Behavioral Health Today

Social Justice Leadership with Tamanna Patel, MPH – Episode 157

The Social Justice Leadership Academy was created to help individuals really understand the impact of injustices and see the inequities and really how complex systemic racism really is. In today’s episode, Dr. Erin Elmore speaks with Tamanna Patel. Tamanna is the Director of Practice Improvement at the National Council for Mental Wellbeing. Tamanna has experience coaching communities in applying adaptive strategies with a focus on building relationships and trust, capacity-building opportunities, and long-term sustainability. Her particular interest includes addressing health equity and social determinants of health in rural communities. Together they discuss advancing social justice to advance mental wellbeing, effecting change on multiple levels: interpersonal, intrapersonal, organizational, communal, and systemic levels, and recommendations on how people can start their reflection on biases to be a leader in social justice reform. This begins with inner reflection and slowly getting to the awareness of what you can do within your sphere of control and create change. 

 

For more information about the National Council for Mental Wellbeing, please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org

For more information about The Social Justice Leadership Academy, a free 12-month virtual series, please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/program/the-social-justice-leadership-academy/

For more information about upcoming Social Justice Leadership Academy Events, please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/program/the-social-justice-leadership-academy/events/

For more information about White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo, please visit: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/566247/white-fragility-by-dr-robin-diangelo/

Address the Workforce Crisis with Ayla Colella, LMHC – Episode 156

There is a workforce crisis happening in the behavioral health industry. There are staff shortages, there’s a lower rate of same-day access, there's a lower threshold for stress, and the need for this like extreme resiliency that we haven't experienced before. In today’s episode, Dr. Graham Taylor speaks with Ayla Colella, LMHC. Ayla is a Senior Director at the National Council for Mental Wellbeing and works in project leadership, training, technical assistance, supervision, and public speaking. Her experience as a clinical practitioner, her rapport with members, and her work with Talkspace have given her a pragmatic perspective on developing relevant training for behavioral and mental health professionals. Together Graham and Ayla discuss the challenges of workforce training and staffing, the thinking behind the creation of programs, the unique understanding and empathic attunement to the needs of both those receiving services as well as practitioners, and finally, they discuss ways of providing the best services to support clinicians on a continuum of their career. The National Council has a deep and a very wide bench of consultants that do a lot of work with local community behavioral health organizations to help them both overcome or mitigate some of the stressors that they're experiencing, but also help them better understand how to develop a plan and address what it is they're going through and how to better articulate their needs.

 

For more information about the National Council for Mental Wellbeing, please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org

For more information about The Social Justice Leadership Academy, a free 12-month virtual series, please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/program/the-social-justice-leadership-academy/

For more information about Public Health, please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/our-work/focus-areas/public-health/

For more information about Workforce Development, please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/our-work/focus-areas/workforce-development/

For more information on Leadership Training and Consulting Services, please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/our-work/consulting-training/consulting-services/

For more information about the National Council’s Policy Priorities, please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/get-involved/be-an-advocate/policy-priorities/

Vicarious Trauma and Practicing Self-Care Strategies with Dr. Christina Mally – Episode 155

Vicarious Trauma is the permanent transformation of the inner experience of the practitioner. In today’s episode, Dr. Erin Elmore speaks with Dr. Christina Mally.  Christina is a wellness consultant who encourages and empowers people to identify and reach their future goals especially related to overall health and wellness. Christina’s specialties include sleep problems, stress management, intuitive eating, support through life transitions, nutritional needs, hormones, fertility concerns, pre-pregnancy prep, and pre/postpartum adjustments. She also has an extensive research background in the realm of vicarious trauma. Together Erin and Christina discuss the challenges around vicarious trauma, warning signs, the effects on a body over time, the influence of the pandemic on vicarious trauma, and practices and strategies for self-care for both practitioners and lay people. Self-care is not a muscle that comes naturally at least to most people, but the more we practice it, the more it becomes a rhythm to your life so when we’re in crisis we’re going to utilize those self-care strategies and be intentional about it.

