Send a Text to the Moms - please include your contact info if you want a response. thanks!

 Episode 48: “Our Son Died with His Civil Liberties Intact” - and What We Did Next 

One Story of Bedlam - and Activism - in America’s Mental Health Crisis

Guests: Norm Ornstein and Judy Harris

You are about to meet a couple - Norm Ornstein and Judy Harris - who tragically lost their son Matthew in 2015. Matthew had struggled with mental illness for over a decade, and , as listeners of this podcast well know - that means the entire family was affected. 

After Matthew’s death, Norm and Judy (along with their son Danny), created a foundation in his name, which you’ll learn about in the second half of the podcast. Another project of theirs is the PBS documentary film, The Definition of Insanity looks at one judge’s innovative efforts in Miami to prevent people with mental illness from being treated like criminals…narrated by Norm’s longtime friend Rob Reiner. 

First, we ask them about Matthews’ story, and, as you will hear, these highly successful activists still live with the feelings that all similar families face - guilt, confusion, anger, and grief. Hear their story…and how they are working to find ways of “taking a tragedy and trying to make something positive,”

Links:

The Matthew Harris Ornstein Memorial Foundation

https://www.mornstein.org/

The Definition of Insanity Documentary:

https://www.pbs.org/show/definition-insanity/

https://www.amazon.com/Bedlam-Intimate-Journey-Americas-Mental/dp/0525541314/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1656544912&sr=8-1

https://www.washingtonian.com/2020/04/30/the-deeply-personal-story-behind-the-pbs-documentary-the-definition-of-insanity/

Want us to cover a topic? comment to share?

Facebook page @Schizophrenia3Moms

@SZ3MomsTrenches -  twitter

Randye Kaye -Broadcaster, Actress, Voice Talent, Speaker, and Author (“Ben Behind his Voices”, “Happier Made Simple”)

Miriam Feldman – Artist, Mom, Author “He Came in With It”

Mindy Greiling – member of the Minnesota House of Representatives for twenty years. Activist, Legislator, Author (“Fix What You Can“)

Want to know more?
Join our facebook page
Our websites:
Randye Kaye
Mindy Greiling
Miriam (Mimi) Feldman

Send a Text to the Moms - please include your contact info if you want a response. thanks!

Just the Moms, addressing Q’s and giving updates

We talk about:

• Our recent advocacy (legislation and keynote speeches)
• SEARCH: what families need (Support, Education, Acceptance, Respect, Communication Skills, Hope)
• Updates 
• 
  
• …and address e-mails and facebook comments like

Will I ever feel "normal" again? The grief and anger still take my breath away some days. I'm sorry to vent. I will start listening to the podcasts soon. Thank you!

How do you all prepare for when your sons get discharged from the hospital but you can tell they aren’t stable yet? I’ve listened to a ton of your podcasts and they are so enlightening- but I’d be interested to hear more of the technical details of transitioning a loved one out of or into the hospital and out of/into group homes for someone not yet familiar with navigating the patchwork of mental health services. 

What would we tell providers if we could?

Want us to cover a topic? comment to share?

Facebook page @Schizophrenia3Moms

@SZ3MomsTrenches -  twitter

Randye Kaye -Broadcaster, Actress, Voice Talent, Speaker, and Author (“Ben Behind his Voices”, “Happier Made Simple”)

Miriam Feldman – Artist, Mom, Author “He Came in With It”

Mindy Greiling – member of the Minnesota House of Representatives for twenty years. Activist, Legislator, Author (“Fix What You Can“)

Want to know more?
Join our facebook page
Our websites:
Randye Kaye
Mindy Greiling
Miriam (Mimi) Feldman

Send a Text to the Moms - please include your contact info if you want a response. thanks!

Guest:Freddie de Boer

On May 17th, the NY Times Magazine published an article by Daniel Bergner, based on his book The Mind and the Moon. 

The article reports on psychosis , from the point of view of Caroline, who is beset by the hallucinations of psychosis. 

Daniel Bergner explores how to seek a deeper engagement with ourselves and one another—and how to find a better path toward caring for our minds.

Or - does he leave out a huge piece of the picture?

So many comments about the article, which seemed biased toward the Hearing Voices Network. One such response, from Freddie deBoer, has generated over 7,000 YouTube views so far.

