The Carter Center Mental Health Program is conducting important international research on mental health stigma.  Below, please find a special story about their work in Liberia.

 

Fighting Stigma in Liberia

 

Stigma and discrimination against people with mental illnesses exist worldwide.  But in Liberia, The Carter Center has gained valuable insight into how they affect individuals, families, and communities through the research of medical anthropologist and psychiatrist Dr. Brandon Kohrt.  His findings are helping the Center and its partners, including the Liberia Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, tailor strategies to reduce stigma and provide better care and support for people with mental illnesses as the nation works to build a sustainable mental health care system.

 

For a video interview of Dr. Brandon Kohrt, visit:

 

http://www.cartercenter.org/news/multimedia/HealthPrograms/FightingStigmainLiberia.html

 

 

 



 

 

 

While our health is undeniably assaulted by natural

forces frequently beyond our control, all too often

the enemies of our physical and emotional well-being are

social and political (Davis, 1990, p. 19)



Congratulations to Dr. Margaret Price for being selected as the recipient of the 2013 Conference on College Composition and Communication Book Award for her book, Mad at School: Rhetorics of Mental Disability and Academic Life! Dr. Price will be presented with the award at the 2013 CCCC Convention in Las Vegas, Friday, March 15.

 



At important text for anyone interested in mental health issues

in a university setting.

 

Valenrich Wellness tweeted during a live webcast event by the Carter Center.  This event specifically focused on mental health stigma and included representatives from Active Minds (www.activeminds.org) and Emory University (www.emory.edu). 

For more information on the Carter Center
and its work with mental health advocacy, visit
http://cartercenter.org/health/mental_health/index.html.  

Valenrich Wellness is on the move again and enjoying the historically Black college and university (HBCU) experience at the National Association of Student Affairs Professionals (NASAP) 59th Annual Conference in Jackson, Mississippi. 

 

 

In addition to presenting on the importance of mentorship to student mental wellness, I especially enjoyed the Scandal watch party that took place Thursday evening. 

 

(Well, it can't be all work and no play). *smile*

 



 

In order for new understandings of disability to be developed and truthful representations of Black womanhood that supersede damaging, oppressive representations, it is crucially important that the rhetoric espoused through systems of domination is challenged, dismantled, and replaced with language that encourages a discourse of humanizing value and equality.

- Nadia M. Richardson, PhD - www.valenrich.com

 

The National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) Mental Health Conference in Fort Worth, Texas ended just in time for conference attendees to travel to their various destinations and prepare for a day of historic transition.

 



Valenrich Wellness congratulates President Barack Obama as he is sworn in for his second term as
President of the United States. 

 

 

The significance of this day is only enhanced by the fact that it falls on Martin Luther King, Jr. day. 

Dr. King believed in the power of love.
Love fosters respect and encourages community.
In order for the stigma of mental health to be dismantled, love of mankind must be given the opportunity to develop respect for human difference and harness the power of advocacy that can transform communities by actively addressing the various forms of discrimination that threaten mental wellness.
Thank you Dr. King for your legacy of love.