 

For more information about the Vicarious Trauma Institute, please visit: https://vicarioustrauma.com

For more information about Vicarious Trauma and a personal fact sheet from the American Counseling Association, please visit: https://www.counseling.org/docs/trauma-disaster/fact-sheet-9---vicarious-trauma.pdf

To connect with Dr. Christina Mally through Facebook, please visit: https://www.facebook.com/drchristinamally

To connect with Dr. Christina Mally through Instagram, please visit: https://www.instagram.com/drchristinamally

Integrating Systems of Care with Alicia Kirley – Episode 154

Behavioral health care has really evolved and is continuing to evolve. There's been just such rapid change in the world in the last two years, that there's an interest in innovating and leveraging technology to deliver more access to care. In today’s episode, Dr. Erin Elmore speaks with Alicia Kirley, MBA.  Alicia is the Senior Director of the Center of Excellence for Integrated Health Solutions at the National Council for Mental Wellbeing. She oversees the delivery of training and technical assistance to advance the implementation of high-quality care for individuals with mental health and substance use disorders. Together Erin and Alicia discuss creating a team-based network around the population of clients, planning around client care, challenges around integrated care, training and education, and measuring outcomes of success.  At its basic level, integrated care is creating opportunities to advance health equity and to look at these models and approaches to create a sustainable and comprehensive system. Due to the pandemic, we have this great opportunity right now to look at how integrated care can start to address a lot of the complexities of our health system.

 

For more information about the National Council for Mental Wellbeing, please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org

For more information about the Center for Excellence in Integrated Health Solutions, please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/program/ccbhc-e-national-training-and-technical-assistance-center/

For more information about the National Council’s Policy Priorities, please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/get-involved/be-an-advocate/policy-priorities/

For more information on Improvement and Consulting, please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/our-work/consulting-training/

For more information about Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics (CCBHCs), please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/our-work/ccbhc/

Part 2: FAQs to Starting Therapy with Dr. Erin Elmore – Episode 153

In this concluding episode, we resume our today with Producer Peter Fenger and Dr. Erin Elmore. Erin is our co-host and Licensed Clinical Psychologist. She specializes in working with children and adolescents and is one of our most experienced content experts here at Triad. In our last episode, we discussed the different types of therapy access and which medium either online or in person would be a good fit. We talked about places to find a therapist, highlighted some details to help you find the right therapist, and some red flags to look out for. We'll resume our conversation today by talking about the application process and the beginning steps to getting ready for your first session.

 

If you are in crisis and need to speak to a therapist, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741 and speak with a crisis counselor.

For a list of crisis hotlines, please visit https://blog.opencounseling.com/hotlines-us/

For more information about finding an In-Person therapist, we recommend psychologytoday.org, goodtherapy.com, or find-a-therapist.com.

For more information about finding a therapist online, we recommend betterhelp.com, zencare.co, goodtherapy.org, ginger.io, or if you’re seeking a child therapist, please visit presencelearning.com.

For more information on Own Your Past Change Your Future by Dr. John Delony, please visit https://www.ramseysolutions.com/store/books/own-your-past-change-your-future-by-dr-john-delony

For more information on Best Mental Health Apps for 2022, please visit: https://www.verywellmind.com/best-mental-health-apps-4692902

For more information about mental resources and about the APA, please visit: https://www.apa.org

For more information about Psychology Tools Self-Help resources, please visit: https://www.psychologytools.com

To view our own archive of past episodes and various topics around mental health, please visit: https://www.triadhq.com/bht

Part 1: FAQs to Starting Therapy with Dr. Erin Elmore – Episode 152

In honor of Mental Health Month, we would like to speak to our listeners who might be thinking about starting therapy on their own and answer some frequently asked questions to better guide those starting therapy for the first time. In this episode (part 1 of 2), Producer Peter Fenger speaks with Dr. Erin Elmore. As you know, Erin is our co-host and Licensed Clinical Psychologist. She specializes in working with children and adolescents and one of our most experienced content experts here at triad. Together Peter and Erin discuss the process of starting therapy, different types of therapy access and which medium, either online or in-person, would be a good fit for those new to therapy. We talk about how to find a therapist, highlight details to understanding the levels of therapy degrees, using insurance, the application process, and some red flags to look out for. It takes a lot of courage to be a first-time client in therapy, but our goal is to make that process easier to understand and encourage others to seek needed help.

 

If you are in crisis and need to speak to a therapist, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741 and speak with a crisis counselor.

For a list of crisis hotlines, please visit https://blog.opencounseling.com/hotlines-us/

For more information about finding an In-Person therapist, we recommend psychologytoday.org, goodtherapy.com, or find-a-therapist.com.

For more information about finding a therapist online, we recommend betterhelp.com, zencare.co, goodtherapy.org, ginger.io, or if you’re seeking a child therapist, please visit presencelearning.com.

