On this week's episode, Jeff speaks with Francesca Reicherter. Francesca is the Founder and President of Inspiring My Generation, a 501(c)3 on a mission of suicide prevention through awareness, conversation, education, and support. She holds an MS in Information Systems and Operations Management from the University of Florida and is a current MA in Psychology student at Pepperdine University where she was recognized in a Student Spotlight. Inspired by her mental health journey, Francesca works to make resources and information accessible. On January 20, 2019, Francesca lost her uncle to suicide. Just 27 days before that, she had attempted suicide for the first time, and he was the one who supported her to find hope. After losing him to suicide, Francesca’s world fell apart. Today, Francesca is a 3x suicide attempt survivor and the Founder of a national nonprofit organization, Inspiring My Generation. Dedicated to ending the stigma, Francesca hosts Normalize The Conversation, a podcast series amplifying the voices of mental health professionals, advocates, and any individual interested in sharing their story. There are over 100 episodes currently available with new episodes every week. In 2021, Francesca published, “You Are Not Alone: The Workbook,” as a guide to help the reader build a coping toolbox. In 2022, Francesca published “I AM,” an interactive workbook to help the reader build the tools needed to advocate for their mental health, and “How Are You?” as an interactive guide to checking in with your mental health. In 2023, Francesca published “Self Care,” as a guide to help the reader implement self-care practices that work for their needs and lifestyle. Francesca was contracted by the Peer Support Coalition of Florida to turn these workbooks into three workshops that began in 2023 and will continue into 2024. In addition to developing resources, Fran is a speaker spreading hope, most known for her keynote speech at NAMI CA 2022 Annual Youth Conference. She presented a session on Mental Health Conversations at the NAMI FL 2022 Annual Conference. Francesca was also a panelist at the When The Music Stops 2022 Annual Summit. Furthermore, she recently spoke on virtual panels for Magellan Health and for the National Federation of Families. She did a fireside chat at the 2023 Mind Out Loud Event, presented at the 2023 Brave Summit, and presented on her own experience and innovative ways to reduce suicide at NAMI Con 2023. Her work has been featured in the Kindness Channel and IDontMind Journal. She was a top finalist at the RevolutionHER 2022 Summit for Impact in Leadership and was honored as a Peer Recovery Champion at the NAMI FL 2022 Annual Conference. Her organization was featured on NBC6 South Florida in September 2022. In 2021, Francesca was named an Amplifier by the ConversationaLIST Awards. Francesca’s mission is to make preventative resources available, eliminate barriers, and normalize the conversation so that no one else will lose themselves or a loved one to suicide. For more information: https://www.inspiringmygeneration.org/ https://www.instagram.com/inspiringmygeneration/ https://twitter.com/inspiringmygen
