Communicating Is More Than Finding The Right Words
August 31, 2018August 24, 2018 | By Keiko Purnell
My last depressive episode left me completely isolated. I didn’t respond to messages for months. Since I didn’t know how long I would be depressed, answering the question “how are you?” became emotionally draining. Actually, that one question was why I stopped talking to people entirely.
“How are you?” is such a knee-jerk opening line to a conversation; most of us don’t even realize we’re saying it, or pay much attention to the typical response Read More
Traveling With A Mood Disorder
By Jonathan Berg
I was diagnosed with bipolar II disorder when I was 14. It has taken me decades to come to grips with what that means, and to be in a place where I’m comfortable talking openly about it. Nowadays, I’m really open, because I work as a travel blogger, connecting with people and places for a living. I actually started my career at a nonprofit office job, thinking that was what I wanted. But the traditional professional life was something Read More
Washington gets $284,000 to study mental health, addiction services
August 21, 2018 | By Tacoma Weekly Staff
Washington is one of 30 states plus the District of Columbia to receive a portion of an $8.6 million grant awarded through the State Flexibility to Stabilize the Market program created under the federal Affordable Care Act.
Washington received $284,135 of the total grant funding. Our state chose to focus the use of the funding to bolster access to mental health and addiction treatment services.
Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler applied for the grant to conduct Read More
Spreading Hope Through Peer Support
August 1, 2018 | By Michael Haines
What does it mean to be a peer support specialist?
To me, it means providing a voice for people when they struggle in finding their own. It means advocating for people, encouraging their recoveries and even sometimes standing in courtrooms as a show of support. And it often means educating community members and outside providers about First Episode Psychosis (FEP) programs like the Early Assessment and Support Alliance (EASA)—a program where I transformed from a Read More
NAMI’s New President Outlines Priorities For Serious Mental Illness
July 17, 2018 | By Adrienne Kennedy
On June 30, among the 15 of my board member peers, I was elected to serve as President of the NAMI Board of Directors for 2018/2019. I am honored and humbled to be provided the opportunity to represent the hundreds of thousands of families, peers and avid supporters who comprise this important movement.
When I found NAMI in 2005, our son and our family had logged 6 years coping with serious mental illness: five Read More
Washington hospital is ‘like going into hell’
July 6, 2018 | foxnews.com
Behind tall brick walls and secure windows, hundreds of patients at Washington state’s largest psychiatric hospital live in conditions that fail U.S. health and safety standards, while overworked nurses and psychiatrists say they are navigating a system that punishes employees who speak out despite critical staffing shortages.
“They don’t have enough staff to protect patients, or provide them with the bare minimum of care,” said Lisa Bowser, whose mother spent two years at Western State Hospital Read More