SMI Spotlight

By TAC

SMI Spotlight shares stories, research, and helpful information relating to severe mental illnesses such as schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, and bipolar disorder. SMI Spotlight is hosted by TA... more

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FAQs about SMI Spotlight:

How many episodes does SMI Spotlight have?

The podcast currently has 12 episodes available.

SMI Spotlight episodes:

January 21, 2026Effective Talk Therapy for Schizophrenia and Psychosis
In this SMI Spotlight episode, Dr. Xavier Amador - clinical psychologist and author of I Am Not Sick, I Don’t Need Help! - sits down with Dr. Aaron Brinen, author of Living Well With Psychosis and a leading expert in Recovery‑Oriented Cognitive Therapy (CT-R).Together, they explore how CT-R helps people living with severe mental illness (SMI) build hope, strengthen personal agency, and move toward meaningful, self‑directed recovery.Dr. Brinen shares insights from his clinical work, the science behind CT-R, and the powerful role that goals and adaptive motivation play in helping individuals with psychosis move forward. He also offers practical guidance for clinicians, ACT teams, families, and anyone seeking effective recovery‑focused strategies.If you’re a family member seeking tools to support a loved one, a clinician wanting to learn more about CT-R, or someone with lived experience looking for hope-oriented approaches you’ll find this conversation invaluable.Video chapters:
(00:00) - Intro
(02:23) - Dr Brinen's background
(04:17) - The connections between treatment of psychosis and anxiety disorders
(05:07) - Recovery oriented cognitive therapy - meaningful recovery
(07:59) - Tapping into personal, motivating dreams and goals to serve recovery.
(09:02) - What's a typical opening question in this type of therapy?
(10:44) - How does recovery oriented CBT help with symptoms of SMI?
(14:49) - What's the time investment by a clinician to get this intervention to work?
(15:50) - Training ACT teams in CT-R and how widespread is CT-R?
(19:28) - CT-R with Anosognosia - lack of insight
(21:23) - How CT-R bypasses the "need" to have insight into one's diagnosis
(24:45) - Hope, identity, and personal agency
(28:02) - Activating the adaptive mode in CT-R
(30:33) - How to find a CT-R therapist
(31:16) - 3 actionable steps for families to help a loved one with SMI
(35:14) - A key priority for policymakers to help people with SMI
...more
42min
November 19, 2025The nurses leading mental illness outreach in NYC subways
In this episode of SMI Spotlight, Dr Xavier Amador sits down with three nurses from New York City’s SCOUT (Subway Co-Response Outreach Team) program — a unique initiative that brings mental health expertise directly into the NYC subway system. These clinicians meet people with severe mental illness (SMI) where they are, building trust underground, offering compassionate care, and helping individuals access treatment when they need it.The SCOUT nurses share what drew them to this work, how they build relationships in unpredictable environments, and how they know when it’s time to bring someone to the hospital. They break down the mental status exam, discuss person-centered assessment tools, and talk about maintaining dignity, safety, and humanity — even when police are present. Through powerful stories, they show what successful outreach really looks like: connection, compassion, and meeting people with severe mental illness without judgment.We also explore how SCOUT measures success, what program evaluation looks like in the field, and how a humanizing approach can change lives at an individual level. Whether you’re a clinician, advocate, policymaker, or someone who wants to better understand SMI, this conversation offers a grounded, hopeful look at compassionate street-level mental health care in NYC.Video Sections:
(00:00) - Intro
(01:41) - What is the SCOUT program?
(03:08) - What attracted them to the program?
(07:02) - How do you build relationships and know when it's time to take someone to the hospital?
(10:18) - Mental Status Exam Overview
(13:11) - Clinical assessment tools with a humanizing approach
(16:51) - Maintaining the dignity of the person
(18:19) - Helping individuals feel safe even with police presence
(19:38) - Tactics for helping people feel safe
(23:20) - Program success stories
(28:21) - Measuring success in connection and care
(29:01) - Program Evaluation
(30:15) - Seeing the humanity of unhoused and mentally ill people
(35:46) - People-first thinking and language
(39:40) - Treating everyone like family
(41:49) - Effectuating change at an individual level
...more
48min
October 14, 2025A sister's story: actor Michele Hicks on her brother's schizophrenia
In this episode of SMI Spotlight, host Dr. Xavier Amador talks with actor and advocate Michele Hicks about her brother’s journey with schizophrenia and what it means to be a family caregiver.Michele shares her deeply personal story — from recognizing her brother’s first symptoms and navigating interactions with police and providers, to understanding anosognosia (lack of insight), the limits of HIPAA, and the emotional toll of caregiver burnout and guilt.She also discusses how her experience inspired her advocacy work with Treatment Advocacy Center, the importance of including families in treatment, and how the media industry can help portray serious mental illness with honesty and compassion.Hosted by Dr. Xavier Amador, SMI Spotlight explores real stories and expert perspectives on severe mental illness (SMI) — bringing awareness to conditions with psychosis like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder while highlighting the people and policies shaping better care.Video Sections:
