The following was contributed by Kathryn Owen from Desert Star Addiction Recovery Center.

May is National Mental Health Awareness Month, and also the month that Arizonans are beginning to dip our toes into the new normal of everyday life as Stay-At-Home orders are lifted. Navigating the uncertainties of pandemic life is challenging even for those of us who have never been diagnosed with a mental health condition. Have you noticed yourself being more short-tempered? Feeling dread about the future? Having difficulties falling asleep or relaxing? Having trouble coping with the boredom and isolation of staying at home, or with the burnout of continuing to work or to school your children?

You are not alone. Across the country, calls to crisis lines are coming in faster than ever before. People are seeking help from therapists or treatment centers even as those providers are struggling to adapt by implementing telehealth and virtual treatment options. We who work in the behavioral health field are bracing ourselves for another type of wave rising in the wake of COVID-19: an unprecedented number of Americans seeking help for anxiety, for depression, for grief, for suicidal thoughts.

In the face of all of this, it is more important than ever to practice self-care to keep ourselves centered, hopeful, and healthy. Here are a few simple tools that anyone can use in their daily lives.

Hey, everyone! How are you all holding up out there? We hope you're staying safe and staying sane. May is Mental Health Awareness Month, so check up on your friends and family, and reach out if you need a little extra help.

Here are some of the stories we've covered today:

• The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Arizona hit 9,707 as of Wednesday, May 6, according to the morning report from the Arizona Department of Health Services.
• The Rialto Theatre and 191 Toole have joined forces with the National Independent Venue Association to ask legislators to provide federal funding for struggling concert halls - and they need your help.
• While park officials are still determining how to best reopen amenities, they are encouraging park users to prepare for soaring temperatures in the Sonoran Desert.
• For those who've lost their job or can no longer afford diabetes supplies due to COVID-19, Tucson Medical Center is hosting a diabetes resource page listing discounts and cost-saving information from the three major insulin manufacturers.
• You can ditch the suit-and-tie look while working from home, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't still dress in stylish T-shirts.
• At least five Arizona prisoners have died from complications related to COVID-19, validating the fear of many advocates and family members of incarcerated people.
• The Alliance of Arizona Nonprofits, an advocacy group representing more than 20,000 nonprofits, estimates the state's nonprofit sector has already lost more than $40 million due to the COVID-19 pandemic and anticipates a $433 million loss by year's end.

For those who've lost their job or can no longer afford diabetes supplies due to COVID-19, Tucson Medical Center is hosting a diabetes resource page listing discounts and cost-saving information from the three major insulin manufacturers.

Throughout the COVID-19 outbreak, Saguaro National Park East and West have remained open (sans restrooms and parking lots) to allow locals a place to get some fresh air while Gov. Doug Ducey's stay-at-home order has been in place.

While park officials are still determining how to best reopen amenities, they are encouraging park users to prepare for soaring temperatures in the Sonoran Desert.

“It is hot and we recommend getting an early start and only hiking in the morning,” Saguaro National Parks spokesperson Andy Fisher said. “Once the temperature is over 95, we suggest being back to the trailhead before 10 a.m. Make sure you have a plan and have communicated that plan to someone who will know when to expect you back, and always, always, always take more water than you expect to need.”

Fisher said that there has been an uptick in park users needing rescue because the have run out of water. She urges: “When it's half down, turn around.”

“We can't stress how important it is to know your own limitations and not try to test them these days,” she says.

Saguaro Parks has yet to determine how its “phased reopening” will happen, but are working to determine how to safely open facilities.

“We know that it will be a phased reopening, so probably not what we would expect as a ‘normal’ operation this summer,” Fisher concludes. “Staff and visitor safety are paramount to the decisions we are making.”

The Rialto Theatre and 191 Toole have joined forces with the National Independent Venue Association to ask legislators to provide federal funding for struggling concert halls. Part of this initiative is asking all those who enjoy local independent music venues to sign a letter on the NIVA website, requesting that members of congress support federal assistance for independent venues.

