More than a year into COVID-19 and amidst a most dire mental health crisis, the CHECK YOUR HEAD Podcast and more than 500 organizations team up to plan inaugural ‘Mental Health Action Day’ on May 20

Learn more at www.MentalHealthActionDay.org

CHECK YOUR HEAD: Mental Help for Musicians Podcast today announces its participation in the first-ever Mental Health Action Day, to be held onThursday, May 20 in partnership with more than 500 leading brands, nonprofits, government agencies and cultural leaders.

Over the past two decades, suicide rates have risen, particularly among young adults. And the COVID pandemic has accelerated the already dire crisis, giving way to what many mental health professionals have called the “second pandemic.”

Though more people than ever are comfortable discussing mental health, finding effective resources and knowing how to get help remains a challenge. Mental Health Action Day is an open-source movement of brands, organizations and cultural leaders to drive culture from mental health awareness to mental health action.

Partners will encourage people to take mental health action — whether for themselves, for their loved ones or to advocate for systemic changes. Resources and tools will be available for people to seek help in a myriad of ways from starting a meditation practice, learning how to support a friend, or advocating for change.

From CHECK YOUR HEAD Podcast:

“Talking openly about and sharing your stories on mental health is only part of the solution,” says Mari Fong, Executive Producer and Host of the CHECK YOUR HEAD: Mental Help for Musicians Podcast. “The second part is taking action which can include taking action for yourself, for a loved one, or for your community.

“The CHECK YOUR HEAD Podcast aims to do both by sharing stories and solutions for recovery from your favorite musicians and experts, while checkyourheadpodcast.com provides 100+ solutions to assist you in taking positive action.”

“Good mental health is the feeling of joy, appreciation and contentment with our personal and professional lives. It’s such a delicate balance and one that needs to be an ongoing priority during these uncertain times.”

From MTV:

“From Covid-19 to economic struggles and the continuing fight for racial justice, the other half of the twin pandemic is the rise of our mental health challenges,” said Erika Soto Lamb, Vice President of Social Impact Strategy at MTV Entertainment Group.

“This is a critical moment to shift our culture from mental health awareness to mental health action and MTV is proud to come together with diverse cross-sector leaders on this inaugural day to encourage and empower people to take action — for themselves, for their loved ones or for the systemic changes needed to improve our social and emotional wellbeing.”

Mental Health Action Day is being planned in partnership with TaskForce, a cultural organizing agency that builds capacity for those taking on the most pressing challenges facing our communities, our nation and our world.

Additional participants and more information about how each partner will activate on May 20 will be forthcoming. More on Mental Health Action Day and a current list of partners can be found at www.MentalHealthActionDay.org.

About Mental Health Action Day

Mental Health Action Day is an open-source movement of brands, organizations and cultural leaders to drive culture from mental health awareness to mental health action. The first Mental Health Action Day will take place on May 20, 2021 with a mission to encourage and empower people to take mental health action — whether for themselves, for their loved ones or to advocate for systemic changes, because mental health is health. Learn more at www.MentalHealthActionDay.org.

About CHECK YOUR HEAD Podcast:

Launched in 2019 and Executive Produced and Hosted by Mari Fong, a seasoned music journalist and certified Life Coach for Musicians, CHECK YOUR HEAD Podcast, has hosted open, honest and intimate conversations about mental health, wellness and recovery with the likes of Gilby Clarke (Guns N’ Roses), Fred Armisen (Portlandia, SNL, Late Night with Seth Meyers), The Bloody Beetroots, Frank Zummo (SUM 41) Emilio Castillo (Tower Of Power), Yesod Williams (Pepper), Sammi Doll (IAMX, Kat Von D), Danny Griego and Shaun Morgan (Seether), Kevin Lyman (Vans Warped Tour) and most recently, the iconic Linda Ronstadt.

Top mental health experts are paired with each episode such as Dr. Dan Reidenberg (SAVE.org) on suicide prevention, Dr. Ish Major (Relationship expert, “Marriage Boot Camp”) on toxic relationship recovery, Johan Svanberg (Record Union, “The 73 Percent Report”) and Tim Ringgold, MT-BC (Music Therapist, Sonic Recovery) on mood disorder and addiction recovery using music therapy.

Now with 23 episodes and counting under her belt, and an ever-growing audience tuning in, Fong and her CHECK YOUR HEAD Podcast continue on with the important mission of normalizing the conversations around mental health, encouraging others to get help, and providing solutions for recovery on www.checkyourheadpodcast.

CHECK YOUR HEAD is fiscally sponsored by DBSA San Gabriel Valley, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, with all donations tax-deductible.

Listen to the CHECK YOUR HEAD Podcast onwww.checkyourheadpodcast.com, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and everywhere you listen to your favorite podcasts.

About Mari Fong

Mari Fong is Executive Producer and Host of the CHECK YOUR HEAD 
Podcast and also a seasoned music journalist. Fong has interviewed and covered a variety of musicians and artists including Chester Bennington of Linkin Park, Ozzy Osbourne, Paul McCartney, Aerosmith, Cage the Elephant, The White Stripes, Green Day, System of A Down, and David Bowie.

Fong is also a certified Life Coach for Musicians with over 20 years of experience in the healthcare industry. As an advocate for musicians and their mental health, she was featured on Today, I’m Brave, a nonprofit that 
spotlights extraordinary people making brave, positive changes.

Fong was Executive Producer on the Sirius XM radio show, “The Inner Circle with Neil Strauss,” Strauss being the best-selling author of “The Dirt: Confessions from the World’s Most Notorious Rock Band” with Motley Crue and “The Game,” his infamous book on pick-up artists.