(00:00) - Intro
(01:31) - Michele Hicks
(01:47) - Intro to Michele's advocacy work with TAC
(02:20) - How is Michele's brother now
(02:56) - Interactions with police
(03:42) - The start of Michael's symptoms
(04:39) - Intellectual disability with schizophrenia and anosognosia
(05:56) - Being a parentified child caregiving for siblings with challenges
(08:04) - Interactions with medical providers
(09:57) - HIPAA
(10:28) - Michele's advocacy work
(10:58) - Navigating HIPAA as a family member
(12:57) - Navigating burnout as a family caregiver
(14:19) - Navigating feelings of guilt
(15:59) - Michele's relationship with her brother
(17:39) - Media industry and depictions of SMI
(18:58) - Mental Health vs Mental Illness
(19:32) - How Michele got involved with TAC
(22:03) - Importance of self care
(22:46) - Involving families in treatment as much as possible
(24:05) - Ways of processing - not calling
(26:40) - The weight of responsibility as a caregiver
(28:14) - The role of creatives spreading stories
...more
31min
September 18, 2025When full recovery from schizophrenia isn't possible
In this episode of SMI Spotlight, Dr. Xavier Amador speaks with Leslie Carpenter, TAC's legislative advocacy manager. Leslie is a passionate mental health advocate whose lived experience supporting a family member with a severe mental illness has shaped her perspective on treatment and recovery. She is an accomplished advocate who led efforts in Iowa to pass legislation for Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT) programs. Together with Dr. Amador, Leslie discusses anosognosia and the challenges of creating a continuum of care for people living with SMI.Video Sections:
(00:00) - Intro
(01:28) - SMI Spotlight
(01:52) - How Leslie became a mental health advocate
(03:06) - Anosognosia
(05:15) - Most discouraging/hopeful moments
(07:47) - High level of functioning vs. low level of functioning
(10:07) - Treatment System Process and Problems
(12:40) - Additional supports needed
(13:55) - Biggest misconceptions about AOT
(15:53) - What advice for other families in her situation?
(17:38) - Advice to policymakers and insurance companies
(19:54) - Is the best place to treat people in their communities?
(23:38) - Advice for clinicians treating first episode psychosis
(26:21) - Creating robust multi-disciplinary continuum of lifelong care for people with SMI
(28:53) - Challenges addressing physical health for people with SMI
(31:25) - Higher pain threshold for people with schizophrenia
(32:14) - TAC Advocacy Bootcamp as a source of hope
(33:52) - Substance use with severe mental illness
(35:41) - CCBHC's
(37:05) - Using AI to find treatment resources
...more
39min
August 12, 2025Ask Dr. Amador: Severe Mental Illness, Substances, and HIPAA
In this SMI Spotlight Q&A episode, Dr. Xavier Amador—founder of the LEAP approach and renowned clinical psychologist—answers real questions from our viewers about living with, supporting, and advocating for people with severe mental illness (SMI) such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.From managing stress-induced symptom spikes to navigating HIPAA, helping loved ones accept medication, and addressing substance use, Dr. Amador offers practical advice and compassionate insight backed by decades of experience.Video Sections:
(00:00) - Intro
(00:57) - Welcome!
(01:06) - Q1 - Managing spikes in symptoms from stress
(03:34) - Q2- Asking others to use LEAP methods
(06:39) - Q3 - In relationships, avoiding triggering each other's SMI symptoms
(08:14) - Q4 - Managing hallucinations when medicated and otherwise stable
(11:38) - Q5 - What support resources for early days of recovery?
(14:39) - Q6 - How to use LEAP when delusions/paranoia have estranged someone from you
(17:44) - Q7 - Encouraging taking meds and accepting outcomes if meds aren't taken
(20:24) - Q8 - Using LEAP with a teenager
(21:36) - Q9 - Encouraging someone with SMI to stop using substances
(24:33) - Q10a - Navigating HIPAA
(28:25) - Q10b - How can HIPAA be fixed?
(34:37) - Contact us!
...more
36min
July 15, 2025Ask Dr. Amador: Top Anosognosia Questions Answered
In this episode of SMI Spotlight, renowned clinical psychologist and author Dr. Xavier Amador answers your most pressing questions about anosognosia—a common and often misunderstood symptom of severe mental illness like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
Dr. Amador, founder of the LEAP method and author of I Am Not Sick, I Don’t Need Help!, shares expert insights on:
• Whether withholding financial support can motivate treatment
• If showing someone a video of themselves during psychosis can increase insight
• What people remember after a psychotic episode
• The different types of insight impacted by anosognosia
• Where to begin when a loved one refuses help
• Whether insight improves with age
• How to manage medication-related weight gain
SMI Spotlight is a podcast series from TAC, focused on evidence-based care and real-life strategies for supporting people with severe mental illness.

