Celebrities Take on Roles as Mental Health Advocates

Actor Jared Padalecki, known for his roles in “Supernatural” and “Gilmore Girls,” has become the latest in a long list of celebrities who are speaking out about mental illness. These famous people are talking about their personal experiences and using their popularity to help raise awareness, fight stigma, and encourage people who are struggling to reach out and get help. Padelecki has talked about his struggles with depression and initiated the #AlwaysKeepFighting campaign to raise awareness and support.



Musician Demi Lovato has been outspoken and public about her experience with bipolar disorder and has become an outspoken advocate for mental health.  She recently joined with several organizations, including the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance, the Jed Foundation, and others, as part of the  Be Vocal: Speak Up for Mental Health initiative. The campaign encourages individuals to speak up for themselves in asking for help and to learn how to speak out for others in the community.



Actress Glenn Close has been outspoken and active in bringing national attention to the issue of mental illness. After seeing her sister cope with a mental illness and the stigma associated with it, Close founded the nonprofit advocacy organization of Bring Change 2 Mind.  



Actor Joey Pantoliano, has also been active in talking about his personal struggles with depression and substance use. He is raising awareness and fighting stigma through his No Kidding, Me Too! foundation.  Among its many activities, NKM2 promotes messages of empowerments and acceptance through an award-winning documentary of the same name and a series of public service announcements.



Brooke Shields has publicly shared her experience with postpartum depression and written her story of despair and recovery in a memoir, “Down Came the Rain: My Journey Through Postpartum Depression.” Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia of “Star Wars” fame) has taken her advocacy to the stage with her autobiographical one-woman play “Wishful Drinking,” where she tells her story of bipolar disorder and substance use with openness and humor.


As Jeffrey Borenstein, M.D., president and CEO of the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation, noted in a recent interview with CNN, "When celebrities speak publicly about their own experiences with depression or other psychiatric conditions, it's very helpful. It opens up a conversation about these issues. If someone you admire is going through the same thing you might be going through, it makes a difference with people, it causes people to seek help."


Borenstein is also host of a PBS series on mental health issues called Healthy Minds.  You can view past episodes on topics such as bipolar disorder, autism, schizophrenia, and more online at WLIW – Healthy Minds.



By Deborah Cohen, senior writer, American Psychiatric Association

Mental Illness Alone is Not a Risk for Gun Violence

While media coverage of gun violence often leaves us with the perception of close link between violence and mental illness, extensive research tells us that many other factors are associated with a greater risk of gun violence. Most people with mental illness are not violent, and most violent acts are committed by people without mental illness.


New research adds to the wealth of evidence that mental illness is not a risk for gun violence. Research published in June in Psychiatric Services in Advance  found that prior violence, substance abuse, and early trauma are more likely to contribute to future violence than mental illness. The study authors conclude that public safety will not be improved by policies “shaped by highly publicized but infrequent instances of gun violence toward strangers.”


A 2006 report from the Institute of Medicine concludes that "… the contribution of people with mental illnesses to overall rates of violence is small, and further, the magnitude of the relationship is greatly exaggerated in the minds of the general population."


People with mental illness are far more likely to be victims of violence—people with serious mental illness are more than 10 times more likely to be

victims of violence than the general public.



And while mental illness is not a major risk factor for gun violence, mental illness is a significant risk factor for suicide.  Some 39,000 people die by suicide in the United States each year—more than 50 percent by firearm (56 percent of men and 31 percent of women), according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  Among the major risk factors for suicide are a prior suicide attempt, substance misuse, mood disorders (depression or bipolar disorder), and access to lethal means.  However, research has also identified key protective factors—factors that make it less likely that a person will attempt or die by suicide.  Protective factors include effective mental health care and connection to family, friends and community.


By Deborah Cohen, senior writer, American Psychiatric Association

Out, damn'd spot! out, I say!

A slight blog this week as I succumb to the Black Death. 

Thanks to Pieter Bruegel for his illustrative account of my descent.

