News

A fitness center exclusively catering to veterans and active military personnel has opened a location in Helena, Montana. Adaptive Performance Center’s (APC) mission is to help military personnel and veterans improve their mental health and wellness through physical exercise and the building of community.

“We have the opportunity to see the life come back into their eyes. And there’s really nothing more amazing than to have somebody walk in the door who’s nervous, who’s not feeling very comfortable, doesn’t make a lot of eye contact, doesn’t interact a lot, and within a month or two months they’re standing at the counter talking to you for an hour when they walk in the door,” says Co-Founder/CEO of APC, Karen Pearson.

Pearson says that she and Co-Founder Mitch Crouse were spurred to action after working alongside a national guard unit that saw multiple deaths by suicide.

“In traditional gyms, those were not places where veterans could really go. When you have loud weights drop and you have all of those kind of things happen, those are not sounds that are conducive to them feeling like they have a place where they feel safe. And so, when you take your walk around the gym today, you’ll notice we have rubber flooring, we have rubber coated weights,” says Pearson.

APC offers personal trainers, peer mentorship, veteran liaison assistance, and physical health and wellness classes.

“Whether they’re struggling with the VA, getting their disability ratings, whether they’re struggling with housing, food, any other thing that you can think of, we, our liaisons can help them with that. We have peer mentors on staff. We have an occupational therapist on staff. So, we can serve veterans from a perspective of everything in their life. It is very much a holistic approach to anything that may be going on in their life,” says Pearson.

Read more at KTVH.com.

The Latino community has a barrier to mental health due to the stigma attached to it. If one decides to go to therapy, words like “crazy” or dramatic are often used to describe you. Any show of weakness is a double-edged sword, as parents can use that to hurt you through teasing or simply ignoring you. Our generation today has been more open and aware of the mental illnesses/issues that have been experienced by previous generations. We have been breaking that stigma of what our parents considered “dramatic.” We became aware of our parents’ lack of knowledge and decided to take matters into our own hands.

why don’t Latino/Hispanic parents believe in therapy or mental health? Their generation was based on protecting themselves and being the strongest wherever they were. Always working and giving the best for the home. There were no moments for weakness. Their generation grew up quickly, having children at a young age without realizing the magnitude of what it took to become a parent. They had to stop being children to take care of other children.

Between wars, the army, the economy, and the change in civilization, all these “unstable” factors were passed down from generation to generation until they reached our parents. They grew up seeing their families’ strength despite adversity, and they never stopped thinking about their mental health. It wasn’t their priority. They were raised to be strong and useful to society. And that’s when we arrive. Our generation had a more stable society than our parents had and technology, allowed us to break the stigma gradually. We saw the emotional exhaustion of our parents reflected in their attitudes and we decided to make that change.

Read more at ToDoWAFI.com.

The first mental and behavioral health 988 crisis line in the nation tailored for Native and Indigenous people, run by an all-Native team, is live for Washington residents.

A group of 16 people run the Native and Strong Crisis Lifeline, which folds into the existing 988 hotline that debuted this summer. Now, 988 callers will have the option of pressing 4 to connect to a counselor who is familiar with “historical, intergenerational trauma, self care [and] more traditional elements,” said Rochelle Williams, the tribal operations manager with Volunteers of America Western Washington, an enrolled member of the Ehattesaht First Nation and a descendant of the Tulalip Tribes.

Native people have endured decades of suffering from the effects of Western colonization and displacement from their traditional land, language and cultures, Williams said. It’s led to higher rates of depression, anxiety, substance use and suicide.

Current data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found American Indian and Alaska Native people have the highest rate of suicide compared to their non-Native counterparts with 23.9 deaths by suicide per 100,000 people compared to 16.9 deaths for white people, 7.8 for Black people, and 7.5 for Hispanic people.

Read more at SeattleTimes.com.

Depression is a disorder that affects millions of Americans each year, but diagnosing it isn’t the same for everyone.