For more information on Own Your Past Change Your Future by Dr. John Delony, please visit https://www.ramseysolutions.com/store/books/own-your-past-change-your-future-by-dr-john-delony

For more information on Best Mental Health Apps for 2022, please visit: https://www.verywellmind.com/best-mental-health-apps-4692902

For more information about mental resources and about the APA, please visit: https://www.apa.org

For more information about Psychology Tools Self-Help resources, please visit: https://www.psychologytools.com

To view our own archive of past episodes and various topics around mental health, please visit: https://www.triadhq.com/bht

Brain Food & Nutritional Psychiatry with Dr. Drew Ramsey – Episode 151

When we consider our health, we typically think first of the foods that we tend to eat. Our third largest body organ is the brain. And when we consider nutrition as an aspect of our mental wellbeing, we have control over the healthy food choices that positively impact our brain and our mental health. In today’s episode, Dr. Graham Taylor speaks with Dr. Drew Ramsey. Drew is a diplomat of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. He has a psychiatric practice and the founder of the brain food clinic in New York City. Drew co-hosts Friday Sessions an IGTV series on male mental health for Men’s Health Magazine. He’s delivered three TED Talks and appeared on the BBC documentary Food and the Brain. Drew has authored four books, including his newest book , Eat To Beat Depression and Anxiety, and his writings have been featured on the Today’s Show, CBS Sunday Morning, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal. Together Graham and Drew discuss nutritional psychiatry and the importance of food on mental health, the reasons behind why we eat, using foods as a primary preventative option for our mental health, teaching ways for clinicians to incorporate nutrition into their practice, nutrient density, and the eight favorite foods for optimal impact on the brain. Evolve as a eater and be open to these things that actually have some real positive impact on the things that we can control and contribute to our wellbeing.

 

To learn more about Dr. Drew Ramsey, please visit: https://drewramseymd.com

For more information about Dr. Ramsey’s new book, Eat To Beat Depression and Anxiety, please visit:https://drewramseymd.com/books-publications/eat-to-beat-depression-and-anxiety/

Follow Dr. Ramsey on Instagram, please visit: https://www.instagram.com/drewramseymd/

Follow Dr. Ramsey on Facebook, please visit: https://www.facebook.com/drdrewramsey/

Follow Dr. Ramsey on Twitter, please visit: https://twitter.com/DrewRamseyMD

Re-Imagining the AMHCA with Dr. Beverly Smith – Episode 150

Dr. Beverly Smith is the 45th President of the American Mental Health Counselor’s Association (AMHCA) and leads from a heart of advancement as she ushers her organization into a new paradigm. In today’s episode, Dr. Graham Taylor speaks with Dr. Smith. She has 26 years of professional counseling experience in various settings including private practice, public education, corrections, community counseling, and higher education. She is the owner and principal therapist of B. Smith Consulting Group, LLC as well as an adjunct professor of Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Mercer University. Together Graham and Beverly discuss her professional life, leadership qualities, the areas of focus of AMHCA, leadership and strategic support, multicultural and social justice advocacy, counseling compact, and other services AMHCA provides for its members. If you have a desire to be a member of AMHCA, join. If you have a desire to be a leader, go for it. Plan strategically, but also surround yourself with people who can help you plan and help advance the agenda of the profession, as well as help your Individual experience personal success. Where you are gifted and where you have a gift to give, then serve and work in your gifted areas.

 

If you would like to get involved with AMHCA, please visit: https://www.amhca.org/home

Reach out to Dr. Beverly Smith personally at bevsmithphd@gmail.com

For more information about Dr. Beverly Smith’s private business, please visit B Smith Consulting Group, LLC and visit https://www.bscg.co

 

Dramatic Growth of Healthcare from Private Equity with Jon Wolf– Episode 149

Since 2011, Pyramid Healthcare, Inc. grew from 16 facilities to over 70 with 2,600 employees and is one of the largest healthcare providers in the country. Jon Wolf, Pyramid Healthcare’s founder, and CEO, credits their success to private equity investors and the opportunity it gave them to grow and serve the demand for mental health services. In today’s episode, Dr. Graham Taylor is joined by Jonathan Wolf. Jon is the CEO at Pyramid Healthcare, Inc. Founded in 1999, Pyramid Healthcare, Inc. is an organization of committed professionals, identifying human service needs and creating solutions for growth and improved quality of life. Pyramid Healthcare offers substance use and mental health programs and over 70 locations that help individuals of all ages manage chemical dependence. Mental health eating disorders and autism. Together Graham and Jon discuss the increase in private equity coming into the behavioral healthcare field and its benefits to both practitioners and to the patients they serve.

