Mental Health: Hope and Recovery
We live in recovery. So can you.
Helen Sneed and Valerie Milburn have both fought and overcome severe, chronic mental illnesses, and offer an insider’s approach to mental health. They share inspirational true stories and a host of recovery skills. Episodes examine conditions such as depression, anxiety, substance use and eating disorders, self-harm, suicide, and other major illnesses. You’ll learn about treatment options, coping skills, goal setting, relationships, and mindfulness. Helen and Valerie are your peers. They are not a substitute for qualified counseling or other mental health resources. They are not professionals, but they are experts through their own lived experience with multiple mental health conditions. Please join them on their journey.
Reviews:
The Healing Synergy of Creativity and Recovery
In ancient times, the prevailing belief was that madness and creativity were sublime gifts from the gods. Who knew the opposite would prove to be true today? Creativity and art are reliant on mental health, mental health is reliant on creativity and art. In this exciting episode, Valerie and Helen r...
The Need for Grit and Determination in Achieving Recovery
Who knew grit and determination could be so essential to the pursuit and achievement of recovery from mental health issues? Valerie and Helen begin with a brilliant book, "Grit," by Angela Duckworth, and go on to explore the impact of grit on mental health. They begin with the basic definition: "Gri...
Powerful Stories of Recovery: The Journeys of Stacy and Kimberly
If you're searching for inspiration and uplift, look no further. Valerie and Helen will provide you with an escape from the doldrums needed by all of us after a long, hot summer. In this episode, two extraordinary guests, Kimberly and Stacy, tell their powerful stories of recovery from mental health...
Dissecting Depression: The Background, the Battle, and the Breakthroughs -- Part Two
Join Valerie and Helen as they delve into the second half of their examination of depression. While Depression Part 1 presented an in-depth look at the many facets of the illness and its profound impact on the individual and society, Part 2 focuses on the expanding potential for recovery. Through tr...
Dissecting Depression: The Background, the Battle, and the Breakthroughs
Valerie and Helen take a deep dive into the formidable depths of the mental health disorder depression—an illness so fierce and powerful it will strike one in six Americans at least once in a lifetime. In the first episode of this two-part series, they explain the different types of depression, and ...
Grasping for Gratitude in a Mental Health Crisis
Finding gratitude in the midst of a mental health crisis can seem impossible. Valerie and Helen experienced this struggle during their own crises, and have since discovered the profound impact of gratitude. This episode will take you on a surprising and heartening journey into the practice, science ...
A Conversation with Karen Casey, a World Leader in Recovery
Join Valerie and Helen for a far-reaching conversation with Karen Casey, legendary leader in the global recovery movement for 40 years. Karen is the author of the ground-breaking book, Each Day a New Beginning: Daily Meditations for Women, her first of 31 books. One of the first recovery books writt...
Empowerment and Recovery through Volunteering and Storytelling
Valerie and Helen have been profoundly empowered by their volunteer experience, and volunteering has expanded their recovery. Storytelling has been the fundamental aspect of their volunteer work over ten years. Join them for this episode as they share how both telling and hearing the story of fighti...
Bipolar Disorder: Part Two
Helen and Valerie devote a second episode to the challenges and complexities of bipolar disorder. In Episode 24, a remarkable discussion with Dr. Stephen Strakowski, a national leader in bipolar disorder treatment and research, addressed many topics that merited further examination. Join Helen and V...
Hospitalization: Conversations About the Psychiatric Hospitalization Experience
There is much curiosity about the reality of being institutionalized. A stint in a psychiatric hospital can inspire fear or hope for the individual fighting a mental health condition. In order to tell what it’s like, Helen, Valerie and two special guests discuss hospitalization at the most personal ...