00:00) - Intro
(00:56) - Q1 - Withholding Money for Medication Adherence
(04:10) Q2 - Anosognosia and Video Playback
(07:35) - Letting go of convincing
(08:56) - Q3 - Anosognosia and Memory
(10:42) - Q4 - Permanence of Anosognosia
(12:34) - Different types of insight
(13:54) - Q5 - Where to start when someone has anosognosia
(15:15) - Q6 - How to get providers to use LEAP Methods
(17:55) - Q7 - Does Insight Increase With Age?
(20:26) - Q8 - Weight Gain from Medications
(25:51) - Contact us!
...more
28min
June 03, 2025CEO of the APA on Decriminalizing Mental Illness
In today's episode of SMI Spotlight, Dr. Xavier Amador is joined by Dr. Marketa Wills, CEO and Medical Director of the American Psychiatric Association (APA). Dr. Wills discusses her career journey, leading her to enter the field of psychiatry and administration. She covers her vision for the upcoming advocacy from the APA, emphasizing the need to decriminalize mental illness. To achieve this decriminalization, she discusses the need for more tools and legal mechanisms to provide treatment for individuals with severe mental illness who may be unable to see their own need for medical intervention. She also speaks to how the APA advocates to address the shortage of psychiatrists nationwide. #smi #apa #xavieramador Video Sections:
(00:00) - Intro
(01:54) - What got Dr Wills interested in psychiatry?
(05:12) - Personal Connection
(06:49) - First Woman BIPOC head of APA
(08:11) - Dr. Wills' vision for the APA
(09:56) - Policy changes Dr. Wills is focused on at the APA
(12:14) - Clozaril REMS
(16:05) - Encouraging new doctors to focus on psychiatry and SMI
(18:58) - Addressing Burnout
(21:27) - Peer support for psychiatrists
(23:36) - Thoughts for families frustrated with psychiatrists
(25:29) - AI and psychiatry
(26:52) - How will APA reach people with anosognosia?
(29:32) - Anosognosia in the DSM
...more
33min
May 13, 2025A Mother's Story of Love and Loss to Schizophrenia
In today's episode of SMI Spotlight, Maria Sutherland joins Dr. Xavier Amador to discuss the systemic failures that led to the loss of her son Michael, following complications of his schizophrenia diagnosis. Their discussion touches on the need for supportive housing, dedicated behavioral health crisis response teams, extended family guardianship, increased access to long-acting injectables, and widespread understanding of anosognosia - the lack of insight preventing many with SMI from engaging in treatment. Sections:
(00:00) - Intro
(01:32) - Maria Sutherland
(02:25) - Michael and his diagnosis
(05:46) - First episode of psychosis
(06:58) - Vulnerable brains
(07:44) - Seeking and denying treatment
(08:51) - Learning not to take things personally
(10:44) - Stabilization through incarceration
(12:35) Michael's decline post-incarceration
(14:56) - The need for supportive housing
(18:22) - Thoughts on intervention teams
(21:28) - Thoughts on wellness checks
(23:11) - Building trust through relationships
(24:08) - Limitations of wellness checks
(25:23) - Lengthening guardianship rights
(26:33) - Anosognosia in depth
(29:29) - Empathy and SMI
(31:31) - Injections as treatment
(33:47) - Brain scans aren't for diagnosis
(34:36) - Efficacy of long-acting injectables
(36:30) - Nutrition and gut-brain connection
(38:02) - Supporting people with SMI, like other disabilities
(39:34) - Self-care#schizophrenia #smi #xavieramador #anosognosia
...more
42min
April 15, 2025How Collaborative Care Improves Mental Health Treatment
In this episode of SMI Spotlight, Dr. Xavier Amador sits down with Dr. Roshni Koli, Chief Medical Officer at the Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute, to explore the Collaborative Care Model — an evidence-based approach integrating mental health care into primary care settings.Dr. Koli explains how this model:-Increases access to early mental health intervention-Supports primary care doctors with psychiatric consultation-Reduces stigma and improves follow-through on care-Addresses the urgent workforce shortage in mental healthThey also discuss how collaborative care impacts those with serious mental illness (SMI) and what it means for improving equity in rural and underserved communities.⏱ With evidence from over 90 clinical trials, collaborative care is proven to be more effective than standard care — and it’s the only integrated healthcare model with its own billing codes for care coordination.Whether you're a clinician, policymaker, caregiver, or someone seeking better access to care, this conversation offers a blueprint for a better, more integrated system.Video Sections:
