ROANOKE, Va. (WDBJ) – Breaking down the walls on a conversation that’s never easy to have.

“There’s such a mental health stigma in the community. It’s critical that people come forward and are willing to have this conversation,” said Leigh Gathings, the Vice President of Behavioral Health for LewisGale.

Girl Scouts from across the state came together to do just that at Operation H.E.R: Strong Minds, Strong Girls Mental Health Summit.

“We are really excited to share with our girls and their parents and caregivers and teachers an opportunity for them to learn more about mental well being and how to show up for each other,” said Girl Scouts of Virginia Skyline Chief Executive Officer Nikki Williams.

This is the first event of this magnitude hosted by the Girl Scouts of Virginia Skyline. Williams said it’s been in the works for a year now after girls in the organization talked about the challenges they face daily.

“As Girl Scouts, that’s what we’re supposed to do, is meet girls where they are,” said Williams. “We say we move at the speed of girls, and the girls are telling us this was important to them right now.”

Throughout the day, Girl Scouts of all ages attend workshops talking all things mental health. They learned new coping mechanisms for when things get tough.

Gathings said these kinds of conversations are crucial to have as kids are growing up.

“It’s critical that our girls are able to speak to the emotions that they’re feeling and to be a good friend and to understand the feelings that they’re having,” she said. “So that if their feelings become out of sync they’re able to speak up and ask for help.”

But young girls aren’t the only ones who learned something new. Parents who attended learned to have supportive conversations with their children.

“It’s critical that we understand that what’s going on with our children, whether we’re a coach, a teacher, a Girl Scout leader or a parent. It’s crucial that we’re having those conversations, that we know what our kids are feeling and experiencing, and then we understand their stressors,” added Gathings.

The Girl Scout mission is to build girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place.

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