1046 results for author: Mental Health Colorado

Lea: The light at the end of my tunnel

The views and opinions expressed in following story are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Mental Health Colorado. My story began at a rather young age. Mental illness runs heavily in my family – most notably mood disorders such as bipolar depression and major depression. I was directly impacted by my father’s struggle with major depression and subsequent suicide when I was nine years old. This traumatic loss at such a young age led me down a dark road as I found myself face to face with heavy thoughts and feelings that I can only imagine were similar to my father’s. It scared me because I was too young ...

Amy: They don’t bring you casserole

The views and opinions expressed in following story are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Mental Health Colorado. We caught our son Blake smoking pot when he was barely thirteen. I naively believed we could love and parent him out of it. We would educate him on the numerous reasons why drug use would negatively impact his health and potentially shorten his life. We presented the potential consequences, getting kicked out of lacrosse, or school, or worse entangled with the law. If not the future consequences, maybe the loss of privileges would motivate our son to abstain from using drugs. Certainly, our disappoint...

Denver Business Journal: Mental Health Matters

Mental Health Colorado, along with our partners, created an informative supplement focused on workplace wellness in the Denver Business Journal for May, Mental Health Month. The supplement is packed with information and resources to help people navigate the mental health system and learn why mental health matters. Take a look at it!

Karolyn: Dr. Momma Bear

The views and opinions expressed in following story are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Mental Health Colorado. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-L8JUNxAGY8&feature=youtu.be What I most want to convey about this brief video is this: Jacob is OK. Hope, love, and kindness got us to the other side. My deepest gratitude for the unconditional love of family, friends, teachers, medical providers, counselors, neighbors, our rabbi and spiritual community. For the support of work colleagues, kind strangers, compassionate policemen, judges, probation officers, social workers and his guardian ad litem. And of course, ...

Treatment, not jail for mental health

KOAA.com | Continuous News | Colorado Springs and Pueblo PUEBLO - It's estimated that as many as million Coloradans suffer from varying degrees of mental illness, yet most wait too long to seek treatment. More than a thousand suicides are recorded in our state every year. Andrew Romanoff, the President and CEO of the non-profit advocacy group Mental Health Colorado, wants to change things. At a luncheon hosted by the Pueblo Latino Chamber of Commerce Friday, Romanoff talked about the successful passage of State Senate Bill 207, which ends the practice of so-called mental health holds where patients can be jailed due to their mental status. ...

Colorado jails won’t be used to ‘hold’ mentally ill

Colorado county jails will no longer be used to temporarily detain people suffering from mental illness or episodes, according to a new law signed by Gov. John Hickenlooper. "It's an area where Colorado is leading the way," he said. "Being in jail is probably the worst way to treat someone suffering from a brain disease." Senate Bill 207 also authorizes $7 million from legalized marijuana revenues to create mental-health response teams to help law enforcement deal with mentally ill people -- particularly in rural areas. Former House Speaker Andrew Romanoff, who now heads the nonprofit Mental Health Colorado, explained the law Friday when he ...

Chris: Isn’t mental illness a call to be otherworldly?

The views and opinions expressed in following story are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Mental Health Colorado. It’s Friday night and I’m taking an empty pizza box out to the dumpster behind my apartment building. Out the back door and into the frigid night, the first thing I see as I turn toward the dumpster is my neighbor squatting against the side of the building, a lost look in his eyes. My neighbor and I have a sort of incredulous bond. He knows my secret and I know his. I know he has bipolar disorder and he knows I have schizoaffective disorder. And we both trust each other to keep our respec...

Andrew Romanoff visits Steamboat Springs to talk mental health

Steamboat Springs — For the past two years, Andrew Romanoff has traveled across the state hoping to have a "Conversation with Coloradans" about mental health in their communities. "This is the second year for our listening tour," Romanoff said during a recent telephone interview. "We want to hear what the barriers are in our state for mental health care." Romanoff was a member of the Colorado House of Representatives from 2000 to 2008 and served as speaker of the house from 2005 to 2008. But the past several years, the former state representative has shifted gears and is now president and CEO of Mental Health Colorado, an influential ...

Marty: I get to live in the now

The views and opinions expressed in following story are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Mental Health Colorado. Casual drinking, professional disappointments, boredom, socializing, the anxiety of never living up to my college degree, unaddressed family issues—these were the things that led me to alcohol. I thought it was “normal” when my drinking increased – that I could handle partying a couple of extra days a week. But when I needed to slow down, I couldn’t. I could stop drinking for bits at a time, but the cycle kept coming back. My resentments, my unmanageability, and my destructive behavior ...

Recently Completed Legislative Session Leads To Big Gains In Mental Health Care

Mental health care was one area perhaps lost in the shuffle of the 2017 legislative session amid high-profile issues like transportation, the hospital provider fee and what constitutes the public consumption of marijuana. But officials say 2017 was a banner year filled with advances that will have a great impact across Colorado. In one example, the House and Senate both passed -- and Gov. Hickenlooper signed into law last month -- a bill that provides support to students who may be dealing with mental health issues. Another is designed to end the use of jails and correctional facilities as placement options for individuals with mental health concerns ...