DCMS told to plan for up to 40% cuts
The Department for Culture Media and Sport has been told by George Osborne to plan for cuts of 40% over the next three years. DCMS, along with all other government departments except for defence, health, education and international development, have been told to pan for two scenarios for 25% and 40% cuts to 2019. The Arts Council, which had been hoping to negotiate for an increase in grant in aid backed up by the value of the creative industries which contribute £7.7 billion a year to the economy, is expected to take another hit, following the 30% cut to arts funding since 2011 when it fell from £449m to £349m, with another 5% in 2013. 

Arts Council England Funding for Developing Sector Leaders 
The Arts Council England's Developing Sector Leaders programme is open to applications. Funding is available for activities to develop leadership and governance relevant to the arts and culture sectors. Leadership and governance development organisations with a strong track record (over three years of successful delivery of professional development activities) in the cultural sector can apply to this programme. To be eligible for funding organisations must have a national reach across libraries, museums and arts organisations and be compliant with all relevant governance reporting and accountability requirements. Up to £1.5m can be applied for but applicants need to have a minimum of 10% match funding from cash income. Projects must start from January 2016 onwards and complete by September 2019. The deadline for applications is midday on 27th August 2015. Read more at: http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/funding/apply-funding/apply-for-funding/developing-sector-leaders/ 



Artists in Residence Grants 
The Levehulme Trust is offering grants of up to £15,000 to UK universities and museums to foster a new creative collaboration with an artist (visual artists, creative writers, musicians, poets) working in a discipline outside the institution's usual curriculum. Artists may not apply directly - all applications must be made by the host institution. There must be a distinct contrast between the artist and host department's expertise (for example, a poet being hosted by a physics department, a composer by a geography department). The residency must be a newly constituted collaboration between artist and hosts.

The grants provide a stipend of up to £12,500 for the artist and consumable costs, such as artist's materials, of up to £2500. A typical residency would be for ten months based on the artist being present at the host institution for two days per week. The deadline for applications is 4pm on the 10th September 2015. Read more at:
https://www.leverhulme.ac.uk/funding/grant-schemes/artist-residence-grants 

The National Alliance for Museums, Health & Wellbeing is a consortium and website where information about museums and health can be shared; to improve existing practice, help build resilience and provide resources and support for those individuals and organisations working in this area of activity. The Alliance is funded by Arts Council England.https://museumsandwellbeingalliance.wordpress.com

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Diversity, Culture, and Mental Health

Diverse Populations and Mental Health

July is the American Psychiatric Association’s Diversity Mental Health Month, a time to appreciate the diversity among us and to focus on the unique mental health issues of diverse populations and efforts to reduce mental health disparities.  It’s clear we live in an increasingly diverse society, but how does that diversity relate to mental health and receiving quality mental health services?



Cultural background, including race/ethnicity and other aspects, can greatly influence how we think and feel about mental health and illness, how we experience symptoms, how we communicate about mental illness, and how and where we seek help.  Some people may be reluctant to talk about mental health concerns out of fear or shame, some people may seek help from faith leaders, while others may turn to a family doctor or a mental health professional.  (See the infographic from APA:  Mental Health and Diverse Populations.)

Extensive research tells us that ethnic and racial disparities in mental health care exist. A new report from Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) notes that among adults with mental illness, whites, American Indian/Alaska Natives, and adults reporting two or more races reported higher mental health service use than black, Asian, and Hispanic adults. (See chart.)

Being aware of differences in the use of mental health services among different ethnic/racial population groups is critical for mental health professionals. That is part of what Diversity Mental Health Month is about – increasing understanding among psychiatrists about the influences of cultural diversity in their practices.



The SAMHSA report also looked at why people don’t use mental health services.  Adults across all racial/ethnic groups cited the same reason most frequently for not using mental health services:  the cost of services cost or lack of insurance.  Other reasons included:  low perceived need; stigma; and structural barriers. Concern about whether mental health services would help was the least cited reason by all racial/ethnic groups.


The top barrier to care, cost, may at least be partly addressed as more people gain access to mental health care with the Affordable Care Act and the Mental Health Parity Act. Many organizations, including the APA, are working to improve cultural sensitivity and to reduce the stigma of mental health, particularly among racial and ethnic minority populations.


