Page Title

We are pleased to share these
insightful comments on the
importance of mental health.
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Polly E. Drew
M.Ed., LCSW, LMFT, Individual, Couple and Family
Psychotherapist; and regular chat host for The
Milwaukee Journal- Sentinel's online edition:
pollydrew@earthlink.net

“During these times of escalated gun
violence all over the United States,
the children and teens of Milwaukee
need to know that their entire
community is at their beck and call to
help them and their families cope.
Mental Health Matters for Violence
Prevention is an optimistic attempt to
craft real change in an area of
modern society that often feels bleak.
Hats off to Community Intervention
Programs, Inc. and LeFlore
Communications, LLC for providing a
beacon of hope to our youth. They
are our future.”
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Stephen P. Adams
President of Community Development Management
Partnerships:

"Congratulations on your leadership
and focus on this critical issue for our
community. The project offers
creative approaches and mechanisms
to address and provide solutions in
the related areas of mental health
and violence."
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Gina Haase
Licensed Clinical Social Worker, CEAP:

“It amazes me that it hasn’t been
recognized that since the beginning
of time women and children have
been the prey of the physically
stronger species, males. Women
have never been able to count on
being safe in their own homes, or out
in the world. Men take their safety
for granted; women have learned
from an early age subtle ways to
move about their homes and the
world in hopes of staying safe.

Despite America being a conscious
and developed country we too have
yet to identify violence against
women as a central issue to women’s
well-being, and to our well-being as
a whole. Ultimately, what affects
one negatively will negatively impact
us all. Bottom line is that women are
not valued. Most American males
support the “war against terror,”
but do not recognize or put forth an
effort to end the terror experienced
by their mothers, daughters, wives,
grandmothers, sisters, and aunts.
I applaud those women and allied
men who are using their power to
prioritize and confront the problem.
I pray that we will soon do this
collectively.”
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Jenni Sevenich
Chief Executive Officer, Westside Healthcare
Association, Inc.

"People often talk about needing to
take care of the whole self – body,
mind and soul. We are encouraged
to eat healthy, exercise, and get
regular checkups for the body. It is
acceptable to attend church,
synagogue, or mosque, or just pray
or meditate by oneself to take care of
the soul.

So why is there still a stigma
attached to the practices that help us
take care of our minds? People seem
very concerned about the level of
violence in our community and say we
need to do something. We can make
an effort to take guns off the street,
but unless we address the issues
that make someone angry enough,
depressed enough, or apathetic
enough to want to shoot another in
the first place, we are spinning our
wheels.”
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Katherine Washington
Minister/Spiritual Counselor
KW Ministries, Atlanta, Georgia

"It's wonderful when someone will
step out with boldness to address
things we don’t usually talk about,
particularly our mental state. We
often take for granted the
development and well-being of our
mind, which is part of our spiritual
foundation. However, our overall
health stems from our mind-set. We
can try to pretend that how we think
doesn’t really affect us or the actions
we take, but our spirit can wither
away when we don’t deal with our
mind-set. To change our actions, we
must change negative patterns of
thinking and draw from the spiritual
sources of inner strength that
support positive actions. We all have
the ability to become more in tune
with this inner strength through
awareness, which can lead to
personal integrity, and this can help
change the environment in which we
live."

Joseph Henry

The psychological impact of
unfortunate elements of historical
experience cannot be
underestimated. In order to better
understand and change the
present, it requires looking at
violence with a new level of depth
and appropriate context to help
individuals, families and
communities in the healing
processes that will allow people to
move on, and forward, with a
renewed sense of meaning and
integrity. Indeed, the critical
information and education provided
by the Mental Health Matters for
Violence Prevention project lays an
indispensable foundation for the
survival of a people.”
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Stephanie Harrison
Executive Director, Wisconsin Primary Health
Care Association

"For far too long, mental health has
been relegated to the back seat of
the overall health care delivery
system, which only perpetuates the
stigma that patients feel when they
experience difficulties in life and
want to seek out help. More and
more, research demonstrates that
mental health has a profound
impact on a person's overall health,
and the health care industry is
beginning to take notice.

Community Health Centers have
long recognized the importance and
the value of providing integrated
and holistic care to the community.
For them, comprehensive primary
care includes prevention programs,
wellness programs, chronic disease
management programs, oral health
care, and mental health services.
The Wisconsin Primary Health Care
Association is pleased that
Community Intervention Programs,
Inc./LeFlore Communications, LLC is
raising awareness of this vital link in
our health care delivery chain."
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Yvonne Lumsden-Dill
Executive Director, Women's Leadership
Institute,
Mount Mary College
http://www.mtmary.edu/leadership_institute.
htm

"I was as surprised as the next
person when I learned several facts
about mental health and criminal
activity. Many of our communities'
criminal problems related to violence
can be tracked to mental health
problems. Yet, as a society we
don't seem to take mental health
problems seriously. We say things
like. . "ah, he is just crazy, or she is
out of her mind." And there is such
a stigma related to poor mental
health that people don't seek
medical treatment for themselves or
for loved ones. Until we can come
to grips with this huge societal
malady, it will be difficult to make a
dent in this problem.

There are several steps that can be
taken to address this problem:

•    Seek health treatment for those
afflicted
•    Call agencies working on this
issue
•    Gather and share stories so
people know they are not alone
•    Set up visits with elected officials
•    Circulate a petition
•    Write a letter to the editor
•    Talk to your employer and other
local business owners

COMMENTS