(00:00) - Intro
(01:01) - Welcome!
(03:22) - What is the Collaborative Care Model (CoCM)?
(04:52) - Why CoCM?
(05:56) - How CoCM works in practice
(06:46) - CoCM and stigma
(07:50) - Engaging caregivers in CoCM
(09:44) - CoCM for people with anosognosia
(11:25) - Financial benefits of CoCM
(13:28) - CoCM for children and adolescent populations
(13:48) - Results from studies of the CoCM
(14:29) - How CoCM applies to children
(15:40) - Measurement-informed care
(16:54) - Back to pediatric CoCM
(19:14) - Finding a CoCM physician
(19:45) - Process for CoCM Implementation
(20:39) - Cost effectiveness of CoCM
(21:54) - Behavioral Care Manager training
(24:39) - Behavioral Care Manager role
(26:59) - Asking for CoCM
(28:43) - MMHPI Resources
(29:07) - CoCM and mental healthcare reform #xavieramador #collaborativecare #carecoordination #smi
...more
33min
March 11, 2025Ask Dr. Amador - Navigating Severe Mental Illness
In today's SMI Spotlight episode, Dr. Xavier Amador, clinical psychologist, author of I Am Not Sick, I Don’t Need Help!, and creator of the LEAP (Listen, Empathize, Agree, Partner) method, answers listener questions about severe mental illness (SMI), including schizophrenia, anosognosia, family communication, and advocacy.🔹 Topics Covered in This Episode:✔️ How to respond to delusions and paranoid thinking in loved ones✔️ Tips for families dealing with anosognosia (lack of insight)✔️ Using LEAP communication techniques to build trust and encourage treatment✔️ Supporting a loved one in jail or the legal system while maintaining boundaries✔️ Finding and maintaining hope despite societal challenges✔️ How to plan for long-term care as aging caregivers✔️ Breaking the cycle of hospitalization, incarceration, and homelessness📢 About Dr. Xavier Amador:Dr. Amador is a world-renowned psychologist, mental health advocate, and founder of the LEAP Institute. His work has been featured in major media outlets, and his expertise helps families, clinicians, and law enforcement better understand how to communicate with individuals who struggle with insight into their illness.Episode Sections:
(00:00) - Intro
(00:59) - Welcome!
(01:58) - Question 1 - How to respond to different content of delusions
(04:35) - Minimizing the emotional pain from delusional accusations
(05:51) - Different types of delusional content
(06:30) - Ask questions to determine potential risk
(07:44) - Question 2 - How to stop the revolving door of hospitalization, incarceration, and homelessness
(09:21) - How for a loved one specifically
(11:46) - Recognizing small victories
(13:32) - Question 3 - How to maintain hope in a broken system
(13:48) - Seeking out success stories
(15:31) - Lisa's sister's success
(16:59) - A marathon not a sprint
(17:46) - Question 4 - How can aging care partners prepare for when they will no longer be able to provide full support?
(18:17) - Talk to an estate attorney, engage other family
(20:44) - Living independently with supports
(22:29) - Question 5 - How to use LEAP in difficult situations
(24:22) - Example where Dr. Amador used LEAP
(26:52) - How to handle the repetition of the same topics over and over
(29:32) - Navigating conflict when people aren't ready to listen
(30:41) - Managing emotions as a family member
(33:29) - Dr. Amador and his son
(34:40) - How to contact us!🎙️ Have a question for Dr. Amador? Submit your questions in the comments, call and leave a message at 703-294-6005, or contact us via email at [email protected]🔔 Subscribe and turn on notifications to never miss an episode of SMI Spotlight and Ask Dr. Amador!#XavierAmador #LEAPMethod #SevereMentalIllness #MentalHealth #Schizophrenia #Anosognosia #Psychology #MentalHealthAdvocate #FamilySupport #MentalHealthAwareness #AskDrAmador #SMISpotlight
...more
36min

FAQs about SMI Spotlight:

How many episodes does SMI Spotlight have?

The podcast currently has 12 episodes available.