 

For more information about Pyramid Healthcare, Inc. please visit: https://www.pyramidhealthcarepa.com

For more information about private equity and Pitchbook, please visit: https://pitchbook.com

Valant EHR Solutions with Ram Krishnan – Episode 148

Valant EHR software understands both the technical aspects and the emotional aspects of what's happening between the client and the provider interaction at the time. Valant has created clinical documentation that happened in a way that retains the connection between the two, during a session, that's so critical. In today’s episode, Dr. Erin Elmore is joined by Ram Krishnan, CEO of Valant an EHR software solution for behavioral health private practices. Ram has experience in healthcare information management, working on market-changing products, and started as a systems engineer. He has an MBA from the University of Chicago.  Ram joined Valant in 2020 and has led the organization through its next stage of growth, listening to customers and building strong teams, providing a strong foundation for Valant to double down on serving the behavioral healthcare market. Together they discuss the common challenges with EHRs, the features of Valant including measurement-based tracking, billing software, and group therapy, and Valant’s specific focus on addressing the needs of behavioral and mental health. Valant gives you an integrated solution that allows you to provide better care, run a smoother and more efficient operation, and remain compliant.

 

For more information about Valant and their EHR software, please visit: https://www.valant.io

To request a free live demo of Valant’s EHR software, please visit: https://www.valant.io/request-live-demo/

 

Sex Therapy and How to Have a Sex-Positive Life with Dr. Janet Brito– Episode 147

Research shows that couples or individuals who can talk constructively together, or in therapy, tend to have more satisfying sexual and genuinely happier relationships. The topic for today's show is sex therapy and how to have a sex-positive life. To talk about this topic Dr. Graham Taylor is joined by Dr. Janet Brito. Janet is a nationally certified Latinx sex therapist, supervisor, speaker, and trainer. Janet is the founder and owner of the Hawaii Center for Sexual and Relationship Health, a group practice that specializes in relationship and sex therapy, out of control sexual behavior, and gender and sexually diverse populations, and The Sexual Health School, an online training program for healthcare professionals seeking human sexuality training. Together Graham and Janet discuss the challenges of shame and embarrassment around sexuality, the barriers to expressing your sexuality, exploring the origin of feelings with your sexuality, how the negative self-meaning system infiltrates your sexual life, normalizing and validating some of the age-related experiences that folks naturally go through as they age, and ways you can reframe your intimacy and partner connection through therapy. Give yourself permission to ask for help and to find a safe space where you can talk about some of these issues that may be bothering you and allow yourself to create new definitions of sex and pleasure. It's okay to be who you are.

 

For more information about Dr. Janet Brito and the Hawaii Center for Sexual and Relationship Health, please visit: https://sextherapyhawaii.com

For more information about the Sexual Health School, please visit: https://thesexualhealthschool.com

Follow Dr. Janet Brito on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/drjanetbrito/?hl=en

Or follow the Hawaii Center for Sexual and Relational Health on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/drjanetbrito/?eid=ARAK8WNJ_NeJZPk8Ss6Z3v-93vJj22UqHhxAFEBsEhgaHKrOLh4Nxnk8Q9gKcVE5QM_WBLaE712zju_R

If you are looking for a therapist who is trained in human sexuality, please visit the AASECT directory: https://www.aasect.org/referral-directory

Anniversary Special: Inner-Work for the New Trauma Therapist with Guy Macpherson Ph.D. – Episode 146

In celebration of our second anniversary, we’re re-releasing one of our favorite episodes from the past year. What the patient needs most is the ability to be themselves, but for them to see themselves, as therapists, we need to know ourselves fully first. In this episode, Dr. Graham Taylor continues the discussion with Dr. Guy Macpherson, clinical psychologist, creator of the Trauma Therapist Project, and the host of the Trauma Therapist Podcast, about the Inner-Work for the New Trauma Therapist Course and the importance of understanding your journey and bringing that awareness into session. This course will walk practitioners through a personal discovery process to help give them as therapists a sense of who they are. The goal to empower therapists to believe who they are is enough but getting there can be very challenging within the context of working with someone who’s been impacted by trauma. “It's about being a human being with another human being”.

 

For more information about Trauma Therapist 2.0, please visit:
https://the-trauma-therapist-project.teachable.com/p/trauma-therapist-2-0-1

For more information on the Trauma Therapist Podcast, please visit:
https://www.thetraumatherapistproject.com/podcast

For more information about The Inner Work for New Trauma Therapists, please visit: https://the-trauma-therapist-project.teachable.com/p/inner-work-for-the-new-trauma-worker

Anniversary Special: Emotional Freedom Techniques with Dr. Deb Hordon– Episode 145

In celebration of our second anniversary, we’re releasing the second of two new episodes this week. In this episode, Dr. Graham Taylor is joined by Dr. Deb Hordon. Deb has a Ph.D. in sociology from Columbia University and as over 23 years of experience, that includes consulting global exposure and certification through the International Coach Federation and Emotional Freedom Techniques, International. In her work, Deb is the founder of Cultivating Greatness, her private practice that provides services and leadership, coaching team effectiveness, career change, and organizational culture. Today, Graham and Deb discuss who might benefit from this type of therapy, the process of EFT and developing emotional muscle to find their emotional platform, and the benefits for both patients and a tool for self-care for practitioners.

