Research

  • Looking at Insurance Data to Identify What Works to Prevent Abuse in an Organization

    ByMikeM Reading Time: 2 minutes

    This makes sense. Even something as common and necessary as background checks are only going to catch people who’ve already been caught before. It’s a good thing to do, but it leaves that gap. What doesn’t leave a gap is having policies and procedures in place that prevent anyone from being able to abuse kids when working with your organization. If being alone with a child is simply not acceptable for anyone, that closes those gaps.

    As the article goes on, that means rules like not giving kids gifts, not driving them home, etc. That’s what works, and it has to just be the culture in the organization, no questions asked. Create that culture, and you’re making the best effort to protect kids that you can make.

  • How We Talk to Ourselves Matters

    ByMikeM Reading Time: 2 minutes

    As you read the rest of the article you’ll see how self-distancing conversations look a lot more like those conversations with friends I referenced earlier. Getting away from all of the “I” and “me” and fairly judging the situation quietly and calmly as if it was happening to someone else can put it into a perspective that we sometimes lose when we are thinking of ourselves, especially those of us who struggle with self-blame. Of course, then that self-blame turns to rumination which feeds into depression, and round and round we go. 

    There is a better way, and the examples given can help if we are willing to practice them. Especially the idea of reminding ourselves that we’ve already been through tougher, and more stressful situations and come out the other side.

  • Sharing – Is Mental Illness “Abnormal” If It’s Super Common?

    ByMikeM Reading Time: 2 minutes

    I like this comparison to the flu, because the flu is something we all deal with in one form or another, and most people struggle with it for a time, and then get better. Some get treatment, and get better. Some get treatment, and don’t get better. Some have it worse than others, some let it linger without treatment and it becomes a more serious problem, etc. And some people, just don’t get the flu much at all, for some reason.

    That sounds a lot like the diverse ways many of us deal with mental health struggles. Some are more dangerous than others, but many, many people end up dealing with it, even if just for short time.

    Perhaps, if we viewed depression, anxiety, as something closer to the flu, as opposed to something to be kept secret at all costs, more people would have minor cases that are treated and recover quickly, as opposed to letting them fester and become more complicated. And the folks with more complex issues, akin to pneumonia, would not be told to just suck it up because it’s all in their head. They’d get the treatment that their illness requires, because we all recognize that mental health issues are easily as common as physical health issues, and there’s no weakness associated with them.

  • Sharing – Your Burnout Is Unique. Your Recovery Will Be, Too.

    ByMikeM Reading Time: 2 minutes

    As the authors point out, your approach to self-care should be different depending on what is causing the burnout. If you’re just exhausted from a lack of sleep, overwork, etc. taking a day to rest, relax, and take care of yourself might be the best thing you can do for yourself. (Recognizing, as mentioned above, that if you’re overworked, fixing that falls on other people and the company) On the other hand, if you’re burned out from watching the news, and developing really a very cynical outlook of other people. spending a day isolating yourself from social connections even further, might not really be the best option. So, self care starts to look a little different depending on not only your own individual preferences, but also what it is that is causing these feelings of burnout. 

    Of course, the struggle here is knowing yourself, and your emotions.

  • Sharing – Ending Mental Health Stigma Takes More Than Talking

    ByMikeM Reading Time: 1 minute

    Obviously, talking about can lead to these other things. Not talking about it won’t get us anywhere. But we need to do more than talk, we need to figure out better ways to treat people who need it, and make it accessible. That doesn’t happen until all of society understands the importance of it, and is truly educated about it. So, keep talking, but also keep demanding better.