"When this crisis began, independent music venues were the first to close, and we will be the last to open," Rialto wrote in a letter to patrons. "Together with you we have played a role in bringing Tucson to life and furthering the careers of countless artists... Now independent venues like ours are at risk, and we need you to tell our Senators and Representatives how important The Rialto and 191 Toole are to you and to Southern Arizona."

PHOENIX – As Miss Shoshone-Bannock, Stormie Perdash has represented her people all across the United States. Now, amid the coronavirus pandemic, she’s representing them in a different way.

Growing up on the Fort Hall Reservation in Idaho, Perdash remembers just how badly she wanted the Miss Shoshone-Bannock title – or Miss Sho-Ban for short.

“She was like the coolest thing ever,” Perdash said.

She spent her preteen years on the Flathead Indian Reservation in Montana and lived in Los Angeles after graduating from high school, and figured her pageant dream was over. But last summer, she returned to Fort Hall for a visit and decided to enter the pageant for 18 to 25 year olds – which she won.

“My first six months were amazing. I went and represented in Hawaii, South Dakota, Los Angeles,” she said in an interview. “Oh, Wisconsin! Also, our local community events – I’ve been here for those as well.

“And then COVID happened.”

The University of Arizona announced Tuesday that there are additional testing slots available for healthcare workers, first responders, and the general public in Pima County.

The tests determine if an individual has developed antibodies against the virus that causes COVID-19. Last month, UA announced it would begin testing 250,000 of Arizona’s health care workers and first responders as part of a partnership with the state government. The university received $3.5 million in funding to produce tests.

Anyone interested in a test should go online to the UA COVID-19 antibody testing website.

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Arizona topped 9,000 as of Tuesday, May 5, according to the morning report from the Arizona Department of Health Services. Pima County had 1,379 of the states’ 9,305 confirmed cases. The coronavirus had killed 395 people statewide, including 105 in Pima County, according to the report.

PHOENIX – Despite the federal government’s unprecedented efforts to aid businesses threatened by the COVID-19 pandemic, small farms are being left further behind, according to one local small farm owner.

McClendon’s Select, a family owned farm in Peoria and Goodyear, normally sells its organic produce, citrus and honey to restaurants and farmers markets. Since Arizona banned gatherings of more than 10 people and ordered restaurants without takeout services to shut down March 19, McClendon’s Select has seen a huge drop in business.

“Literally overnight with the COVID-19 restrictions, we watched our restaurant business drop by 95 percent. So 75 percent of our business – almost all of that went away overnight,” said Kate McClendon, owner of McClendon’s Select.

According to the Arizona Farm Bureau, farms and ranches cover about 26 million acres in the state, and their contribution to the state’s economy is more than $423 billion a year.

The first round of the federal Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security Act, or CARES, which was signed into law in late March, included $376 billion for American workers and small businesses. Through the U.S. Small Business Administration, businesses could apply for an Economic Injury Disaster Loan, known as an EIDL, for up to $10,000.

But there was a stipulation.

The Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona's drive-thru food bank reopened today at its new location at Kino Veterans Memorial Stadium to help serve a larger portion of the community faster and more efficiently.

"Because unemployment is so high, job loss is so high and people are being furloughed, people are strapped," said Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona CEO Michael McDonald. "It's been a long haul and so many people need food." 

Troops from the National Guard quickly place boxes of produce, milk, bread, and other essential goods into people's vehicles while Poison's 80s anthem, "Nothin' But a Good Time", blasts from a Bluetooth speaker. The atmosphere at the new location felt more like a summer camp, warmer in spirit than one would expect considering the circumstances.

"It's larger, it's faster, we got a sufficient food supply, we got the National Guard, we got librarians from Pima County and lots of other volunteers and staff. We're getting through the line quickly," McDonald said. "It was a long line almost to the exit off the freeway at Kino earlier though."