Links:

NYTimes article:

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/17/magazine/antipsychotic-medications-mental-health.html

Freddie deBoer’s response:

https://youtu.be/yKB6F_VYuZY

https://freddiedeboer.substack.com/p/my-response-to-daniel-bergners-new?s=r

Want us to cover a topic? comment to share?

Facebook page @Schizophrenia3Moms

@SZ3MomsTrenches -  twitter

Randye Kaye -Broadcaster, Actress, Voice Talent, Speaker, and Author (“Ben Behind his Voices”, “Happier Made Simple”)

Miriam Feldman – Artist, Mom, Author “He Came in With It”

Mindy Greiling – member of the Minnesota House of Representatives for twenty years. Activist, Legislator, Author (“Fix What You Can“)

Want to know more?
Join our facebook page
Our websites:
Randye Kaye
Mindy Greiling
Miriam (Mimi) Feldman

Send a Text to the Moms - please include your contact info if you want a response. thanks!

According to NAMI, there is an undeniable and growing mental health crisis that demands both attention and action. 

Covid-19 has only made things worse.

Nearly 2 in 5 adults struggled with mental health issues in 2020, compared to about 1 in 5 adults before the pandemic. Among adults with mental illness, only 46% received treatment in 2020, a number that is far lower among Black Americans (37%), Hispanic/Latinx (35%) and Asian Americans (21%).

The crisis is especially acute among youth and young adults, as trends that had already predated the pandemic have turned even more ominous. 

In 2020, 75% of people aged 18–24 reported at least one mental health or substance use concern. 

In 2021, emergency department visits for suspected suicide attempts were 51% higher among adolescent girls than in 2020.

Today's guests are working to make things better for their fellow students who have mental illness issues.

They are Mindy’s cousin's daughter, Claire Orth, who just graduated from the University of North Dakota, and Taylor Keane, her granddaughter, who will graduate from high school in Washington D.C. in two weeks. 

1.Please introduce yourself and share how you became interested in mental illness.

2. What do you see on your respective campuses so far as fellow students experiencing mental illnesses? Could you give a specific example?

3. How have those observations/experiences inspired you to help? (Claire took some training at her school so she could better help fellow students and chose schizophrenia for her senior capstone projects. Taylor also chose mental illness for a school project and for her Youth In Government legislation. She's currently doing an internship at the Treatment Advocacy Center where she is focusing on youth.)

4. All of us wrote in our books about missing early signs of our sons' illnesses. Do you think your friends' parents today are doing any better? 

5. What would you say to parents whose children are in high school or college and experiencing signs of mental illness? 

6. Are your friends aware that young people who smoke marijuana are five times more likely to have psychosis? 

7. Have you noticed anything that your schools have done that have helped students? Is mental illness part of the curriculum? School support staff?

Links:

https://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org/

Want us to cover a topic? comment to share?

Facebook page @Schizophrenia3Moms

@SZ3MomsTrenches -  twitter

Randye Kaye -Broadcaster, Actress, Voice Talent, Speaker, and Author (“Ben Behind his Voices”, “Happier Made Simple”)

Miriam Feldman – Artist, Mom, Author “He Came in With It”

Want to know more?
Join our facebook page
Our websites:
Randye Kaye
Mindy Greiling
Miriam (Mimi) Feldman

Send a Text to the Moms - please include your contact info if you want a response. thanks!

When Mental Illness happens, it happens to the whole family.

 Do families turn to their houses of faith for help ? And if they do, what happens?

We explore this in Episode 44-    with 3 moms, one Rabbi and one Pastor. It doesn’t cover all faiths, of course, but it’s a start.

Guests: Rabbi Evan Schultz, Congregation B’Nai Israel, Connecticut

Rev. Mariah Furness Tollgaard, Pastor

Questions:

• Are you aware, as a faith leader, about mental health issues (especially SMI) in your congregants?
• What does your faith say about SMI?
• How do you, as a faith leader, respond to families dealing with mental illness?
• Is learning about Mental Illness part of your training?
• What part does stigma play in talking openly about SMI? - is it taboo to talk about it?
• How can we as activists/advocates help faith leaders serve their constituents?

