Posted on May 17, 2021
TIME
Until recently, major depression has felt like a ghost disease — invisible but devastating. It’s a disorder that affects millions every year — 1 in 4 of us will suffer a depressive episode in their lifetime. In April, a team at the Indiana University School of Medicine published news about a promising new blood test that can reveal how severe a patient’s depression may be, the risk of developing severe depression, and even the risk of future bipolar disorder. This breakthrough using RNA biomarkers will get us closer to more precise and effective treatments and is just one example of a whole slew of biomarkers for depression that researchers have been uncovering. Crisis is not too strong a word: the CDC reported that U.S. adults with recent symptoms of anxiety or a depressive disorder rose to 41.5% in February. This effort could include an ‘operation warp speed‘ type-accelerator for this biomarker research, plus an infusion of resources to provide universal access to therapists and existing treatments right now. Given that all of us know someone or are someone who’s battled this disease, it’s everyone’s issue. The mental health moonshot we need would provide hope and that in and of itself might save lives. The article includes the following links in the resource section: National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI); NAMI Connection is a support group for people with mental health conditions. Groups meet weekly, every other week or monthly, depending on location. Find the NAMI Connection support group nearest you; NAMI Family Support Group is a support group for family members, significant others and friends of people with mental health conditions. Groups meet weekly, every other week or monthly, depending on location. Find the NAMI Family Support Group nearest you; The NAMI HelpLine can be reached Monday through Friday, 10 a.m.–8 p.m., ET at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or [email protected].
READ MOREPosted on May 16, 2021
NBC News
Walter Wallace Jr., Ricardo Muñoz and Angelo Quinto were all experiencing mental health episodes when they were killed by the police officers their families called for help. More than 1 in 5 people fatally shot by police have mental illnesses, according to a Washington Post database of fatal U.S. shootings by on-duty police officers. Since 2015, when The Post launched its database, police have fatally shot more than 1,400 people with mental illnesses. Angela Kimball, national director of advocacy and public policy for NAMI, said she believes the numbers are so high because people in mental health crises do not always respond in ways officers want them to. "Police are trained to respond to a situation with a goal of protecting public safety and their own safety," she said. "They are used to using interventions that are designed to contain somebody that is perceived as a danger." Kimball said that during mental health crises, the presence of police officers, coupled with the uniforms and shouting, is quite often "counterintuitive" and that it can lead to tragedy. Many law enforcement agencies use the "Memphis Model" for crisis intervention training, or CIT. Kimball said the program requires about 40 hours of training in mental health diagnoses, drug use issues and de-escalation tactics. "It's really more of a concept of community engagement. Part of it is about law enforcement developing those connections with homeless shelters and with community mental health systems like hospitals so that everybody is working together," Kimball said. Last year, the FCC designated 988 as a nationwide number for mental health crisis and suicide prevention services and is set to go live in July 2022. Kimball said the number will be a good alternative to 911 because "there's a mobile crisis team of behavioral health professionals who can help defuse the situation, connect people to treatment and get them on a path to recovery."
READ MOREPosted on May 13, 2021
Yahoo Life
Peloton instructor Kendall Toole (NAMI Ambassador) started her mental health journey at an early age. At 11 years old, doctors explained she had OCD, which she learned to manage. Then, in college, she was diagnosed with anxiety and depression. "It's something I consider to be part of my power, I can help try to take that stigma away, as it affects so many individuals," Toole explains. Toole learned to work on her mental and physical health at the same time. As an avid boxer and cycling instructor, exercise became a one-two-punch prescription that has really helped her over the years. She's also become a mental health advocate with National Alliance on Mental Illness. And living through this global pandemic has given her the opportunity to look at all aspects of her life and dig deep, do the internal work and continue to look at her mental health.
READ MOREPosted on May 11, 2021
Parade
Ashley Smith is a mom, a peer counselor, a taxpayer, athlete, neighbor, mother, and friend. She considers herself a friendly person, a self-identity that she’s had for a long time. She is also a person with a mental health disorder called schizoaffective disorder. “I have been in recovery since 2007,” she says, summing up her life post-diagnosis. She views her recovery journey as both an achievement and a path that she continues to follow. Ashley eventually learned that she actually has a condition called schizoaffective disorder that includes symptoms of schizophrenia as well as symptoms of a mood disorder. It’s actually rarer than schizophrenia itself. The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) estimates a lifetime prevalence of only about 0.3% for schizoaffective disorder. There are two types of schizoaffective disorder: The bipolar type and the depressive type. Ashley has the bipolar type, so she experiences episodes of both mania and depression along with symptoms of schizophrenia. The good news about schizoaffective disorder is that it can be managed effectively with therapy and medication, according to NAMI. Since 2012, Ashley has been a peer counselor who works with people with mental health disorders like schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder. She helps people set goals and determine how to reach them. In fact, she has coordinated with NAMI Georgia to offer workshops on topics like talking about personal experiences with mental health disorders. If you (or someone you love) receives a diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder, don’t get discouraged. Ashley says, “Schizophrenia is a medical condition that is very manageable.”
READ MOREPosted on May 11, 2021
The Toledo Blade: OH
Research shows two in five Americans have reported struggles with mental health since the coronavirus pandemic began. That has prompted local wellness officials to let northwest Ohioans know that help is available, and that they should not be reluctant to seek it. Concerns include unprecedented uncertainty, grief, and trauma. Officials are amplifying that message during May, recognized nationally as Mental Health Awareness Month. The National Alliance on Mental Illness, a national organization with an Ohio chapter, is also putting forth the 'You are not alone' campaign, which focuses on connecting people to resources available nearby. Daniel H. Gillison, Jr., NAMI CEO, said there is still work to be done despite growing signs of normalcy and the "light at the end of the tunnel" that has been setting in. "NAMI endeavors to turn the tragic and life-changing impact of COVID-19 into a spotlight on the growing need for systematic change in the mental health care system to meet the increased need as the world opens back up again," Mr. Gillison said in a statement. "The time is now to come together to improve mental health for all."
