David Susman

The Top Reasons Why People Don’t Receive Needed Mental Health Services

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I’ve written several times about the important issue of the need for affordable and effective treatment for mental health issues. I’ve also thoroughly discussed several of the main reasons why large numbers of people get little or no treatment for mental illnesses. Two of my most popular posts on this topic are “8 Reasons Why People Don’t Get Treatment for Mental Illness” and the follow-up piece on “Overcoming the 8 Reasons…” Since it’s been a while since I last visited this topic, …

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You’re Worthy of All the Goodness Life Offers

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Stories of Hope: An Interview with Krista Pfeiffer This is part of a series featuring individuals who share their life experiences with mental health issues. Recently, I asked mental health advocate Krista Pfeiffer about her history of mental health challenges and her current activities. Here’s our interview: DS: Tell us about when you first started becoming aware of concerns related to your mental health. How did these issues continue to affect you before you sought treatment? KP: The birth of …

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13 Healthy Ways to Unplug from Technology

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OK, so we’re all obsessed with technology. Everywhere you turn, we are all constantly buried in our phones, laptops, tablets, headphones and other tech gear. How much time have you spent today on your phone, on a computer, or watching TV? Chances are you don’t really know the answer, but you and I both know it’s a lot. I recently tried an app which tracks the amount of time you spend on your phone, and I was horrified to see …

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You Have the Right to Love Yourself

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Stories of Hope: An Interview with Hannah Blum This is part of a series featuring individuals who share their life experiences with mental health issues. Recently, I asked mental health advocate and media specialist Hannah Blum about her history of mental health challenges and her current activities. Here’s our interview: DS: Tell us about when you first started becoming aware of concerns related to your mental health. How did these issues continue to affect you and those around you before you sought treatment? …

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Finding Quality Treatment for Substance Use Disorders

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If you or a friend or loved one is in need of treatment for drug or alcohol addiction, often one of the biggest challenges is finding an accessible and affordable program that provides high quality treatment services. Recently, SAMHSA (the US Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration) published a guideline to help people more easily connect with good substance use treatment programs. The guideline is called “Finding Quality Treatment for Substance Use Disorders.” Let’s do a quick review and see …

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Throwing Up Rainbows

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Stories of Hope: An Interview with Z Zoccolante This is part of a series featuring individuals who share their life experiences with mental health issues. Recently, I asked advocate and aspiring therapist Z Zoccolante about her history of mental health challenges and her current activities. Here’s our interview: DS: Tell us about when you first started becoming aware of concerns related to your mental health. How did these issues continue to affect you before you sought treatment? ZZ: My background is 11 ½ years with …

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9 Ways to Take Your Mental Health Advocacy to the Next Level

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If you’re reading this, chances are good that issues surrounding mental health and mental illness are important to you. You may have faced significant mental health challenges yourself or experienced them as you helped a friend or loved one who has struggled with these issues. Or you may have even worked in the mental health field, providing care and treatment to others. Whatever the reason, you care about people with mental illnesses and want to step up to do more …

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Life Can Change for the Better

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Stories of Hope: An Interview with Charlotte Underwood This is part of a series featuring individuals who share their life experiences with mental health issues. Recently, I asked author and advocate Charlotte Underwood about her history of mental health challenges and her current activities. Here’s our interview: DS: Tell us about when you first started becoming aware of concerns related to your mental health. How did these issues continue to affect you before you sought treatment? CU: I have been battling against my …

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