Would you like to learn best practices and tools for better relationships, especially with your teen/pre-teen? The "Don't Freak Out" event does just that. I am Kari Cunningham, the certified athletic trainer at Sunset High School. I, along with the administration and counseling department, am raising funds to bring this event to the broader Sunset community.  The event is a 2 hour presentation given by David Kozlowski, licensed child and family therapist and Heidi Swapp, Mom and enterprenuer, of the "Light the Fight" podcast. The first hour will be a presentation of strategies and the second hour will be question and answers.  There will also be a presentation/workshop with the leadership students at Sunset High School. Your donation will help to pay for the speaker fees.  

This event will be free to the community but we are asking for help to offset the costs. With a generous donation from an anonymous sponsor, every gift will be matched for DOUBLE the impact.

While working in the high school, I have been struck by the drastic increase in anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts among our student body.  As a parent of a pre-teen, I have found myself trying to stay relavent and connected, and learn how to most effectively parent at this stage.  I have found David's strategies and advice to be on point, simple, and effective. The goal of this event is to have attendees leave with strategies to start implementing in their families and broader relationships that will allow them to address common pitfalls that can lead to dysfunctional relationships and mistrust; which can then lead to anxiety and depression.  I have to say, that I have seen first hand how these strategies can diffuse an unintentional blow up and increase communication from a disgruntled teen. 

To address the fact that a large majority of our student body is dealing with varying degrees of anxiety, depression and other mental health issues, our leadership class has started a wellness committee and a select group of them will be getting training in peer to peer communication/counseling.  This is an area that David Kozlowski has been helping to implement in another high school, and his presentation is an exciting opportunity for our students.