By Ranna Parekh, M.D., M.P.H., Director

APA Division of Diversity and Health Equity



This post is part of an ongoing series spotlighting diversity from APA’s Division of Diversity and Health Equity.

...IDEAS WORTH FIGHTING FOR

CALL OUT TO NURSES & PERFORMERS
I am interested to hear from nurses and clinical staff who may have worked with artists, performers and actors to explore how they work with patients around the complex daily interactions. Ultimately how communication might be improved through the arts. I have some visitors from a Portuguese nursing/education context coming to the Manchester School of Art around September 8th/9th/10th and want to workshop some ideas with them to explore new possibilities in nursing education. Please email artsforhealth@aol.com if this resonates, or you might like to be involved. As with all North West Arts & Health Networking events, it’s free, so I can’t offer hard cash - but together, we can try to change things.

FAST-FOOD SUICIDE VESTS

Artist Warwick Thornton shares his startling images of Indigenous children in 'fast-food suicide vests' at the Anna Schwartz Gallery. Here’s an extract about the show, The Future is Unforgiving. "An Aboriginal boy named Sterling looks down, clutching his chest, which is bare except for the suicide vest of McDonald’s take-away containers crudely strapped to it."

"His burden is clear; the fast food he consumes has rendered him a ticking time-bomb for disease, and the expression on his face indicates it is a future he believes is inevitable.” In her accompanying text for the exhibition, the chair of Indigenous studies at the University of Melbourne, Professor Marcia Langton, discusses how the potential of children has been lost. For children like Sterling, his “socialisation is bereft of traditions such as hunting and bereft of the vast knowledge of his traditional estate, environments, fauna and flora, his rightful patrimony”. See images from this important small show by clicking on either image of Sterling.

MADE in Manchester 
MADE, a multimedia arts exhibition featuring the work of over 60 learning disabled visual artists, which explores the theme of ‘the natural versus the manufactured’, is opening at the People’s History Museum on the 25th July. Over the last 12 months artists with learning disabilities have worked together with the Venture Arts team to produce the work for the MADE exhibition from their studio in Hulme, Manchester. Over 100 pieces of new and vibrant work have been created in preparation for the exhibition using a range of artistic media including drawing, painting, animation, printmaking, art as environment, 3D sculpture, illustration, photography, ceramics and textiles.

The artists involved in the project chose themes of the natural versus the manufactured in order to explore, through their art, the changing environments around them. Amanda Sutton, Venture Arts manager added: “In an ever changing world the views and perspectives of artists with a learning disability are essential to helping us all understand how we look at and live in a modern Manchester. As well as what our role is within the modern Manchester of today." Josh Butt, Curatorial Assistant, People’s History Museum: “Since the industrial revolution there has always been conflict between the rise industry and the protection of nature. MADE will bring both a contemporary and local perspective to this clash, well suited to museum as the home of ‘ideas worth fighting for’.” The ‘MADE’ exhibition can be seen at The Engine Hall, People’s History Museum, Left Bank, Spinningfields, Manchester, M3 3ER. From the 25th July – 18th October 2015. With a special launch event on the 30th July, which will include a live-streamed broadcast over social media. Admission is free.

Grants to Help New, Innovative Visual Arts Projects 
The Elephant Trust has announced that the next deadline for applications is the 19th October 2015. The Trust offers grants to artists and for new, innovative visual arts projects based in the UK. The Trust's aim is to make it possible for artists and those presenting their work to undertake and complete projects when confronted by lack of funds. The Trust supports projects that develop and improve the knowledge, understanding and appreciation of the fine arts. Priority is now being given to artists and small organisations and galleries who should submit well argued, imaginative proposals for making or producing new work or exhibitions. Arts Festivals are not supported. The Trust normally awards grants of up to £2,000, but larger grants may be considered. Click on the tigers eye for more details.