According to Research (lifeway.inc):

• Only a quarter of churches (27 percent) have a plan to assist families affected by mental illness according to pastors. And only 21 percent of family members are aware of a plan in their church.
• Few churches (14 percent) have a counselor skilled in mental illness on staff, or train leaders how to recognize mental illness (13 percent) according to pastors.
• Two-thirds of pastors (68 percent) say their church maintains a list of local mental health resources for church members. But few families (28 percent) are aware those resources exist.
• Family members (65 percent) and those with mental illness (59 percent) want their church to talk openly about mental illness, so the topic will not be a taboo. But 66 percent of pastors speak to their church once a year or less on the subject.

Links:

NAMI FaithNet

Guide for Faith Leaders from psychiatry.org

Yom Kippur Sermon re mental illness

Want us to cover a topic? comment to share?

Facebook page @Schizophrenia3Moms

@SZ3MomsTrenches -  twitter

Randye Kaye -Broadcaster, Actress, Voice Talent, Speaker, and Author (“Ben Behind his Voices”, “Happier Made Simple”)

Miriam Feldman – Artist, Mom, Author “He Came in With It”

Mindy Greiling – member of the Minnesota House of Representatives for twenty years. Activist, Legislator, Author (“Fix What You Can“)

Want to know more?
Join our facebook page
Our websites:
Randye Kaye
Mindy Greiling
Miriam (Mimi) Feldman

Send a Text to the Moms - please include your contact info if you want a response. thanks!

We all agree (and letters and comments confirm) - the family feels lost. Doesn’t know what to do, where to turn, to get help with:

Finding options and services

Sorting through them

Place to vent and share/run through ideas

Our guest today provides that kind of help, and she is here today to share some tips with us. 

Guest, Bonnie Lane, (from Chicago area) 

For more than two decades, Bonnie has worked privately with families dealing with mental health issues. She has counseled individuals and families as  they successfully navigate the maze of care and resources available for young and older adults.  Helping families in times of crisis is her mission and her passion.  - The mission? - SUPPORT. 

 Bonnie will support you on your road to acceptance of the new normal. 

• Why does the family feel so stuck and unsupported? (and need services like yours)?
• Do you have a personal story that led you to do this work?
• What are the top areas of need? (legal? social services - benefits etc? emotional help for family?)
• What are the top tips you can share with our listeners to get the information, ideas, and support they need?
• Re your services:How much does it cost?
• Are you aware of other companies like yours in your  area or other areas? 
•  Does any insurance cover your services and if so do you  take MA? 
• What you do sounds important and needed, but is it only available for those with financial resources?

Links:

https://thefamilysupportservices.com/

Here's the YouTube link for the CATCH presentation. 

CATCH L and L - Creating a Game Plan

Want us to cover a topic? comment to share?

Facebook page @Schizophrenia3Moms

@SZ3MomsTrenches -  twitter

Randye Kaye -Broadcaster, Actress, Voice Talent, Speaker, and Author (“Ben Behind his Voices”, “Happier Made Simple”)

Miriam Feldman – Artist, Mom, Author “He Came in With It”

Mindy Greiling – member of the Minnesota House of Representatives for twenty years. Activist, Legislator, Author (“Fix What You Can“)

Want to know more?
Join our facebook page
Our websites:
Randye Kaye
Mindy Greiling
Miriam (Mimi) Feldman

Send a Text to the Moms - please include your contact info if you want a response. thanks!

Guests: Karen Comba, author of The Snipers We Couldn't See: A Memoir of Growing Up with My Mother's Schizophrenia

And Christina Lord, mental health advocate (Canada) daughter of a dad with SZ, 

First, your stories.

How has the experience impacted you (Karen writes about life “with footprints on her back”)

How did writing or sharing about it help? Or did it?

How did your experience- and the unpacking of it - inform the work you now do?

What do you most want other children of parents with SZ to know?

What do you want others to know - teachers, practitioners, other adults in a child-of’s life?

How to find happier places for your mind?

Links:
https://christinalord.ca/
https://www.karencomba.com/

Books we mention: (besides our own, Ben Behind His Voices, He Came In With It, and Fix what You Can)

She's Not Herself, by Linda Appleman Shapiro (formerly published as Four Rooms Upstairs)

Want us to cover a topic? comment to share?