READ MOREPosted on May 10, 2021
CNBC
As challenges like Covid-19 and the reckoning on racism continue to take a toll on Americans’ mental health, it brings new urgency to the long-standing issues like the cost of accessibility of care. Spending on mental health treatment and services reached $225 billion in 2019, according to an Open Minds Market Intelligence Report. That number, which is up 52% since 2009, includes spending on things like therapy and prescription medications as well as stays in psychiatric or substance abuse rehabilitation facilities. In fact, depression alone is estimated to account for $44 billion in losses to workplace productivity, according to a recent report from Tufts Medical Center and One Mind at Work. Beyond the cost of mental health care, access to care is improving but still a big issue. Access and coverage for mental health and substance abuse treatments have improved in recent years thanks to the 2008 Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, which barred health insurers from making coverage for mental health more restrictive than for physical ailments. But there are still a lot of medical and insurance loopholes that exist that make it difficult for patients to get affordable care, says Angela Kimball, National Director of Advocacy and Public Policy at NAMI. And there are many other factors too, she says. Rural parts of the country tend to lack access to more specialized treatment options, similar to the barriers that exist in traditional physical medicine.
READ MOREPosted on May 10, 2021
Harper’s Bazaar
Prince Harry and Oprah Winfrey's documentary series focusing on mental health awareness is heading to Apple TV+ later this month. Titled The Me You Can't See, the show will feature Winfrey and the Duke of Sussex discussing mental health journeys and emotional well-being with a number of high-profile guests, including Lady Gaga, Glenn Close, and NBA players DeMar DeRozan and Langston Galloway. Winfrey and Harry will open up about their own experiences too. With conversations transcending culture, age, gender, and socioeconomic status, the goal of the series is to challenge stigmas around mental health and let viewers know that they're not alone. Producers behind the show also teamed up with 14 "accredited and respected experts and organizations from around the world to help shed light on different pathways to treatment," according to Apple. “Now more than ever, there is an immediate need to replace the shame surrounding mental health with wisdom, compassion, and honesty," Winfrey said in a statement. "Our series aims to spark that global conversation." The docuseries was created in partnership with an advisory board of more than a dozen mental health professionals including Dr. Ken Duckworth, NAMI CMO.
READ MOREPosted on May 10, 2021
Oprah Daily
People with bipolar disorder experience dramatic changes in emotion, mood and energy, sometimes all in the same day. “It’s like a roller coaster ride —& I’m different day to day and hour to hour,” says Nicole, 30, of Denver, CO who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder six years ago. “I have periods when I’m very creative and outgoing — people describe me as being more attractive and alluring. I have a higher sex drive, and I do a lot of writing and artwork. But then I slip into a depressive state, and it feels like being in wet cement. I just want to curl up in the fetal position and sleep all day.” Be flexible with plans: When you’re scheduling something with a friend who is struggling, “give him the choice to participate or not,” says Katrina Gay, CDO of NAMI. Understand that if he does come with you, he may have to leave early, and that it might be really hard for him to make any long-term commitments.
READ MOREPosted on May 10, 2021
Winston-Salem Journal: NC
A bevy of bills before the state legislature seeks to improve how state and local agencies assist people struggling with mental health crises and related issues. They’re both promising and overdue. One of them, House Bill 786, “Enhance Local Response/Mental Health Crises,” would provide funding for pilot programs to study how local police departments could respond to nonviolent emergency calls involving mental health, homelessness, substance use or other behavioral problems, with teams that include mental health professionals. Rep. Donny Lambeth, R-Forsyth, is among the bill’s primary sponsors. “Our goal is not to demonize law enforcement, but to address the fact that they are not properly trained to be the primary or most appropriate responders in all situations,” the petition states. “There are times when law enforcement is the right professional, and there are times when they are the default professional, simply because of the existing system.” But the legislation and petition follow a string of highly publicized incidents throughout the nation in which police responded to people experiencing mental health crises with force that tragically led to the death of the person in need. “A person shouldn’t lose their life because they’re experiencing symptoms of a mental health condition,” Angela Kimball, national director of advocacy and public policy at NAMI, said in an interview last year. “People deserve help, not handcuffs.”
READ MOREPosted on May 6, 2021
Boston Herald
Teen mental health has continued to suffer amid the pandemic, and going back to school in person, while a welcome sign of normalcy for some, could be daunting for others, experts said in a virtual town hall event hosted by Harvard University. “Entering the fall is going to be a really stressful time for young people because a number of kids have decided to continue remote learning, but when the fall comes, everyone for the most part will most likely go back to school,” said Dr. Christine Crawford, adult and child psychiatrist and associate medical director for NAMI. Going back to school full time will likely bring up strong emotions for teens, Crawford said, and some may feel anxious or more depressed. “When they’re in the classroom studying, there is a tendency to compare yourself to your peers around you,” Crawford said. Daniel Gillison, CEO of NAMI, said nationwide, there has been a sharp increase in the number of emergency room visits by people under 18 related to mental health concerns. “It’s no secret our young people are not all right,” Gillison said.
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NAMI HelpLine is available M-F, 10 a.m. – 10 p.m. ET. Call 800-950-6264,
text “helpline” to 62640, or chat online. In a crisis, call or text 988 (24/7).