“Managing mental health, let alone mental health challenges, can feel hard, confusing, and lonely. We don’t want it to be.”
And with those words, a new six-part blog series begins with the goal of explaining, in simple terms:
- What is mental health?
- What is mental illness?
- When and how to find help
- Talking about mental health
- Supporting someone who is struggling
- Supporting your own mental health
Deb Brown, senior marketing and digital media specialist, teamed up with Dr. Heather Jones, PhD, vice president of clinical services, and Emily Jonesberg, MSW, LCSW, program manager for Community Learning and Engagement and WISE. Deb says she was motivated by her personal experience of walking through mental health struggles of a loved one.
“Navigating mental health for yourself, much less for a loved one, is very overwhelming,” says Deb. “There’s a lot of terminology — just think of all the acronyms we have at Rogers! When you’re in a crisis, emotions are high. You’re going down a road you wouldn’t wish on your worst enemy and it feels like you’re enveloped in a terrible fog. It’s really hard to find the way out.”
Deb was also inspired by the Mental Health America book, “Where to Start.”
“It’s a book that speaks, in very plain terms, about mental health challenges,” she explains. “I thought, if they can do it, why can’t we?”
She says she has one simple goal for the series.
“If it helps just one person feel like they aren’t alone, that help and hope are available, and the journey to wellness doesn’t have to be scary, it will have served its purpose.”
Maureen Remmel, executive director, marketing and communications, shares that “this is a passion project for Deb, and it’s been powerful to watch her pour her heart into this work. Her dedication to our mission and her commitment to honoring the people we serve by meeting them where they are is not only inspirational, but also necessary for the community, our patients, and their families.”
The first two blogs in the series are available now on our website, with the remaining four coming by early March. Stay tuned!
Powered by