Humboldt County walk raises mental health awareness, fights stigma

Dozens of community members and law enforcement officers walked from the Hope Center on H Street in Eureka for Humboldt County’s annual Mental Health Awareness Walk, a familiar May ritual the county uses to spotlight services and push back against stigma. The walk was hosted by the Humboldt County Department of Health and Human Services and Hope Center leaders, and county records show versions of the event have been held in the community for nearly 10 years. For families looking past the symbolism, the county’s first stop is its 24-hour Behavioral Health Crisis Line at 707-445-7715, which can connect people to outpatient care, medication support, the Crisis Stabilization Unit or Sempervirens Psychiatric Health Facility depending on need.

The Hope Center is more than a ceremonial starting point. County records say the center sits on the main Behavioral Health campus and offers a safe, free place to relax, socialize and build skills, with activities such as Art Bingo, Grief Group, Peer Advocacy Group and WRAP. For people who need urgent, voluntary help, Same Day Services at Behavioral Health main reception on 720 Wood St. in Eureka is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Routine requests for Access services are screened first, and the county says callers should get a return call within five business days; if eligible, interviews are scheduled at 1:30 p.m., with walk-ins starting at 2 p.m. after screening.

Children, teens and adults each have a different path into care. The Children’s Mobile Response Team provides short-term crisis intervention, phone triage, in-person response, crisis stabilization and after-care for children and families across Humboldt County, while Humboldt Bridges to Success works through public schools countywide for students through 12th grade. Adults can use the Adult Mobile Response Team, which serves all ages in the field from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily, and adult outpatient services offer screening, assessment, referral and counseling. County behavioral health also lists services for older adults and transition-age youth ages 16 to 26, along with peer support and navigation through the county’s Behavioral Health Services Act programs.

Law enforcement is part of Humboldt County’s crisis response, not just its back-end enforcement. County law enforcement partners with Behavioral Health’s Mobile Intervention and Services Team, or MIST, to co-respond to incidents involving people in mental health crisis and connect them to treatment in the field, and the county has hosted Crisis Intervention Team training since 2007 to help officers de-escalate crises and divert people toward care rather than jail. The gaps remain plain in the county’s own service structure: mobile teams respond depending on capacity, regional services are still needed for outlying areas, and routine Access requests can take up to five business days before the first screening call.