According to the Mayo Clinic, it is commonly diagnosed using a set of criteria laid out in the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, often referred to as the DSM.

“Historically, we use something like the DSM to diagnose — that’s kind of the holy grail when you’re talking about behavioral health,” said Lauren Carson, founder and executive director of Black Girls Smile, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to support the mental health of Black young women. But she said the text is predominantly written by older white men, and the data that forms the basis of its diagnostic criteria comes largely from studies on white men, too.

Studies have shown that marginalized groups like Black people are at higher risk of depression. A new study gives some insight into what that looks like ― and how depression in Black women doesn’t always present in the “traditional” ways.

In a paper published last month in the journal Nursing Research, researchers at New York University and Columbia University found that Black women are more likely to report self-criticism, self-blame, trouble sleeping, an inability to experience pleasure, and irritability than the more widely recognized symptoms of depression like feeling sad or hopeless.

Read more at HuffPost.com.

A message from Dr. Larke Huang, Director of SAMHSA’s Office of Behavioral Health Equity

Spread the Word!

There are big changes coming to Medicaid coverage over the next year. If you are a provider, please convey this information of the “unwinding” of Medicaid continuous coverage to your clients and colleagues. If you are a person with Medicaid coverage, spread this information to peers, family, and acquaintances.

Losing Medicaid Coverage

You may be at risk of losing health care coverage through Medicaid over the next year. Flexibilities during the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency allowed states to use a continuous enrollment condition. This enabled families and their children to retain their coverage under Medicaid without an eligibility assessment. This flexibility will be terminated this year.

About 84 million people are covered by Medicaid, which grew by 20 million people since January 2020. However, as states begin checking everyone’s eligibility for the first time in three years, as many as 14 million people could lose access to that health care.

What You Can Do

States will mail a Medicaid renewal form to your home. The federal government also requires states to contact you in another way — by phone, text message, or email — to remind you to fill out the form. This is critical. Many people during this “unwinding” of the continuous coverage period may still qualify for Medicaid but may lose it because they’ve left no contact information with their state Medicaid office!

Expiration of the Continuous Enrollment Condition and Unwinding Timeline

Upon conclusion of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, the new March 31, 2023 statutory end date of the continuous enrollment condition means that states could begin their 12-month unwinding period and initiate the first Medicaid renewals that may result in disenrollment as early as February 1, 2023. As explained in the State Health Officers Letter #22-001, states should begin renewals in the month before and the month in which the continuous enrollment condition ends.

Of Most Importance in Renewing Medicaid Coverage

A simple omission may disrupt your Medicaid coverage. Even if you are eligible for Medicaid, if the Medicaid office does not have your contact information, they will have no way to reach you. Providing your contact information is most critical. Don’t wait until it’s too late!

More information and resources below.

• “Millions who rely on Medicaid may be booted from the program” ABC News article
• Medicaid webpage on information related to “unwinding” after COVID-19
• Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Informational Bulletin with key dates related to Medicaid continuous enrollment condition

In order to highlight pockets of excellence across the country, the NNED selects a partner organization to highlight once a month. The Women’s Resource Center has been selected as the Partner of the Month for March in celebration of Women’s History Month.

The Women’s Resource Center (WRC) began in 1975 when five women placed an ad in The Suburban and Wayne Times calling for a meeting on women’s issues. Forty-five women attended the initial meeting, indicating a strong demand for an organization that was dedicated to addressing the needs of women. Since that time, WRC has worked to help women utilize the educational, employment, and financial opportunities made available to them through Title IX and similar legislation to create better lives for themselves and their children. By providing resources, tools, and support for today, WRC provides hope for tomorrow.

Some of the programs and services that are currently offered:

• Counseling
• Information and Referral Helpline
• Financial Coaching
• Girls Lead — leadership and protective life skills program
• Legal Consultations

Learn more about the Women’s Resource Center and its mission to assist women and girls to successfully navigate life transitions and to inspire others to do the same.

View a list of previous NNED Partners of the Month.