Hope Illuminated Podcast: Helping the Helpers Bring Light to Life’s Darkest Moments

Mental Health, Social Justice, Suicide Grief, Suicide Prevention, Well-Being
People who live with disabilities (e.g., physical, intellectual, mental health and neuro-divergent) often face a range of social and economic adversaries including discrimination and prejudice that impacts their ability to work, get educated, and live in safe homes and communities. These disadvantages consequently impact the mental health and well-being of this diverse community. In this episode I interview two international leaders in the conversation on suicide prevention among people living with disabilities. Sheryl Boswell, from Toronto, is the Director of Youth Mental Health Canada and Lisa Morgan is the Co-Chair of the Autism and Suicide committee of the American Association of Suicidology.

MILNER ET AL (2019) THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DISABILITY AND SUICIDE
Mental health speaker, suicide prevention speaker
About Sheryl Boswell
Sheryl Boswell is an educator, teaching elementary, secondary, postsecondary, and adult education students in Canada and Africa. She is the Director of Youth Mental Health Canada, a charitable nonprofit organization focused on youth, family, and community engagement for mental health education, support, advocacy, and change. She is a suicide loss survivor who has contributed to provincial and national change in education to support students with mental health disabilities.

About Lisa Morgan
Mental health speaker, suicide prevention speaker
Lisa Morgan (she/her/hers) is a self-advocate and consultant in crisis support and suicide prevention for autistic people. Lisa is founder and co-chair of the Autism and Suicide committee of the American Association of Suicidology. She is a community council member of AASET (Autistic Adults and other Stakeholders Engaged Together). Lisa has a master’s degree in the Art of Teaching and is a board certified autism specialist. She is a peer reviewer of the online journal, Autism in Adulthood, feature writer of the online magazine, Spectrum Women, and the author of several books about crisis supports for autistic people. Lisa owns Lisa Morgan Consulting LLC at www.autismcrisissupport.com. For more information about this episode please go to https://www.sallyspencerthomas.com/hope-illuminated-podcast/106

Burnout - Causes and Cures
Burnout is costly to employers in several ways:

Employee turnover

Increased risk of worker injury or error

Deteriorating culture as energy becomes misdirected toward scapegoating

Contrary to conventional wisdom, burnout is not solely related to workload, it’s also related to feeling like “a cog in a machine.” When an unsustainable workload becomes even more stressful due to a lack of clarity, lack of control and an effort-reward imbalance, relationships become strained and people become siloed.

According to leading researchers, burnout is identified when three psychological states exist:

High levels of cynicism: an indifference, negative perspective

High levels of exhaustion: emotional, spiritual and physical

Low levels of professional efficacy: the belief in ones ability to make a difference.

Burnout can creep into a workplace and worsen over time. It often starts with an erosion of engagement. Work shifts from important, interesting and meaningful to exhausting. Next comes the erosion of emotions, where cynicism, anger, anxiety and depression start to surface. Finally, burned out workers comes to experience a mismatch between themselves and the organization. They lose faith that the organization has their best interests at heart.

In this episode, I have a delightful conversation with Susan Farese, RN - a healthcare worker and mentor, a Veteran, a poet and photographer and the owner of PR firm “SJF Communications.” We talk about how burnout is taking its toll on our healthcare teams, and how she uses poetry, among other tools to cope.

About Susan Farese

Susan J. Farese, MSN, RN, a native of New Jersey, is the owner/ president of SJF Communications, San Diego, CA.

SJF Communications, originally established in 2002 in San Jose, CA, provides communications services including Public Relations, Publicity, Marketing, Websites, Filmmaking, Acting, Social Media, Writing and Public Speaking, Photography, Mentoring, Coaching and Legal Nurse Consulting services.

Ms. Farese has diversified experience in health care/communications, including clinical nursing practice, management, education/training, research and consulting.

She has a Masters Degree in Nursing in Adult Health from Seton Hall University (NJ) and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing from Widener University (PA).