Sign up for EFT Self Care: https://www.wellness-institute.org/emotional-freedom-techniques-eft-tapping 
 
Learn more about EFT Tapping: https://www.wellness-institute.org/more/eft-training 

For more information about Dr. Deb Hordon, please visit: https://www.debhordonleadership.com

For more information about EFT International, please visit: https://eftinternational.org

To read the article Don’t Let Your Trigger Sabotage Your Leadership, please visit: https://www.trainingjournal.com/articles/features/don’t-let-your-triggers-sabotage-your-leadership

To read the article Clinical EFT Improves Multiple Physiological Markers of Health, please visit: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6381429/

Anniversary Special: Integrating Spirituality and Therapy with Dan Kim, LMFT – Episode 144

In celebration of our second anniversary, we’re re-releasing one of our favorite episodes from the past year. At its core, spirituality is a connection and a relationship, but a disposition that flows from that. Therapy is spiritual work. In this episode, we proudly welcome our newest member to our podcast and today’s host Dr. Erin Elmore. Erin is joined by Daniel Kim, LMFT, who has 12 years of experience working with clients who struggle with trauma, relational problems, and spiritual issues. Dan has also worked with members of the clergy who struggle with deep personal issues. Together, Erin and Dan, discuss integrating faith with therapy practice, viewing therapy as spiritual work, working with pastors in therapy, and advocating for therapists to do their own personal work to become better at helping their clients. When we are helping people in our sessions experience unconditional positive regard, compassion, and love as a therapist, and treat our clients with worth and dignity, we help our clients love themselves with self-compassion and acceptance. That is spirituality.

 

For more information about Spiritual Strategy for Counseling and Psychotherapy by P. Scott Richards, PhD and Allen E. Bergin, PhD, please visit: https://www.apa.org/pubs/books/4317077

For more information about How God Changes Your Brain by Andrew Newberg, M.D. and Mark Robert Waldman, please visit: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/120938/how-god-changes-your-brain-by-andrew-newberg-md-and-mark-robert-waldman/

For more information about Building Moral Intelligence by Michele Borba, Ed.D, please visit: https://www.micheleborba.com/books/building-moral-intelligence/

For more information about Soul Searching by Dr. William Doherty, please visit: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/soul-searching-15

For more information about Daniel Kim and his private practice, please visit: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists/daniel-c-kim-la-mesa-ca/475310

Anniversary Special: Recognizing Bias and Promoting Equity with Ami Roeschlein & Terence Fitzgerald – Episode 143

In celebration of our second anniversary, we’re releasing the first of two new episodes this week. In this episode, Dr. Graham Taylor is joined by Ami Roeschlein and Terence Fitzgerald. Amy is a licensed marriage and family therapist and consultant for the national council for mental wellbeing. She has over 25 years of experience training providers, leading healthcare teams, designing innovative behavioral health programs, and using implementation science to create change equality and social justice within organizations, cities, and states. Terence has a racial scholar and Clinical Associate Professor of Social Work at the University of Southern California. Terrence has experience spanning from education as a School Social Worker to social justice grassroots organizations, focusing on marginalized, children and families, and professional experience aligning the curriculum of midwest school districts for the purpose of meeting state and federal requirements. His research on racism and sexism can be seen in his books, White Prescription: the Dangerous Social Potential for Ritalin and Other Psychotropic Drugs to Harm Black Males and his most recent book, Black Males and Racism: Improving the Schooling and Life Chances of African-Americans. Together, Graham, Ami, and Terence discuss the programs that have impacted communities toward greater equity, the importance of cultivating cultures and creating an environment to identify bias and overcome bias collectively in teams, and the positive outcomes from addressing biases toward greater equity.

 

For more information about the National Council for Mental Wellbeing, please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org

For more information about National Council Racial and Equity Resource Page, please visit: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/resources/addressing-health-equity-and-racial-justice/

For more information about the NeuroLeadership Institute, please visit: https://individuals.neuroleadership.com/?hsLang=en

For more information about Learning for Justice, please visit: https://www.learningforjustice.org

For more information on The Reality of Diversity, Gender, and Skin Color by Kimberly Finney and Terence Fitzgerald, please visit: https://titles.cognella.com/the-reality-of-diversity-gender-and-skin-color-9781516542994