#ThriveNYC

[mojave-pete]

So @nycmayorsoffice-blog where is the support for the mental criminals the people of NYC are threaten because of you corrupt thieving POS.

[bronxlibrarycenter]

Join us for an interactive workshop, Workplace Mental Health, hosted by ThriveNYC.  Thursday, February 27, 2020, 5 PM

[flonyc]

A year ago today!

[nychealth]

NYC Health Department  Partners with LinkedIn to Discuss Trauma in the Workplace

On May 8, in observance of Mental Health Awareness Month, our Center for Health Equity (CHE) took part in a Sisters Thrive and Brothers Thrive panel discussion at LinkedIn’s office in midtown Manhattan to examine trauma in the workplace among minority and marginalized communities.

The panel featured:

Dr. Torian Easterling, Acting Deputy Commissioner of CHE

Takeesha White, Acting Assistant Commissioner for Systems Partnerships

Byron Young, MD, psychiatrist at ThriveNYC's Mental Health Service Corps

L. Toni Lewis, MD, President of Liberation Health Strategies

Karinn Glover, MD, MPH, Director of Adult Behavioral Health of Montefiore Medical Group

David Johns, Executive Director of the National Black Justice Coalition

Magdala Chery, DO, MBS, Internist & Assistant Professor at Rowan Medicine

Ifeoma Ike, Esq., Principal of Think Rubix

The speakers spoke about how trauma shows up in the workplace. This can often lead to challenges associated with poor mental health, such as productivity loss and absenteeism.

After a healing spoken word performance by artist and “acceptance ambassador” Hakeem Rahim, the panelists continued their dialog on how to create workplaces that are healing.

Audience members shared workplace struggles while panelists imparted wisdom to be strategic, selfish and choose joy. They acknowledged that employees often experience trauma outside of the workplace and can be triggered while working, causing this trauma to manifest in different ways. A key takeaway from the evening was the continued dehumanization from slavery to the workplace.

Dr. Easterling remarked on how programs like ThriveNYC's Sisters Thrive and Brothers Thrive and Thrive in your Workplace are equipping New Yorkers with the skills and tools to manage daily challenges. 

[therealityofiam]

After another 8 hour class my recertification is done for another 3 years. . . . #mentalhealthawareness #mentalhealthfirstaid #lhnyc #weekendvibes #recertification #mentalhealthawarenessmonth #thrivenyc #mentalhealthfirstaidtraining #nyc #harlem #minorities #stigma #mentalillness (at New York, New York) https://www.instagram.com/p/BxoRSbplRQg/?igshid=11ibg347p3wtn

[salmozzarella]

#Bikesmart ##RunsafeNewYork #NYPD #ThriveNYC #Visionzero #Safehorizon #coneyisland #salmozzarella #catrinasinternational (at Coney Island USA) https://www.instagram.com/p/CAlEX8PBaj6/?igshid=1as1oj5xjjj0g

[theyearofcancerousthinking]

June 13, 2019

Edith Gonzalez just died. She was a beloved Mexican soap opera icon. I loved her from Corazón Salvaje and knew she had been diagnosed in 2016. 

I have a weird relationship with celebrities who have cancer - especially breast cancer. I look to those who have cleared their benchmarks: Christina Applegate, Rita Wilson. I keep tabs (from a distance) on those who were diagnosed at the same time I was, mainly Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Every time I catch myself thinking that it can’t possibly be true that I have a clean bill of health I look to the former. Julia Louis-Dreyfus has a way to go before I can look to her for comfort. 

Last week another celebrity died unexpectedly - one of those you have grown up with, always seeing them on tv. And it hits me harder than expected. Knowing how young they were and how sudden their deaths were just drives home one of the main feelings I’ve had since my diagnosis: life is too short to not do whatever the hell you want. Do it, and do it well. Give it everything. Don’t suffer fools. Create the life you want. 

Which is a great segue to the following mental health update I have: after months of my shrink recommending an anti-depressant, I finally relented. My oncologist wanted to refer me to a rheumatologist to explore the source of my debilitating fatigue. He wasn’t down with my blaming chemo + the ongoing hormone treatment. 