Susan has presented numerous continuing education classes, seminars, and keynotes. Susan is the author of the book Poetic Expressions in Nursing…Sharing the Caring (1993 and 2021), currently teaches ‘Capturing Your Creativity with Haiku’ workshops and has published poetry and articles on a variety of topics.

In addition to her being on the advisory board of San Diego Film Week, Susan is a member of SAG-AFTRA, American Legion Post 43, Veterans in Media & Entertainment, San Diego Writers Ink the San Diego Press Club, the Southern California Writers Association, and the Army Nurse Corps Association.

Since 2017, Susan has been a Volunteer Mentor in the San Diego State University Aztec Mentor Program. For more information on this episode please go to https://www.sallyspencerthomas.com/hope-illuminated-podcast/105

What do we mean by “disenfranchised grief.” It’s when your experience of grief is different than the general cultural attitudes about “justified” pain regarding death and loss or “acceptable” mourning practices. Being out of “the norm” in your grief experience often tend to exacerbate the pain as people can feel very alone.

In this conversation, Candace Opper talks about her experience losing a childhood acquaintance to suicide and how this event stayed with her for decades.

About Candace Opper
Suicide Prevention, Mental Health, Keynote Speaker, Depression, resilience, burnout, grief, psychological safety, training, strategy
Candace Jane Opper is a writer, a mother, and a visual artist. She is the author of Certain and Impossible Events, an investigative memoir about the lasting impact of adolescent suicide, selected by Cheryl Strayed for the Kore Press Memoir Award. Her writing has appeared in Guernica, Longreads, Narratively, Literary Hub, Brevity, Creative Nonfiction, Bright Wall/Dark Room, and Vestoj, among others. She holds an MFA in creative writing from Portland State University and is the recipient of a Creative Nonfiction Fellowship. She grew up in the woods of Southern Connecticut and now lives in Pittsburgh with her husband and son.

Where were you on April 20th, 1999?

Many of us watched in horror that day as the news unfolded about of the Columbine School shootings. At the time I was working for a police psychology private practice about two miles from Columbine. What many don’t know about me is that before my brother died, my area of expertise was violence prevention because of this tragedy and our group’s response. My mentor Dr. John Nicoletti, I and others subsequently published two books:

Violence Goes to School

Violence Goes to College

After Carson died by suicide in 2004, I distanced myself from this work as the general public’s connection between mental health conditions and community violence was one I did not want to reinforce.

When I met Faith Kohler, however, the conversations about violence prevention, specifically workplace violence prevention resumed. In this conversation Faith Kohler talk about a holistic and multidisciplinary approach to mitigating and preventing workplace violence and our belief that trust and psychological safety are essential in any effective process.

About Faith Kohler, JD

Faith Kohler, J.D. is a licensed attorney and former federal agent with vast experience in risk and harm prevention. Throughout her law enforcement and private sector career Faith received national recognition for the creation of innovative, prevention-focused programs. The organizations she served include the U.S. Postal Service as well as cross-industry Fortune 500 companies. Her work enables organizations to address risk and build safer workplace culture using a holistic, multi-disciplinary approach. Her program architecture factors in enhanced employee experience, from physical to psychological safety; interventional response; improved collaboration between departments that reduces organizational and human risk; improved organizational mindset and employees behaviors for a safer, more preventive workplace culture.



Faith is a mom to three grown sons and a feisty Jack Russell Terrier. She is also a published author, visual artist and social practice filmmaker. A frequent panelist and speaker on issues related to homelessness, violence prevention and other critical social issues, Faith uses her art as a platform to spark community conversations and change. She holds a B.A. from Wellesley College and a J.D. from Marquette University Law School. When not traveling she divides her time between Miami, FL and Milwaukee, WI.