City Health Care Partnership Foundation Small Grants Programme

The City Health Care Partnership Foundation has announced that the next deadline for its small grant programme is the 1st September 2015. The programme provides grants or donations of up to £1,000 to local voluntary and community organisations, schools and/or other not-for-profit organisations to carry out activities, projects or one-off events that contribute towards the health and wellbeing of people throughout the UK. To be eligible, groups and organisations needs to have been in existence for at least one year, have an annual income of less than £30,000 and work for the benefit of the local community in which CHCP CIC operates. http://chcpfoundation.chcpcic.org.uk/pages/small-grants 
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Marijuana: Legal Doesn’t Mean Safe

Twenty-three
states and the District of Columbia have laws legalizing some form of marijuana
use, and recreational use of marijuana is legal in four states and D.C.

Does
this growing trend to legalize marijuana mean we don’t need to worry about it?  About
one in 10 people who try marijuana will become addicted to it which means that
they most likely will use it in increasing quantities, develop tolerance (less
effect from it as time goes on), will have withdrawal symptoms if they try to
stop, and will find that the marijuana use is causing them to neglect other
important areas of their life like work, relationships and leisure
activities. 

Even
occasional use of marijuana can have negative effects.  hen someone has marijuana in his/her system,
short term memory is impaired, reflexes are impaired and judgment is
impaired.  These impairments can last 24
hours or longer after the use of the marijuana so it is certainly not safe to
drive after using marijuana. Most people will not be able to perform other
demanding tasks (work-related activities, childcare) at the level they are
accustomed to after using marijuana. 

All the
evidence that we now have indicates that marijuana is possibly permanently damaging
to the developing adolescent brain. All
children should be strongly discouraged from using it at all until they are at
least 21 years of age. If marijuana is
smoked there are also potential physical health risks, such as damage to the
lungs or cardiovascular system.

For more information, see American Psychiatric Association’s  Resource
Document on Marijuana as Medicine.

By Andrew Saxon, MD

Professor and Director, Addiction
Psychiatry Residency Program

University of Washington

Director, Center of
Excellence in Substance Abuse Treatment and Education

VA Puget Sound Health
Care System

Seattle, WA

Transgender: A Diverse Group of Individuals

With the recent spotlight on people who identify as transgender, it’s important to keep in mind that transgender people are as diverse as the general population and express themselves in a number of ways.



On a very basic level, a transgender person is born as male or female, but identifies as either the opposite gender, both genders, or no gender at all.  Some who are labeled as transgender may also decide not to even use that term. There is plenty of evidence that transgender people have existed as long as there has been a concept of male and female. Only recently have they received enough support from society to express themselves in a more open way.  This new recognition and support has opened the door for transgender people to pursue life in a body that feels on the outside the way they have always felt inside.



People who identify as transgender usually start to notice their differences early in life. However people can identify and come to understand themselves to be transgender at any point during their life.  Along the lines of discovering one’s sexual orientation, there are no clear “rules,” and identifying as a transgender individual is a very personal and unique process.  This means that those who identify as transgender may decide to dress as the opposite gender, take hormones to change their bodies, and even have surgical procedures to change their appearance to fit how they feel on the inside. There are also many transgender people who decide that these options are not right for them and express themselves in other ways.



Because society has traditionally been unaccepting to those who identify as transgender, they are at higher risk of depression, anxiety, substance abuse and even suicide. Symptoms can generally improve once the person is in a more supportive and accepting environment. Being supportive can be as simple as using the person’s preferred name and pronoun. Traditionally, even this level of support has not been reached in the health care industry because lack of education and training. It’s important that health care providers become more educated about this diverse group of individuals so that all transgender people can receive appropriate health care for their minds and bodies.



For more information on the historical and psychological evolution of transgender Individuals, please see Association for Gay and Lesbian Psychiatrists (AGLP).

More information and medical guidelines can be found at World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), www.wpath.org/



By Eric Yarbrough, M.D.

President, Association of Gay and Lesbian Psychiatrists

Director of Psychiatric Services, Callen-Lorde Community Health Center

New York City

This post is part of an ongoing series spotlighting
diversity from APA’s Division of Diversity and Health Equity.