Sis, taking care of yourself goes beyond scheduling that yearly check-up.
This week was Mental Illness Awareness Week—a time to raise awareness, fight stigma, and remind each other that no one should have to face mental health challenges alone.
It’s also Health Literacy Month, and that means one thing: knowledge is power. Understanding your mental health, spotting warning signs, and accessing the right resources is more than self-care. It’s how we keep ourselves and our loved ones safe.
At 1M4, we want to make sure every community knows the Right Response is here for them. Our directory connects you to mental health support, crisis resources, and tools to protect yourself and those around you.
Here are a few quick ways to check in with yourself today:
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Am I carrying tension in my body right now?
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Have I eaten, hydrated, or rested enough today?
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What emotions am I feeling most strongly and why?
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Do I need support, or just space to breathe?
As we work toward 4,000 members by the end of the year, each new member helps more families access life-saving resources. Let’s learn, shield, and grow our village together.
“My belief is in the chaos of the world and that you have to find your peace within the chaos, and that you still have to find some sort of mission.”
— Ta-Nehisi Coates
Post of the Week
A quick reminder from our Founder, Tansy: Sometimes protecting your mind means taking a pause, stepping outside, or finding your people offline. Healing doesn’t just happen behind a screen—it happens in community.
We hope you carved out time yesterday during National Black Girl Day Off to reset, rest, and revive the parts of you need nurturing.
📲 Check out the full post and don’t forget to follow and engage with us.
Your Expertise is Needed!
We’re completely revamping The Right Response Directory and need your input to ensure it meets our community’s needs.
This critical resource connects you to alternative first-response programs offering compassionate support through peer responders, clinicians, and trained EMTs for calls like welfare checks, noise complaints, traffic incidents, and mental health crises.
Your feedback is vital for us to improve. Please take a few minutes to complete our confidential survey. Thank you for sharing your thoughts!
A Mental Health Tip For You
When life feels overwhelming, take a few minutes to journal your “whys.”
Write down the reasons you keep going, like your loved ones, your dreams, your values, your community.
Naming your “whys” creates an anchor you can return to whenever stress, doubt, or hopelessness creeps in. Keep this list close as a reminder that your purpose is bigger than the moment you’re in.
Spread Some Blessings!
The consequences of police violence extend far beyond the loss of life. For families affected, it’s the loss of income, the sacrifice of basic necessities, and the start of a high-cost legal fight. If you have the capacity, consider donating to 1M4. Proceeds help support impacted families and sustain the work of 1M4 toward ending police violence for good.
We want to honor what it truly means to be a Black woman in this country and in this world right now. Carrying the weight, saving the day, showing up for your family, your community, your workplace—often without pause or recognition—takes a toll that too often goes unspoken.
It’s not just exhausting, it’s isolating. And in the rush of being caretaker, advocate, and problem-solver, your own needs can get pushed to the back of the line.
But you deserve more than survival. You deserve rest and a circle that reminds you that your healing is just as vital as the care you pour into everyone else. That’s why we’re here.
At 1M4, we’re not only building resources and tools, we’re cultivating a space for you to exhale, connect, and be reminded that you are not alone in this. Lean on us. Lean on your Sistas. And most of all, lean into your right to take care of yourself.
We are committed to covering 4000 families in our lifesaving resources by the end of this year. Join 1M4’s private membership community today and shield the village closest to you.
Let’s do this! Shields up!
To ensure our community has the resources provided by 1M4 and are fully empowered to shield their immediate community from harm, our Founder will hold weekly office hours to answer any questions and walk members through our safety resources.
No registration required. Simply join 1M4 through the button below then tap into our online community at 12pm EST every Tuesday starting this week.
Got a pressing question? Reply here and we’ll answer you via email and first thing Tuesday at noon EST.
October 22 is the National Day of Protest to Stop Police Brutality, organized by the October 22 Coalition. Since 1996, this day has brought people together—those directly impacted by police violence and those standing in solidarity—to resist brutality, mass incarceration, and political repression. As we face rising white supremacy and authoritarian threats, the Coalition continues building a nationwide network of protest and actions we can all take to strengthen our collective resistance. Watch the video above to see 1M4 and others in action, fighting for justice and community protection.
1M4 will be attending the 6th Annual Black Mental Wellness Conference. This year’s theme, Reclaiming Our Power and Protecting Our Peace, centers healing in the Black community, honoring our past, acknowledging the present, and envisioning a liberated future. Over 1,000 attendees—psychologists, educators, advocates, families, and allies—gather to connect, learn, and celebrate.
In October and beyond, help raise awareness of alternatives to police for mental health emergencies. Share the Right Response directory with your local community, snap a few pictures, and let us know about it. We would love to highlight you and your advocacy in our newsletter and social media pages. Share your advocacy results HERE. Whether you shared with two people or 200 people, each life matters.
We are celebrating you as the trusted voice in your community!
Any questions? Simply hit “reply.”
Ready to join in shielding your community? Click HERE
Ok so… we’re on TikTok now! Follow, engage, and rep 1M4 over there. We’re doing our best to reach the people.
Help some Sistas out!
You Got Your 1M4 Merch Yet?
Visit the 1M4 merch store to make sure you’re representing at court support, protests, or in line at your favorite coffee spot. We want to see YOU in your 1M4 gear. Every purchase goes directly to funding the work of 1M4 increasing access to safety and wellness.