Faith Kohler’s Violence Prevention Website: http://www.faithkohler.us/

Faith Kohler’s artwork: https://www.faithkohlerartist.com/

Did you know “adverse childhood experiences” (otherwise known as “ACEs”), are connected to later life suicide. According to the CDC, the following potentially traumatic childhood experiences are connected to many life threatening health risks:

experiencing violence, abuse, or neglect

witnessing violence in the home or community

having a family member attempt or die by suicide

substance use problems

mental health problems

instability due to parental separation

household members being in jail or prison

About 61% of adults surveyed have experienced at least one type of ACE. The more ACEs a child experiences, the more likely they will have later life consequences like “injury, sexually transmitted infections, maternal and child health problems (including teen pregnancy, pregnancy complications, and fetal death), involvement in sex trafficking, and a wide range of chronic diseases and leading causes of death such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and suicide.” ACEs are what are known as “social determinants of health” and cause toxic stress in young people that impact their ability to pay attention, make decisions and form stable relationships.

The Good News

The strongest buffer for kids is a relationship with at least one loving, caring, responsive adult - a family member, a teacher, a coach, a mentor.

Having a source of reliable nurturing protects them from further harm and helps them develop self-regulation skills. In addition a healthy child-adult relationship gives them a sense of safety in the storm and a glimmer of hope for things to come.

In this episode I speak with Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, Dr. Kimberly O’Brien about how our youth can feel “emotionally naked” and how caring adults can help provide does of support that fuel resilience and self-esteem, and ultimately prevent suicide.

About Kimberly Hayes McManama O’Brien, Ph.D., LICSW

Kimberly O’Brien, PhD, LICSW is a Clinical Social Worker in the Sports Medicine Division and Female Athlete Program at Boston Children’s Hospital, as well as a Research Scientist and Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.

She is also the co-author of Emotionally Naked: A Teacher's Guide to Preventing Suicide and Recognizing Students at Risk with Anne Moss Rogers.

Her research focuses on the development and testing of brief interventions for suicidal adolescents with and without substance use and their families, with an additional specialization on interventions which utilize technology. She has co-authored over 50 articles and book chapters related to adolescent suicide, substance use, and mental health, and was awarded the Young Investigator Research Award from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention in 2019.

She recently started her own private mental health practice, Unlimited Resilience, LLC, which was designed for athletes by athletes.

For more information on this episode go tp https://www.sallyspencerthomas.com/hope-illuminated-podcast/102

Did you know?
9 our of 10 employers are investing more in mental health benefits than they ever have before (source: https://www.aihr.com/blog/workplace-wellness-trends/).

Concerns about burnout, employee churn, and psychological emergencies have led workplaces to developing a more comprehensive and proactive mental health and suicide prevention strategy.

Benefits like coaching, tele-mental health, personalized wellness plans and stress management tools are becoming increasingly popular for large employers.

In addition, workplaces are starting to shift away from reactive, downstream approaches to more proactive prevention. They are focusing on building caring cultures and psychological safety and they are connecting the dots between DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) work and mental health.

In this conversation, I speak with Mike Veny, a man who has been living these connections and is now training workplaces on how best to support their workers.

For more information on this episode go to https://www.sallyspencerthomas.com/hope-illuminated-podcast/101

For this milestone episode of the “Hope Illuminated” podcast, I wanted to celebrate a hero to many of us: Dr. Allison Milner. Allison was a fierce and mighty leader whose work in suicide prevention and social justice was shifting the world’s views when she died tragically in an accident on April 12, 2019. In this episode Professor Tony LaMontagne and I share stories about her global impact in the areas of:

Workplace suicide

Unemployment and mental health

Psychosocial job hazards

Interventions that help people live through suicidal intensity

Socio-economic determinants of suicide

Women in research

People with disabilities and social justice

Indigenous people and social justice

About Allison Milner, Ph.D.
IN MEMORIUM IASP
ALLISON MILNER OBITUARY


Allison IASP Malaysia group.

