Just ahead of National Suicide Prevention Week, KCBS Radio is joining a national campaign to raise awareness around mental health.

For this edition of KCBS In Depth we bring you stories from right here in the Bay Area of neighbors helping neighbors to overcome mental health challenges and thrive.

We hear from the Peninsula teenagers taking on tragedy in their own communities; the enterprising therapists bringing mental health care to the homeless; and the beauty queen who won her crown on a platform of mental health awareness. Along the way, we also get practical advice for how to start difficult conversations around mental illness and how to navigate the Bay Area's often fragmented mental health care system.

This program is part of the national "I'm Listening" campaign.

Guest:
Eli Merritt, San Francisco-based Psychiatrist, founder of Merritt Mental Health and author of "Suicide Risk in the Bay Area: A Guide for Families, Physicians, Therapists & Other Professionals"

Host:
Keith Menconi

Reporters:
Holly Quan, Margie Shafer, Jim Taylor, Rebecca Corral and Doug Sovern

Special thanks to:
- CMAP TV, a Gilroy-based community media organization
- Parents Helping Parents, San Jose-based nonprofit providing support to parents of children with special needs
- The Steinberg Institute, advocacy group lobbying for stronger mental health support in California