CW::// Substance Related DeathFor this month's episode: the topic of the month, I spoke with Robin Monson-Dupuis about grieving as a mental health professional. We discussed the unique experience of grief as a therapist, returning to work after loss, tending to our grief, considering what and how to discuss our grief with clients, and how differently people grieve and respond to devastating life events. Robin has been a psychotherapist and substance abuse counselor for over 30 years. She has been a leader in her workplace, church, and community. She continues to travel on a healing journey, often not knowing where that will take her, but trying to trust the process. Her book is Spirit Son. You can find her book, blog and other ways to connect with Robin on her website..Website: rmmwellness.com - RMM Wellness TherapiesThe link to Fun Run/Walk in honor of her son to raise funds for Addiction Treatment and Sober Living scholarships: https://runsignup.com/Race/WI/Greenfield/EthansRunAgainstAddictionThe link to the website about our foundation: ethansfund.orgSupport the showPlease share your voice with us! We would love to hear from you! Record a voice message here. Send us a comment here.Apply to be a guest on this podcast here. Would you like to share your work with the Conscious Mental Health Community ? We offer both paid and free sponsorship opportunities. To apply click here.

CW:// Suicide and Climate Related DisastersIn this mental health news update, we cover the 21 states with proposed or passed laws restricting gender-affirming care, public art engagement, and its mental health benefits, research reviews on the impacts of natural disasters and disaster fatigue, and we close with a very interesting did you know segment about the secret powers of people who nap. Advocacy Alert - Support Relief for Turkey/SyriaUNICEF is on the ground in Turkey and Syria helping children and families in the aftermath of two devastating earthquakes.The Turkish Red Crescent is accepting donations and providing nutritional services and blood supplies for those affected or wounded by the earthquakes. Humanity & Inclusion plans to expand its team in Syria to help provide mental health and rehabilitation services and will be deploying some rehab specialists to Turkey aid emergency care victims.Mercy Corps is working to aid those affected in northwest Syria, a place of limited infrastructure where 1.8 million people are living in camps after being displaced by years of armed conflict.Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teams are working with health authorities to provide medical aid. To donate, click here.The Syrian American Medical Society provides urgent medical care. You can donate here or by texting EarthquakeSyria to 71777.Social justice organization CARE International is working to assess the most urgent needs in the area. . Donate here.The Syrian Emergency Task Force is responding to the emergency by providing water, tents, food, blankets, medicine, and other supplies necessary. Donations are being accepted by SETF  International Medical Corps is also accepting donations to make medical care and supplies available as part of tSupport the showPlease share your voice with us! We would love to hear from you! Record a voice message here. Send us a comment here.Apply to be a guest on this podcast here. Would you like to share your work with the Conscious Mental Health Community ? We offer both paid and free sponsorship opportunities. To apply click here.

Learn about interpersonal neurobiology and relational neuroscience with Robyn Gobbel, who hosts the Parenting After Trauma Podcast, Creator of Being With, an Immersion course for parenting professionals, and The Club, a virtual community for parents of kids with big baffling behaviors. Robyn is also the author of Raising Kids with Big Baffling Behaviors; Brain-Body-Sensory Strategies that Really Work, to be released later in 2023. In this conversation, we talk about Interpersonal Neurobiology and Relational Neuroscience, how behavior is an externalization of inner experience, curiosity rather than judgment, connection as a biological imperative, relational neuroscientist and substance use disorder, resonance circuitry as an agent of change, co-regulation with nature and so much more!  Connect with Robyn:  Website: https://robyngobbel.comPodcast: https://robyngobbel.com/podcastFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/RobynGobbelMSWIG: https://www.instagram.com/robyn.gobbel/Free eBook on attachment: https://robyngobbel.com/ebookFree masterclass and eBook on a nervous system approach to changing behaviors: https://robyngobbel.com/masterclassUpcoming trainings: https://robyngobbel.com/trainingsSupport the showPlease share your voice with us! We would love to hear from you! Record a voice message here. Send us a comment here.Apply to be a guest on this podcast here. Would you like to share your work with the Conscious Mental Health Community ? We offer both paid and free sponsorship opportunities. To apply click here.

