Behavioral Health Today

Every relationship has its own story, has its own world, has its own language. And there's something to be learned if you create the space and you ask good questions. In this episode, Sharlee Dixon speaks with Topaz Adizes. Topaz is an Emmy Award-winning writer, director, and experience design architect. He is an Edmund Hillary fellow and Sundance/Skoll stories of change fellow. His works have been selected to Cannes, Sundance, IDFA, and SXSW; featured in New Yorker magazine, Vanity Fair, and the New York Times; and have garnered an Emmy for new approaches to documentary and Two World Press photo awards for immersive storytelling and interactive documentary. He is currently the founder and executive director of the experience design studio The Skin Deep. We’re excited to have Topaz with us today to share his book 12 Questions for Love: A Guide to Intimate Conversations & Deep Relationships and his work with THE SKIN DEEP, hosting over 1,200 conversations all over the world.

For more information about 12 Questions for Love: A Guide to Intimate Conversations & Deep Relationships, please visit: https://shop.theskindeep.com/products/12-questions-for-love-a-guide-to-intimate-conversations-and-deeper-relationships

“I was born with a bipolar brain, and that I lived on the bipolar spectrum pretty much my whole life.”- Gregg Martin. In this episode, Sharlee Dixon speaks with retired Major General Gregg Martin. Gregg Martin, PhD, is a retired major general and a 36-year Army combat veteran, celebrated for his remarkable career commanding engineer units and holding prestigious roles such as president of the National Defense University, and commander of Fort Leonard Wood. Gregg is an accomplished author, his book Bipolar General: My Forever War with Mental Illness, candidly shares his journey. With advanced degrees from MIT, the Naval War College, and the Army War College, Gregg’s indomitable spirit offers hope and inspiration to others. We’re excited to have Gregg with us today to discuss Bipolar Disorder, his book The Bipolar General: My Forever War with Mental Illness and his experiences with his Bipolar diagnosis.

For more information about Bipolar General: My Forever War with Mental Illness please visit: https://www.amazon.com/Bipolar-General-Forever-Illness-Association/dp/1682479188

When we think about cultures that are more community oriented, we embrace the concept of Ubuntu, which says “I am because you are. You are because I am”. It is this notion that we are inextricably connected to one another, to our world, to our environment, to all that is around us. In this episode, Dr. Graham Taylor speaks with Dr. Donell Barnett. Donell is a counseling psychologist and Past President at The Association of Black Psychologists. Donell has served as the Director of HIV Prevention Programs, Adjunct Professor of Psychology, Behavioral Health Clinic Director, and Chief of Field Investigations and Program Evaluation for the US Army Public Health Center. His expertise and interests include trauma, the role of faith in wellness, and programs to improve the health and well-being of communities left out of economic and social growth. Together Graham and Donell discuss the creation of ABPsi and the critique of APA, healing through relationships and community, and the unique skills and attitudes of black psychologists in the mental health field.  ABPsi is the liberation of the African Mind, the empowerment of the African Character, and the enlivenment of the African Spirit.

For more information about the Association of Black Psychologists, please visit: https://abpsi.org

There are increasingly pervasive mental health issues that adolescents are experiencing. If we can help kids understand what they’re feeling and give them a language, that’s the beginning of being able to give them help. In this episode, Dr. Graham Taylor speaks with Mark Cloutier. Mark is the CEO of Caminar, a non-profit community-based agency that has been providing support services to individuals with mental health disorders for more than 50 years. Before joining Caminar, Mark held leadership roles in prominent health organizations and foundations, such as Horizons Services, the San Francisco Foundation, the Center for Youth Wellness, Kaiser Family Foundation, and the San Francisco AIDS Foundation. A longstanding resident of the Bay Area, Mark is a graduate of Lewis and Clark College, and earned Master of Public Policy and Master of Public Health degrees at the University of California, Berkeley. He's also a published author, having co-authored Prevent, Screen, Heal: Collective Action to Fight the Toxic Effects of Early Life Adversity. We’re excited to have Mark with us today to discuss community-based mental health and prevention efforts for teens and young adolescents.

