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What Makes a Bully? Can Hazing Culture Temporarily Warp Someone’s Moral Compass?
I was a sophomore at Smoky Hill High School when the Columbine school shooting happened just 20 miles away. I remember the confusion as our school went into lockdown. None of us could have imagined the horror unfolding nearby. For 25 years, I’ve carried the weight of that day, and I’ve long...
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Modeling Compassion to Reduce Mental Health Stigma
I grew up believing that I lived in a perfect family, including my grandparents’ generation. In a way, this provided a sense of safety and positivity in my world. As I grew older, I came to know about relatives who struggled with depression and anxiety. I also learned of individual and family...
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Supporting Families in the Recovery Process
At the New York State Office of Mental Health, our Office of Advocacy and Peer Support Services (OAPSS) – formerly the Office of Consumer Affairs –supports families to play a vital role in the recovery and resilience process. The office is staffed by individuals with expertise gained through...
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Family Matters: Designing for Empathy & Inclusion
As the understanding and treatment of behavioral health patients has evolved, so too has the approach taken by facility planners, architects, and interior designers. The design professional’s challenge is to incorporate innovative improvements while respecting the underlying realities of the...
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They Are Us
If the last two years have shown us anything it has shown us how resilient we are. It has also reminded us all just how vulnerable we can be. These are two important truths that are too often overlooked, forgotten, or denied. As we strive to build mental health awareness in our communities, it is...