We spoke with Meg Sasse Stern (she/her), the Outreach and Operations Coordinator at Just The Pill, a non-profit telehealth abortion provider offering virtual and mobile clinic visits in Colorado, Minnesota, Montana, and Wyoming. Just The Pill sees patients from over 30 states, and last year their mobile clinics provided no-cost abortions to over 150 traveling Texans.  Meg has been on the front lines of abortion access in KY for 20+ years. She co-founded one of the first Practical Support Abortion Funds and has expertise in creating safer pathways to abortion access. Meg is a network weaver with experience in cross-movement collaboration. Meg enjoys travel, rest, and quality time with good people when she is not engaged in direct action as community care.In this conversation, we discuss pregnancy care options, especially in states where abortion is now illegal (including the state where we live, Kentucky), legal issues, and how to best support a pregnant person as a mental health professional. Meg shares a fantastic resource that she created, with vetted resources for anything a person seeking an abortion would need, including information about medical abortion, organizations that offer financial support, and ways you can advocate if you want to support abortion access for all residents of this country.  Here is the link tree for Abortion Care resources shared in this conversation.  Just The PillSupport the showPlease share your voice with us! We would love to hear from you! Record a voice message here. Send us a comment here.Apply to be a guest on this podcast here. Would you like to share your work with the Conscious Mental Health Community ? We offer both paid and free sponsorship opportunities. To apply click here.

This podcast episode is a conversation with Heather Ross, host of the popular Living With Your Child's Addiction podcast, trained in CRAFT, and certified  ITC parent coach. We discuss how CRAFT (community reinforcement and family training) and Invitation to Change models support your loved one (and yourself) struggling with substance use disorder. The CRAFT (Community Reinforcement and Family Training) program is a non-confrontational, evidence-based intervention for helping families affected by addiction. It helps individuals develop effective strategies for helping a loved one struggling with substance use disorder seek treatment and cope.The invitation to Change program is based on an approach by the Center for Motivation and Change that combines the evidence-based protocol of Community Reinforcement And Family Training (CRAFT) with Motivational Interviewing (MI) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Invitation to Change provides perspectives and skills to help you encourage your loved one toward recovery while increasing your own well-being.   About Heather: Heather Ross is a mother willing to do whatever it took to have a healthy relationship with her daughter, who struggled with Substance Use Disorder. She is a family recovery coach who is CRAFT trained and Invitation to Change Certified.Supporting her daughter taught her to focus on their similarities instead of their differences, be present as a mother, and love her daughter unconditionally for the 21 short years she had on this earth. After her daughter lost her life to a fentanyl overdose, Heather became even more dedicated to helping families heal. Her clients call her an expert at helping them create peace of mind, space for change, and loving connection in their families.In addition to being a parent support coach, Heather has over 20 years of experience in the recovery community and hosts the Living With Your Child’s Addiction Podcast.When Heather is not helping other parents, she enjoys spending time in nature with her dogs, going to sound baths on the beach, traveling, and having experiences with friends and family that create beautiful memories.Links for this episode:Free Invitation to Change Support group (it’s in progress but you can join at any time)You can learn more about Heather's services here. Find Heather on Instagram and Facebook. Check out the Living with Your Child's Addiction podcast. Learn more about Invitation to Change. Read Beyond Addiction: How science and kindness help people change.Support the showPlease share your voice with us! We would love to hear from you! Record a voice message here. Send us a comment here.Apply to be a guest on this podcast here. Would you like to share your work with the Conscious Mental Health Community ? We offer both paid and free sponsorship opportunities. To apply click here.

CW// suicide and homicide In this episode we discuss the cases that provide legal precedents for the laws and standards we practice under today and then discuss how to balance liability, safety and practicing therapy in the way you were trained and makes sense to you. Reminder, please review and stay up-to-date on your state's laws, your licensure board's policies, your agency policies as well as your professional ethical standards. This refresher is general and discussed federal law and general standards of care for mental health professionals.Helpful Links:State Duty to Warn/Protect Laws CAMFT - Working with Clients Facing Suicide Support the showPlease share your voice with us! We would love to hear from you! Record a voice message here. Send us a comment here.Apply to be a guest on this podcast here. Would you like to share your work with the Conscious Mental Health Community ? We offer both paid and free sponsorship opportunities. To apply click here.