The Lancet article on Dr. Milner: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(19)32228-7/fulltext

Allison Milner publications: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=SHXA7QIAAAAJ&hl=en

About Professor Tony LaMontagne

Professor Tony LaMontagne’s career has been dedicated to developing the scientific and public understanding of work as a social determinant of health, and translating this research into policy and practice to improve workplace and worker health. Specific areas of interest include workplace mental health, improving job quality and psychosocial working conditions, and evaluating policy interventions. His research and publications have influenced policy & practice in workplace health both nationally and internationally, including OH&S authorities, Beyond Blue, the (Australian) National Mental Health Commission, the US Occupational Safety & Health Administration, and the World Health Organisation.



He has worked extensively in collaboration with workplace stakeholders from government, industry, and labour. Total career publications include 249 peer-reviewed, 26 book and monograph chapters, 27 major reports, 2 books, and 24 other publications (knowledge translation publications, newspaper opinions pieces, etc.). H-indices are 37 in Scopus, and 52 in Google Scholar. A global analysis of Scopus citation data up to 2019 ranked LaMontagne in the top 1% of authors in the Environmental & Occupational Health field.

Tony LaMontagne publications: https://scholar.google.com.au/citations?user=GLvCCNMAAAAJ&hl=en

For more infoormation on this episode go to https://www.sallyspencerthomas.com/hope-illuminated-podcast/100

Mental health providers — often well-intended and fearful — have made suicide prevention complicated. “Clipboard counseling,” interrogation approaches and highly restrictive interventions have not worked. What if a 5-step, 30-minute intervention made a huge difference? What if we could train peers to help with firearm safety counseling? In this interview I speak with Veteran and psychologist Dr. Craig Bryan about his evidence-based “Crisis Response Planning” intervention:

Personal warning signs: personal indicators of an emerging emotional crisis.

Self-management strategies: simple strategies that can be used to help reduce stress or serve as a distraction.

Reasons for living: things that provide a sense of purpose or meaning in life.

Social support: people who provide support or elevate one's mood during tough times (e.g., friends, family members).

Professional crisis support: contact information for health care providers, crisis hotlines, and emergency services.

Results of a randomized clinical trial indicated that brief cognitive behavioral therapy reduced suicide attempts by 60% as compared to traditional treatment. More recently, a second randomized clinical trial demonstrated that crisis response planning (usually less than 30 minute, stand alone emergency intervention) significantly reduced suicide attempts by 76% among military personnel. About Craig Bryan, Psy.D., ABPP

Dr. Craig Bryan is the Stress, Trauma And Resilience (STAR) Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health at The Ohio State University College of Medicine.

As a military veteran (he deployed to Iraq in 2009), he has expertise working with military personnel, veterans and first responders. His military service has had a significant impact on his clinical work and research focus, shaping the questions he asks as a scientist and his understanding of the stresses and problems that his patients experience.

Dr. Bryan conducts research to help military veterans, first responders and other adults who are dealing with mental health issues. A recent randomized clinical trial showed that crisis response planning, significantly reduced suicide attempts by 76% among military personnel as a stand-alone emergency intervention. For more information on this episode go to https://www.sallyspencerthomas.com/hope-illuminated-podcast/99

Did You Know?

Frequent Cannabis Use by Young People Linked to Decline in IQ

In the time after first trying cannabis or first misusing prescription drugs, the percentages of young people who develop the corresponding substance use disorder are higher among adolescents (ages 12-17) than young adults (ages 18-25). For example, within 12 months since first cannabis use, 10.7% of adolescents had cannabis use disorder versus 6.4% of young adults.

Prenatal cannabis exposure and its correlated factors are associated with greater risk for psychopathology during middle childhood.

The number of fatal vehicle crashes in which drivers tested positive for cannabis more than doubled from 2007 to 2016.

Studies suggest that 9% of people who use marijuana will become dependent on it rising to about 17% in those who start using in their teens.