My shrink had brought up the option before, but had also told me I did not have a straightforward diagnosis of depression, so I had rejected it. But then, after a trip to celebrate my nephew’s second birthday, I went through three of the saddest, heartbreaking, mentally twisted days where I convinced myself that the sadness I felt at leaving him was proof that the universe knew something horrible that I didn’t. And that S was going to die in a plane crash - and I was filled with anticipatory guilt. It was Doom & Gloom City. I was able to shake my self free from it on the third evening by realizing that I had been there before - I had had those feelings before and the universe hadn’t shown any of its cards. Three days is a long time. 

I had a shrink appointment scheduled already so it was fresh in my mind as I told him about my thought process. My mind did not have time to pull any revisionist history. And yes, I am referring to my mind as someone separate to me because that is how it feels. 

One of the driving points of therapy post-cancer is to find meaning in your life. I have struggled with this concept: what is meaningful? And how does anything meaningful cancel out how shitty life can be? (I definitely scared my brother-in-law and S one night, when I explained there were definite scenarios where I would rather not have been born - I was serious and thought I had good examples, i.e., the Holocaust.) One of the main, if not the only, meaningful experiences of the human condition is connection with those around us. And as someone who is super social and a relatively good judge of character, I have many wonderful people in my life who have been nothing but supportive during this ordeal. But, this was not as heart-warming as it could have been. Maybe as someone super social and open I took it for granted, but it just wasn’t enough. 

For example, I witnessed an exchange between a homeless man and a gruff Long Island type, who did not allow him to pass through the train cars because he was clearly too weak to stand up-straight. My shrink thought that was a nice, heart-warming, meaningful moment. I thought it was nothing in the overall scheme of things. I have a bunch of these conversations with my shrink - no human interaction is enough to convince me that life is not fundamentally hard. 

But now, with my nephew in particular - I was smitten. Thrilled to be bonding now that he is two and has more of an idea of who I am. Proud of that he is a healthy, brilliant, growing little boy. So incredibly proud of my sister and Bro-in-law for how they are raising him. And in the same instant I was feeling these things, I felt sadness that he lives far away, that I didn’t know he had been hitting all these milestones, and then guilt that I couldn’t be happy that he is great, and that in some twisted way I was making this about me? Why couldn’t I just be happy that he was healthy and growing? Why, when I finally found something meaningful did my mind swipe it away and replace it with fear and sadness? As humans we can feel awe and fear - and I can easily find and feel awe - and as it follows, meaning. But I cannot sit with that emotion. But fear? Hell, we have slumber parties, go to sleep away camp, go to boarding school, take long baths. The works.  

My shrink recommended the medication again, and explained that he was not recommending a cast for a non-broken leg (my example) but rather a splint for a sprained ankle. He said I have a mild depression in relation to the menopause. Interesting right? Not the cancer. Not in relation to fear of a recurrence. Menopause. 

I thought about this recommendation for two weeks. I spoke to friends who have been open about being on similar medications or open about contemplating them. I had one more quick episode of the twisted mental gymnastics that my mind engages in when it thinks I am not paying attention. I caught myself thinking that I was tidying up our apartment before a bike ride because if I died people would have to come over to pay their respects in a messy apartment. I was thinking this as if though it were the most normal thing in the world. 

This time, 20 minutes passed before I realized it - not 3 days. Was this proof that I didn’t need medication? Maybe now that I was aware of the problem, I could get out in front of it? 

And then, I saw the Brené Brown special on Netflix. I have been a fan for a long time. She spoke about how some people fear happiness. I thought that, clearly, was not me! Right? Who fears happiness? But then she went on to explain that some people feel happiness and then immediately rehearse tragedy, fearing that the other shoe must be about to drop. And I knew she was describing me. And I knew she was not contradicting anything my shrink had said - it might be human nature to want to control outcomes but engaging in this doom & gloom cycle was not healthy. Brené also mentioned that people who were resilient were good at gratitude and that set them apart from those who rehearsed tragedy. 

I never would have thought I wasn’t somebody who was naturally grateful. NEVER. I have such a controlling sense of guilt that I thought I was a gratitude champ. But, my gratitude spirals very very very quickly into guilt, resentment, anger. Happy I caught my cancer early? Anger for all those who didn’t. Grateful I have great health insurance? Rage for those who don’t. Glad I have loving friends + family who rallied from near + far for me? Deep sadness for those who have to go at it alone. Of course I also mentioned this to my shrink and he pointed out that gratitude exercises are built to circumvent this by asking you to identify small joys: a great cup of coffee, a breezy bike ride, a great new album. 

