’s Retail training, providing vital, industry-specific training to over 900 of our store leaders.”
Lt. Virgil Meyer
Pennsylvania Department of Corrections
“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”
Ready to find your course?
If you’re curious about which MHFA course is right for you, check out our full list of offerings. We’re here to answer your questions and support you on your journey through MHFA training and beyond.