For more information about Caminar, please visit: https://www.caminar.org

When someone says “yes” to alcohol, they may not recognize that they’re saying “no” to so many other things. But, when you say “no” to alcohol, you now can say “yes” and come into an experience with all those things, that for some people, didn’t even know they were there. In this episode, Dr. Graham Taylor speaks with Jonathan Hunt-Glassman. Jonathan Hunt-Glassman is the Founder and CEO of Oar Health, an addiction recovery platform focused on making science-backed addiction medicine approachable and accessible for the millions of people who struggle with Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD). With over 15 years of experience in the healthcare industry, Jonathan has held key leadership positions in strategy at Humana, Optum, and Bain & Company. His motivation for transforming the addiction treatment field and founding Oar Health stems from his personal battle with alcohol addiction, a journey that ignited his commitment to enhancing the current landscape of addiction treatment. We’re excited to have Jonathan with us today to discuss alcohol addiction recovery and an effective medication proven to help people drink less called Naltrexone

For more information about Oar Health and Naltrexone, please visit: https://www.oarhealth.com/quit

No Weigh is a whole-person approach that treats weight loss as one part of a person’s life, interconnected with everything else that person values, In this episode, Dr. Graham Taylor speaks with Valerie Evans, BCBA. Valerie is a licensed and board-certified Behavior Analyst and founder of No Weigh, an app that leverages behavioral psychology and applied behavioral analysis to help users lose weight, ensure healthy habits, and build a healthier life. Valerie is a mom of three children and, after having her third child, turned to diet programs to help her feel like herself again. Valerie decided to make a new way for individuals to feel empowered in their wellness journey and created the No Weigh whole-person approach. We’re excited to have Valerie with us today to discuss a new approach to weight loss and her app No Weigh.

For more information about No Weight, please visit: http://noweigh.com

Visualization is a powerful teaching tool. In this episode, Dr. Graham Taylor speaks with Molly Oshinski and Morgan Marquez. Molly and Morgan are the founders of Pickle System, a hands-off resource for BCBAs, special educators, and parents of individuals with disabilities providing animated video-models for a variety of living skills. Molly is the CEO of Pickle System and a Board-Certified Behavior Analyst and Licensed Behavior Analyst. She is currently pursuing her PhD at The University of Texas at Austin in the special education department. Her research has focused on teaching intimate hygiene skills using video-models. Morgan is the COO and the Data & Analytics Program Manager at Pickle System. Morgan received her M.S. in Data Analytics from Rockhurst University and her B.B.A. in Marketing and Economics from Kansas State University.

For more information about Pickle System, please visit: https://www.picklesystem.com

Anxiety is a safety strategy, it’s an early warning system at best. There’s a perception of a threat and the perception is that I’m not going to be able to handle the threat. The key word being “perception”. In this episode, Dr. Graham Taylor speaks with Dr. Sarah Olivo. Sarah is a licensed clinical psychologist with over two decades of experience. Sarah is the head of Lumate Academy, the training and education arm of Lumate Health, and co-hosts the "College Is Fine, Everything's Fine" podcast that aims to empower college students with essential CBT skills. Together Graham and Sarah discuss OCD, anxiety, exposure therapy, and tips for parents on what to look out for.

For more information about Lumate Health, please visit: https://lumatehealth.com

Today marks a particularly special episode where we get to introduce our newest host to our show, Sharlee R. Dixon, LMSW. At Behavioral Health Today, our commitment is to present a diverse range of perspectives and voices, both from our guests and our dedicated hosts. In this episode, Dr. Graham Taylor has the privilege to welcome Sharlee Dixon and give you our listeners a unique opportunity to discover more about her and welcome our new member to the BHT team. Sharlee Dixon is an accomplished social worker with extensive experience in the field. As a licensed LMSW, she currently serves as a school social worker at a North Carolina high school. Sharlee received her Masters of Social Work from The University of South Carolina, and her expertise has been recognized on a national level as she has been invited to present at the prestigious National School Social Work Conference on multiple occasions. She also earned a second Masters degree in Education with an emphasis on Trauma-Informed Care.  Sharlee has worked as an Adjunct Professor in the Education Department at Benedict College and also develops social work courses and study material for Triad as a Content Creator. Together Graham and Sharlee discuss the challenges facing communities and the unique qualifications of Social Workers to meet those needs and help their clients grow. Social Workers have a superpower of helping without necessarily you having to ask for that help.

For more information about Sharlee R. Dixon, connect on Linkedin at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sharlee-dixon-lmsw-med-328748123

Our expectations should be that people can live a better life if they're given the right supports. In this episode, Dr. Graham Taylor speaks with Steve Miccio. Steve is the Chief Executive Officer of PeopleUSA, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping families and people with behavioral health challenges. Steve is an innovator in crisis response and mental health services. For over two decades, he has introduced groundbreaking models and approaches that reduce hospital utilization, incarceration rates, and healthcare spending. Steve was the first in the United States to embed peers in hospital psychiatric ERs. He also created the Rose House model of peer-operated crisis respites, the Transitional Care Wellness Team Model, and developed unique training programs for hospitals, local government units, and behavioral health organizations across the U.S. Recovery is an expectation. You will recover and you will thrive. And there will be ways that you're going to be able to reach your ceiling. Let's go see what it is.

For more information about PeopleUSA, please visit: https://people-usa.org/