Sara E. - for our exchange student Gaia babysitting her kids. She read Strega Nona to them, an Italian children’s story. (Always a big hit with our kids, and our grandkids.)
Mark F. - for his parents’ 65th wedding anniversary
Chris Carr - a new plaid winter shirt, and safe arrival and travel of….(someone?)
Bill S. - for his son Brett being in town, and …(some other details) (Recorder obviously distracted today.
Cathy C. - leaves Sunday for her FOUR weeks in the Bahamas. 45th year in a row! Her partner in Hijinks (AKA Char) will be along for part of it.
Frank B. - for a great time in Monterrey with his mother. Heavy rains at times, but a beautiful place.
Jerald S. - for the weather (DUH!) and for help from Dr Sara. Also, Vanessa is off to Scotland and Cameron will be here next week to talk about his DECA project.
Pete G. -he found a car in Alabama. They are apparently VERY scarce right now.
Mike G. - for success in travel for his son.
Bob H. - happy to be taking notes today without a need for reading help. Life after cataracts is Good!
Jennifer S. - a shout out to those who helped push carts on Dec 23 at Lund's-Byerly's.
Ron U. - stuck in snow in his driveway, stuck on the corner, and safely back home. Good day to Zoom.
Sierra is a law student at the U of M. She has lived with disability and has spoken to over 60 groups on that, especially young people with mental health problems. She is a counselor, facilitator, and advocate for NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness). Sierra is the MN rep for NAMI and has spoken on all this on NPR.
Sierra started with her own story with mental health. It is a gripping history of illness, starting as early as age 11. She went through years of medications, treatment centers, and hospitals. She had the modern equivalent of electro shock therapy, which led to severe memory loss. As of 2019, she is much improved, and in remission. She tells this story to us and others to know how deeply she relates to other young people with similar stories. This is not uncommon, and getting worse with current social disruptions
Many factors contribute to mental illness; stigmatization, not being taken seriously, political polarization, and the spiral of learned helplessness. Failure hurts; young adults stop trying to get better. The last 3 years of COVID and loss of direct contact with friends has been difficult. The first line of defense is usually police and churches, neither of which is especially trained in counseling. And there are simply not enough professionals, and money is always an issue. 1 in 5 youth from age 3-17 are affected, and only about half receive adequate help.
Suicide is the 2nd most common cause of death in ages 10-14 and 25-34.Positive improvements. Celebrities are now talking about themselves; the stigmas are going down and awareness is improving. NAMI is a very good first step in identifying and treating mental illness sooner than later.
What can we do? Be a mentor. Like the airplane model of using your oxygen first and then help others, take care of your own mental health (eat, sleep, and move). Volunteer, listen, and empathize with people in your life Having someone to connect with, someone to look up to is very important. You have the ability to have more effect than you think. Elevate the voices of those experiencing mental health issues. Recovery is very possible.
Thank you, Sierra, for your courage in telling your story, and for your dedication to your cause. It is empowering to see what one person can recover from and make a difference in the lives of other young people. This was a memorable talk today.
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