Facebook page @Schizophrenia3Moms

@SZ3MomsTrenches -  twitter

Randye Kaye -Broadcaster, Actress, Voice Talent, Speaker, and Author (“Ben Behind his Voices”, “Happier Made Simple”)

Miriam Feldman – Artist, Mom, Author “He Came in With It”

Mindy Greiling – member of the Minnesota House of Representatives for twenty years. Activist, Legislator, Author (“Fix What You Can“)

Want to know more?
Join our facebook page
Our websites:
Randye Kaye
Mindy Greiling
Miriam (Mimi) Feldman

Send a Text to the Moms - please include your contact info if you want a response. thanks!

Problem: Getting our  Homeless off the Streets and into Housing

Many of our seriously mentally ill wind up in jail, dead, or homeless.

It doesn’t have to be that way - and solutions in places like Trieste, Italy can show us the way, Heart Forward.

Meet Kerry Morrison, and discover a cost-effective, empathetic solution that lives up to “The human right to a sense of purpose.” 

Can a transformative care strategy, tested and proven in Trieste, Italy, work in Los Angeles, California?

• We hear you.
• We see you.
• You are safe here.
• Your voice matters.

Resources and links:

www.accoglienza.us.  

https://www.heartforwardla.org/podcast-season-1

https://www.heartforwardla.org/

Episode of Kerry’s podcast  with Dr. Roberto Mezzina:

https://www.buzzsprout.com/1283882/8741627 

Want us to cover a topic? comment to share?
Facebook page @Schizophrenia3Moms
@SZ3MomsTrenches -  twitter

Randye Kaye -Broadcaster, Actress, Voice Talent, Speaker, and Author (“Ben Behind his Voices”, “Happier Made Simple”)

Miriam Feldman – Artist, Mom, Author “He Came in With It”

Mindy Greiling – member of the Minnesota House of Representatives for twenty years. Activist, Legislator, Author (“Fix What You Can“)

Want to know more?
Join our facebook page
Our websites:
Randye Kaye
Mindy Greiling
Miriam (Mimi) Feldman

Send a Text to the Moms - please include your contact info if you want a response. thanks!

We invited listeners to come on board for this episode, for some Q and A, and wow did they come through!

This is one of our most powerful shows ever, thanks to you. Yes, if you want, we will do this again.

We discuss:
how we wrote our books
How to help the Treatment team include us - even if they are reluctant (HIPAA, confidentiality, etc.)
Planning for when we are no longer able to help
The value of our anger, the value of our love
Lack of training for many practitioners re SMI (serious mental illness)
Conservatorship/Guardianship
SSI/SSDI
Positive life lessons for us in all this...
and much more.

Want us to cover a topic? Facebook page @Schizophrenia3Moms
Twitter @SZ3MomsTrenches

Randye Kaye -Broadcaster, Actress, Voice Talent, Speaker, and Author (“Ben Behind his Voices”, Happier Made Simple)

Miriam Feldman – Artist, Mom, Author “He Came in With It”

Mindy Greiling – member of the Minnesota House of Representatives for twenty years. Activist, Legislator, Author (“Fix What You Can“)

Want to know more?
Join our facebook page
Our websites:
Randye Kaye
Mindy Greiling
Miriam (Mimi) Feldman

Send a Text to the Moms - please include your contact info if you want a response. thanks!

If you have a mental illness, how does isolation add to the challenges you face?

Guest (and self-described schizophrenic) David "Eli" Israelian talks about his story, and two incredible projects:
Painted Brain | Putting Brains To Work! We're building community-based solutions to mental health challenges and the impact of social injustice through arts, advocacy, and enterprise. - 

Painted Brain creates lasting community-based solutions to mental health challenges and the impact of social injustice through arts, advocacy, and enterprise.

and Peer Mental Health:
Community wellness meetings 

Social and Emotional Support Groups 

Faith- based support groups

Workforce development

 Stipend & job opportunities

links:
https://www.facebook.com/PeerMentalHealth/
https://www.peermentalhealth.com/
https://paintedbrain.org/ 

Want to know more?
Join our facebook page
Our websites:
Randye Kaye
Mindy Greiling
Miriam (Mimi) Feldman