In the end, I thought long and hard about this decision. As open as I am about mental health (I mean, I do have this blog) I had to confront my open deep-rooted prejudice regarding depression. Shouldn’t I be smart enough to analyze my way out of this? Aren’t I mentally strong (even if I am not as resilient as I thought I was)? Aren’t I high functioning? 

But then the feeling I described at the beginning of this post broke through it all: who the hell cares if I need a pill? Who am I trying to be strong for? Who am I trying to prove this to? At the end of the day, do you think my life will be marked as being someone on an anti-depressant? If I take a pill and it works, then I just improved my life. And if it doesn’t work (it might not with mild depression), I will have tried. I will continue to put the work in during therapy, and maybe one day I won’t need it anymore. I gave my shrink (and me, really) one year of being on it - I figured we could accumulate enough data in a year. But, if I need it until the day I die at 90 years young, and it made my days lighter + happier, then fuck it. Honor those who didn’t make it by taking life by the horns. We get one life and death is a total mindfuck but being hyper aware of it is mind-bendingly freeing. 

[mykalwithay]

Just me and my girl, @nycfirstlady!!! #casual #thrivenyc #moretocome (at Gracie Mansion)

[k-born-rivers]

We're Getting Ready For The 183rd Creston, Walton and Morris Avenue Reunion. The Old and New Generation Is Welcomed As Long As You Come and Leave In PEACE. #citizenscommitteefornewyorkcity #Thrivenyc #Gunsdownlifeup #Gunsdownlifeup #neverbecaged #Communitysafetypartnership #Peacedecember #IAmMyCommunityInc https://www.instagram.com/p/B1RmlRXAQvk/?igshid=fr0qcylzpsio

[bronxlibrarycenter]

Mental Health First Aid Hosted by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene  March 9, 2020 9:30 AM - 5:30 PM  Participants must attend the full 8-hour session to receive a 3-year certification in Mental Health First Aid!  Register for this FREE course at: https://mhfa_bronxlibrarycenter.timetap.com 

[flonyc]

We can help the people we care about feel more comfortable talking about emotional distress and help them get connected to resources to assist them. Check in on a neighbor or loved one and share the NYC Well number with them.

[nychealth]

Brothers and Sisters Thrive Advance Conversation on Mental Health

On Feb. 12, our Center for Health Equity (CHE) took part in a Brothers and Sisters Thrive panel discussion at the iHeartRadio headquarters in downtown Manhattan to examine how the Black community is affected by the historical lack of mental health resources. 

The panel featured:

Dr. Torian Easterling, acting deputy commissioner of CHE

Takeesha White, acting assistant commissioner for Systems Partnerships 

Tawana Gilford, Ph.D., psychologist at Harlem Hospital

Georgia Gaveras, Kings County Hospital

Charlamagne tha God, radio personality and co-host of “The Breakfast Club”

The speakers engaged in a wide-ranging conversation covering mental health stigmas, racial disparity and childhood traumas. They also questioned the language used within and about the Black community.

When the word “urban” was used to frame a question about the Black community, White addressed the crowd and moderator saying, “Let’s stop using euphemisms for ‘Black.’” 

She went on to make a point about how language is an important part of breaking down stigmas about and within the Black community. 

“Be patient, be loving, be kind and pace ourselves around the propaganda that we hear about communities...the propaganda about our neighborhoods,” White said. “These overbearing concepts of how Black people [act or feel], when you hear that stuff, just know that’s propaganda. That’s messaging to hurt people, and you are hurt enough.”

Dr. Easterling addressed the free mental health resources available through ThriveNYC, such as the Mental Health First Aid training courses and the NYC Well chat and text line for peer and counselor support. 

The event was sponsored by Metro Plus Health for their Good4You series.

Watch the full video below:

[elaindurham]

“Accounting? What you talkin about accounting?”

Read more...

- ED - Democracy means many things. It is the right to vote. It the right of Liberal voters in New York (and a few other states) and especially New York City to be incredibility stupid. Election after election after election...If not for perfecting failure the Liberals wouldn't be good at one damn thing.

[therealityofiam]

Follow: TheRealityOfiAm.tumblr.com

Instagram.com/LawrenceHnyc

AMOSC: @LawrenceHnyc

[waamyjobs]

Project Manager for the Mental Health Initiatives, ThriveNYC

Passport, Permanent Resident Card/Green Card, or Driver?s license. -Manage working groups of agency staff focused on expanding and improving the technical... from https://ift.tt/2D9fhey