In this mental health news update, our research review breaks down a study that looked at the distorted time perception and memory lapses after the covid 19 pandemic. In the headlines, we discussed the life and death of Stephen Twitch Boss in the public eye. Our advocacy alert shares updated information and resource about abortion access, and in the did you know segment, we learn about a disturbing sleep event called the exploding head syndrome. Resources mentioned in the show: Research ReviewHow long was it for you? Memories of the duration of the UK covid-19 lockdownIn The Headlines - Please Don't Blame it on High-Functioning Depression. Advocacy Alert:reprolegalhelplineHow to get an abortion pill onlinePlanned Parenthood - abortion pill The Brigid Alliance Support the showPlease share your voice with us! We would love to hear from you! Record a voice message here. Send us a comment here.Apply to be a guest on this podcast here. Would you like to share your work with the Conscious Mental Health Community ? We offer both paid and free sponsorship opportunities. To apply click here.

In this episode, Juniper talks with Nancy Gershman, a psychotherapist, memory artist, and creator of Dreamscaping, to discuss the development and many uses of this innovative modality. Their conversation covers:Nancy’s professional journey and how she came to the creation and use of Dreamscaping as a therapeutic tool.Discussion about the ways in which the brain stores and holds memory, including the importance of incorporating “felt sense” memory when working toward healing.Ways in which Dreamscaping can be used to address grief, trauma, and many other issues that clients bring into the therapy space.And more!Nancy Gershman, LMSW, is a psychotherapist and the developer of Dreamscaping, an imaginal and photo-based approach to treating grief and loss, supported by the way memories get encoded in the brain.  More playful than painful, Dreamscaping uses resourcing, focusing on felt sense memory, re-scripting and mental simulations to shift the focus from “what do you miss?” to “what gives you joy?” After a decade of dreamscaping with the bereaved as a memory artist, Nancy was featured for her work with end of life families at VNSNY/Haven Hospice as NY1’s “New Yorker of the Week” (2016).  In 2020, Routledge published Prescriptive Memories in Grief and Loss: The Art of Dreamscaping, co-authored with Barbara E. Thompson. Additional publications include case studies in Robert A. Neimeyer’s Techniques of Grief Therapy (Routledge, 2012, 2016) and Annals of American Psychotherapy (2010) with Jenna Baddeley, PhD. In addition to presenting her work internationally and working in a supervisory capacity, Nancy has been the host of Death Café New York City since 2013.  Today, applications for dreamscaping range from liberating joy in those married to Ed (eating disorders), to re-gendering individuals in the trans community, to updating distressing memories in those who believe they can never return to a beloved person, place or thing.Where to find Nancy:www.artforyoursake.comInstagram: @artforyoursakeFacebook: facebook.com/artforyoursakeGet in touch: https://www.academyimh.com or on Instagram @academy.imhTake a course: https://www.holisticmentalhealthschool.comSupport the showPlease share your voice with us! We would love to hear from you! Record a voice message here. Send us a comment here.Apply to be a guest on this podcast here. Would you like to share your work with the Conscious Mental Health Community ? We offer both paid and free sponsorship opportunities. To apply click here.

Juniper here, director of the Academy of Integrative Mental Health. In this short episode, I wanted to share my experience of how the holiday season is showing up for me and possible ways you can make space for others who are having a tough time. Words are powerful, and language matters. Support the showPlease share your voice with us! We would love to hear from you! Record a voice message here. Send us a comment here.Apply to be a guest on this podcast here. Would you like to share your work with the Conscious Mental Health Community ? We offer both paid and free sponsorship opportunities. To apply click here.

Research ReviewA new study reports that major political events affect the public's collective wellbeing, sleep and mood.https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352721822001498?via=ihubAdvocacy Alert Content warning//This story discusses suicide.Healthcare workers deserve stigma-free, accessible mental health services. ALL IN: Wellbeing First for HealthcareIn the Headlines New York City Will Hospitalize More People With Mental Illness  InvoluntarilyHousing FirstDid You Know??Learn about a rare syndrome (no spoiler alerts here) Resource of the Month We asked the clinical team at Bridge Counseling and Wellness in Louisville, KY, for nominations of their most frequently shared free resources for clients. The winners of their most recommended resources were two podcasts- Unlocking Us with Brené Brown, and Terrible, Thanks for Asking with Nora McInerny. Give those a listen and see what you think and if they would be a good fit for your clients.Please leave us a review if you find this information helpful for your personal and professional growth and confidence. (bonus, send us a picture of the review and receive a discount on select courses).       Support the showPlease share your voice with us! We would love to hear from you! Record a voice message here. Send us a comment here.Apply to be a guest on this podcast here. Would you like to share your work with the Conscious Mental Health Community ? We offer both paid and free sponsorship opportunities. To apply click here.