David Susman

The Incredible Power of Peer Support

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If you’re at all familiar with issues surrounding mental health and/or substance misuse, you’ve probably heard of the idea of peer support. But what is peer support and how do you become a peer supporter? Let’s cover these and a few other important points about this very effective and helpful approach. What are the origins of peer support? The idea of people helping others with similar needs goes way back in history. In the modern era, peer support has often …

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“Stories of Hope” – Behind the Scenes

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Perhaps you’re already familiar with my “Stories of Hope” series, in which I interview people who have dealt with mental health challenges and who share the lessons they have learned through their journey. I’ve completed and published dozens of Stories of Hope interviews; you can click here to see and read them all. I think you’ll agree that all of these Stories of Hope are candid, inspiring, courageous, and real. I feel privileged to have met all of these wonderful …

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Do You Have a Healthy Lifestyle?

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What constitutes a healthy lifestyle? Perhaps even more importantly, is your lifestyle healthy? Also, how are healthy lifestyle factors associated with health markers such as cholesterol level, blood sugar, and blood pressure? In a study of 4,745 US adults recently published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings, researchers assessed for the presence or absence of four “healthy lifestyle” factors, as defined below. 1) Smoking status A blood test was used to test for cotinine, a by-product of nicotine, to determine if participants were …

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Musings of a Mental Health Hero

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Stories of Hope: An Interview with Christina Huff This is part of a series featuring individuals who share their life experiences with mental health issues. Recently, I asked mental health advocate Christina Huff about her history of mental health challenges and about some of her current advocacy work. Here’s our interview: DS: How did your mental health concerns develop? What did you notice and how did these issues affect you? CH: When I was in high school, I was always depressed, had a hard time …

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Top 20 US Mental Health Organizations (Part 2)

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In a recent post, I listed the first 10 of my personal list of 20 top US-based mental health organizations. Now, let’s go over the other 10 organizations comprising the rest of the list. As I mentioned before, my informal criteria for including an organization on the list are: a) being well-established and credible; b) having goals of education and raising awareness; c) having a well-organized website with extensive resource links. Also, as with the first half of the list, the organizations aren’t …

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Top 20 US Mental Health Organizations (Part 1)

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It’s always a risky venture to do a “top 10” list. You invariably leave out some really worthy and wonderful entries, which may create some hurt feelings among the groups who weren’t included. Nevertheless, I’ll take that risk and offer not just 10, but 20 of the top mental health organizations based in the United States, in my humble opinion. In this post, I’ll cover the first 10 organizations, with a review of the remaining 10 in a subsequent post. My informal …

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How to Evaluate Online Health Information

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It’s well known that most people go online to find health information. In fact, 80% of Internet users have searched for health information online. However, there’s great variability in the quality and reliability of online health information. While some is from top-notch health care organizations, other information can be misleading and even harmful. How can you know if the health information you find online is current, accurate and helpful? The US National Institutes of Health (NIH) offers considerable help with …

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10 Healthy Benefits from Your Next Vacation

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Are you ready for a break, a holiday, a sabbatical, or a vacation? Whatever you like to call it, I know I could sometimes use one. It’s interesting to look at the comparison between the amount of vacation typically offered in the US (about two weeks per year) versus the averages in other countries, with several nations having an average of 4 to 6 weeks of “holiday” each year. Also, the US is in the clear minority with no federally mandated …

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