SRSLY Chelsea Launches Newest Resource Map

For the third consecutive year, SRSLY Chelsea is recognizing Mental Health May with the launch of its next Resource Access Roadmap. The Coalition has previously developed roadmaps to support youth, families, school staff and community members in navigating the urgent topics of mental health, substance abuse and coping among youth.

The series provides readers with a simple flowchart “roadmap” that guides them to the appropriate level of support for their need and current situation with simple yes or no questions. On the flip side of the resource, readers are given DSM-5 sourced signs and symptoms to support them in determining what level of care they should seek, who they should call, and if it’s an emergency. 

“We address everything from general knowledge on the topics, to providing names and numbers for an urgent crisis,” SRSLY Director Kate Yocum said. “Each year, we respond to an emerging need from the community with a roadmap. It’s become a resource the community asks for.”

This past school year, that need was eating disorders. 

“We’re excited for the release of SRSLY’s new Eating Disorder Resource Roadmap,” Marie Larson, Chelsea School District’s Mental Health Coordinator and a SRSLY team volunteer, said. “This will fill the gap of a much-needed resource for our support teams.” 

The SRSLY Roadmaps have become one of the most widely distributed resources for Chelsea families and staff. These tools are distributed through a variety of ways to the community, via print and digital. Each roadmap has been shared through the district to more than 2,300 students and their families, but the impact has gone even further.

“We’ve received roadmap replication requests from other towns, counties, and last year, as far as Maryland,” Yocum said. “These requests prove that we’re providing something unique that is in high demand. It helps eliminate misinformation, fear and caregiver burnout, and replaces it with support, facts and reassurance for those experiencing a health challenge or emergency.”

SRSLY’s efforts and program initiatives are student-led. Using an evidence-based framework of local data, SRSLY’s Student Leadership Team responds to emerging community needs with innovative solutions that ensure relevance and efficacy for their target populations.

“The students are the leaders, the planners, the visionaries,” Yocum said. “That’s what makes SRSLY work. That’s why these resources are so highly utilized.”

Yocum also credits SRSLY’s Adult Volunteer Team for their selflessness and time invested behind the scenes to improve supports for Chelsea families, parents and community members. 

Chelsea residents can access this Resource Roadmap online by visiting www.srsly.org/eating-disorder-signs-symptoms and clicking the green “Eating Disorder Roadmap” button, or by scanning the QR code below.