Lyme/Old Lyme: In it Together

Dr. Janet Dee Spoltore,   long time Coalition advocate and community member, joined us for a wonderful conversation about supporting young adults and their families as they transition to college.   Dr. Spoltore is currently the Director of Student Counseling and Health Services at Connecticut College, as well as a licensed psychologist and leader in the field of college student mental health.    If you are curious about ways to help your student through this transition- please listen!

June is Pride Month, but every month is a time to raise awareness and support for all our kids!  We were so pleased to welcome our guests from the Gender Diversity and Resiliency Program at the Child Guidance Center of Southern Connecticut.   Renee Reopell, LCSW and Lucy Ehrenfeld, APRN joined us to share more about the work they are doing to provide services to LGBTQ+ youth in Connecticut.    This population is especially at-risk for substance use and other mental health concerns and our guests offered compassionate insight, education, and resources for all of us.

We welcomed Jenn Muggeo, Deputy Director at Ledgelight Health District (Opioid Use and Overdose Awareness and Prevention | Ledge Light Health District (llhd.org)

Jenn is an incredible force in providing education, awareness, and support related to opioid use and overdose prevention.   It's no secret that in recent years communities across the nation have been faced with rising number of deaths associated with opioid use disorder.   Jenn joined us to learn more about what is facing Connecticut, our community, and how we can all work together to reduce stigma and potentially save lives. 

ADULT use cannabis is now legal in Connecticut  with first retail marijuana hitting shelves in January of this year. We were thrilled to welcome Ben Cort on the Podcast.  Author of Weed, Inc., addiction treatment specialist, Ted Talk speaker, and national consultant in marijuana education-  Ben offers essential information, knowledge, and skills for anyone interacting and raising youth right now in our state.  THC levels are off the hook,  impact on youth development and addiction is serious, and community awareness and discussion essential.

Phoebe also shared some awesome insight from a L/OL youth perspective- you don't want to miss it!   If you like what he has to share,  Ben Cort will be joining LYSB for an evening ZOOM webinar on March 29th 7PM.  Please register at www.lysb.org

Join us this month for an awesome conversation with Adam Dodge, nationally accredited speaker and specialist whose work is characterized by his dedication to addressing the existing and future threats posed by technology to victims of crime and gender-based violence.  Adam has also created The Tech Savvy Parent-   an online resource for all parents striving to raise their kids safely in this ever changing digital word.    We were thrilled to chat about tips and tricks for parents, as well as our upcoming ZOOM webinar with Adam and some dynamic LOL teen experts!

This month's episode highlights the amazing work of L/OL student athletes, administration, and other prevention advocates!   Learn more about the Substance Free Athletics and  Protect Your Game initiatives, as well as gain some great insight into what our students are thinking and feeling about prevention right now.   Debbie Berndt, SFA Executive Director, and Maddy Morgado, LOLHS senior, joined us for this awesome conversation-  all adults invested in supporting substance free kids should check this out!

Ann Dagle, Co-Founder and President of the Brian Dagle Foundation and Brian's Healing Hearts Center for Hope and Healing, joined us to chat about the importance of talking openly about mental health and suicide.  Ann has learned to weave her personal loss into her life and work and we were so blessed to learn more about suicide prevention, how to support our loved ones, and how to break down the stigma surrounding mental health, suicide, and loss.  The L/OL 2021 Youth Survey (grades 7-12) revealed that 20% of students have thought about suicide in the last 12 months.   This statistic and others prove that we all need to be talking openly about mental health suicide- we were grateful to continue that conversation with Ann.

We were lucky enough to have John Daviau- local Community Psychologist and Certified Prevention Specialist- join us for a frank discussion about Connecticut's recent legalization of adult-use marijuana.   Tune in to hear more about incredibly high THC,  exactly who can carry what amount of marijuana,  Social Host Law implications, the connection between vaping and THC, and more.   

What does it mean to try and balance our ride?   Is it even possible to find balance and wellness through the various stages of raising a child and being part of a family?  Alli and Gavin had the pleasure of chatting with two amazing L/OL residents, mothers, and long term PTO volunteers-   Christy Zelek and Dottie Wells.  Learn more about the Balancing the Ride movement!   

The CDC recently reported that US overdose deaths set a record with more than 100,000 last year-   a 15% increase from the previous record in 2020.   Jen Muggeo, the Deputy Director at Ledgelight Health District,  and Margaret Lancaster, Ledgelight's  Health Program Coordinator and Peer Navigator, joined us in an incredibly special, authentic, and open conversation about substance use,  substance use disorder,  stigma, relationships, and how it definitely relates to our small community.   

With words of support and love they offer resources and education to us as parents, family members, friends, neighbors, or someone seeking help-  this is one you don't want to miss.