Back from a 2-day workshop in Miami-Dade to study their highly esteemed criminal mental health program and Ft Lauderdale, where the first mental health court in America was established and is still being run by Judge Ginger Lerner-Wren. Both are “diversion” programs, pulling people with serious mental illness from the criminal justice system to provide […]
Did you know our country’s largest population of seriously mentally ill people is in our jails and prisons? Clearly not a good thing for them. They deserve better, but our society has not learned how to handle them. And this is true all across our country. This Thursday and Friday, I will be traveling to
Mental Health Court Read More »
It is time for me to revisit basic business processes and figure out how to scale, i.e., increase my impact and lower my labor intensity. This is all happening because of (a) the success of the Grand Challenge to eliminate the stigma around mental health and substance use disorders for our country and (b) new
I live very close to the Potomac River, where it is thin enough that you can easily see the other side. I am on the Maryland shore, and the opposite bank is Virginia. Whenever I have the chance, I like to walk with my family along the C&O Canal, where we can see the great
The Mighty Potomac Read More »
Last week, I was in Tucson, Arizona, with Dr. Mark Rapaport, CEO of the Huntsman Mental Health Institute. Together we presented the Grand Challenge to eliminate the stigma around mental health, and substance use disorders to many of the psychiatrists gathered there. We had an excellent turnout for our session. I enjoyed the psychiatrists. I
Visiting Other Worlds Read More »
During my experimental theater days, I performed only original works with two exceptions: Waiting for Godot, by Beckett, and Günter Grass’s, Only Ten Minutes to Buffalo. I enjoyed both authors’ sharp wits and blunt assessments. There was art as a tragicomic fire doused with nonsense. I felt they were saying, ‘Life can seem meaningless, and
I’m going for the Samuel Beckett look! Read More »
While in Atlanta, I stopped by the Emory Brain Health Center, where I had the chance to learn about their Veterans Program. They provide free treatment, including flying the vet and their family in, putting them up in a hotel, feeding them, and all the services required to treat post-9/11 vets struggling with invisible wounds
I was fortunate to visit The Carter Center in Atlanta last week. I was there to help design a conference for journalists that will take place this summer to aid in the fight against stigma surrounding mental health and substance use disorders. The ground and the facility so inspired me. It was my first time.
I am grateful for living a mundane life. I appreciate being involved in the lives of those close to me and having the time to get away and into nature occasionally. I like walking in the city and being part of the crowd without standing out. I always have. There is something exquisite about being
I had the good fortune to visit my wife, Laura Baron’s, recording studio, Recording Arts, to see her expert producer, Marco Delmar, in action. The two were working with the amazing Latino drummer, Manny Arciniega, on a song for Laura’s upcoming album release. Multiple takes ensured Marco and Laura had what they were looking for.
