Saline County kicked off its inaugural “Love Your Mental Health” campaign last week by offering CopeNotes subscriptions to all county employees. Subscriptions are now open and available to Saline County residents.
“We understand that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ answer to combating mental health issues,” explained Phil Smith-Hanes, County Administrator. “This is just one tool to help reach the portion of our community who prefer to receive their mental health support through a digital, proactive, and anonymous platform.”
Saline County residents can sign up at the link below with the redemption code SALINE.
With low in-person attendance in mental health programs, Cope Notes aims to address the need for digital solutions that maintain consistent communication with individuals seeking preventative care, as well as those reluctant to engage with providers altogether.
Cope Notes provides individuals with randomly timed messages containing anything from psychology facts to exercises and journaling prompts. Every subscriber’s text sequence is unique so that no two users ever receive the same message at the same time. Each Cope Notes text must first undergo a thorough review process by a panel of peer-support advocates and mental health professionals, in order to ensure that the messages will have a positive effect on the subscriber’s health. The ultimate goal of the service is to train the brain to disrupt negative thoughts and promote a more positive pattern of thinking.
While Cope Notes encourages members to reply to text messages, it does not offer real-time conversations, but rather encourages members to use replies as an anonymous, confidential journal. A person in crisis can text the word “HELP” to connect with a crisis counselor at the Crisis Text Line.
Funded through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, Cope Notes’ implementation in Saline County comes at a time when the stressors and complications of adapting to COVID-19 have amplified the need for digital solutions that maintain consistent communication with individuals seeking preventative care, as well as those reluctant to engage with providers altogether.