Experts estimate that between 8% and 13% of all schizophrenia cases are linked to marijuana / cannabis use during teen years.

More: https://johnnysambassadors.org/research/

In this episode, I interview Laura Stack, a well-known “Hall of Fame” speaker for the National Speakers Association. Before November 20, 2019, the speaking topic she was best known for was productivity. After that day, however, her focus shifted. It was on that day, she lost her son Johnny to suicide after he became psychotic from dabbing high-THC concentrates. In this conversation she shares her story, the science behind her work to prevent youth marijuana use, and the strategies she and “Johnny’s Ambassadors” are using to change these concerning trends.

About Laura Stack
Laura-Stack-Headshot-blue.jpeg
Laura Stack was best known in the business world for her professional moniker, The Productivity Pro. Her 30-year career as a keynote speaker, bestselling author of eight productivity books, and corporate spokesperson came to a screeching halt on November 20, 2019, when her 19-year-old son, Johnny, died by suicide after becoming psychotic from dabbing high-THC marijuana concentrates. Laura responded by forming the nonprofit, Johnny’s Ambassadors, to educate parents and teens about the dangers of today’s high-THC marijuana on adolescent brain development, mental illness, and suicide. Her platform now brings education, awareness, and prevention curriculum to parents, drug prevention conferences, community groups, and schools to stop youth marijuana use. She is a powerful speaker who brings Johnny’s personal warning and solid research together in her new book, The Dangerous Truth About Today’s Marijuana: Johnny Stack’s Life and Death Story. Described as a force of nature with unstoppable drive and unwavering purpose, Laura is determined to get teens to #StopDabbing. for more information on this episode go to https://www.sallyspencerthomas.com/hope-illuminated-podcast/98

Suicide rates for our youth and young adults have been climbing since 2001. The reasons for this trend is complex but experts suggest it is a perfect storm of historical events, easy access to distressing information, an unhealthy screen time to outside and social time ratio, and compromised sleep, among other things. The good news is, young people are extraordinary. They have lower mental health bias, they have a desire to help others, and they will change the word.

In this episode I speak with John MacPhee, Executive Director for The Jed Foundation about his thoughts on best practices for engaging young people and schools in the work of suicide prevention and mental health promotion.

John MacPhee
About John MacPhee
John MacPhee brings 30 years of leadership and management experience from the business and not-for-profit settings to his role at the JED Foundation. Passionate about supporting young adults in their transition to adulthood, John advises several organizations including the S. Jay Levy Fellowship for Future Leaders at City College, Trek Medics, Crisis Text Line, the Health Policy and Management Department at the Mailman School of Public Health, and HIV Hero. Earlier in his career, he served in executive positions for Par Pharmaceutical, Inc. and Forest Laboratories, where he oversaw functions such as business development, alliance management, clinical development, regulatory affairs, sales and marketing. John continues to contribute to the development of novel medications for disorders such as Parkinson’s disease through board roles with Adamas Pharmaceuticals and Blackthorn Therapeutics. In 2016, John received The Allan Rosenfield Alumni Award for Excellence in the field of public health from the Joseph L. Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University. He earned a BA from Columbia College, an MBA from New York University and an MPH from Columbia University.

About The Jed Foundation

The Jed Foundation is a 501c3 organization that believes in a comprehensive, public health approach to promoting mental health and preventing suicide. JED’s programs are grounded in our Comprehensive Approach to Mental Health Promotion and Suicide Prevention for Colleges and Universities and for High Schools. These evidence-based models can be used to assess efforts currently being made in schools, identifying existing strengths and areas for improvement.

The programs and resources recommended through the JED Higher Education and JED High School programs have been developed with an equitable implementation lens that ensures that the needs of students who are potentially marginalized and/or underserved due to societal and structural inequities and school-specific community demographics are considered deliberately and intentionally. For more information go to https://www.sallyspencerthomas.com/hope-illuminated-podcast/97