Shownotes
In this special retrospective episode of One Minute Can Save a Life hosted by Dr. Kent Corso and produced by Timothy Brien, we explore how policy, grassroots action, and community coalesce to support mental health. Featuring insights from state leaders, coroners, clinicians, and survivors, this episode gently highlights that support systems are built in the connections we share. (Note: This episode discusses mental health and suicide recovery safely and supportively; if you need immediate support, please call or text 988).
Episodes
Takeaways:
- The discussions in this episode emphasize that community involvement is essential for effective suicide prevention efforts.
- Leaders play a crucial role in shaping mental health policies that foster a supportive environment for individuals in distress.
- The importance of peer support and shared experiences among veterans is highlighted as a powerful tool for recovery.
- Understanding and addressing the unique challenges faced by diverse communities is vital in tailoring effective mental health interventions.
- The episode stresses that connection and communication are key to preventing crises and saving lives in moments of desperation.
- It is essential to normalize conversations about mental health and to educate ourselves and others to recognize signs of distress.
For more information on mental health support, contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
For more information on Prosper, go to the website
This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:
OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy
Transcripts
Foreign.
Speaker B:Hi, my name is Kent Corso and I'm your host for this episode of One Minute Can Save a Life.
Speaker B:While I am a licensed clinical psychologist, none of these guests are my patients, nor does anything I say constitute medical advice.
Speaker B:The views conveyed during our conversations do not reflect the views, positions or policies of any private or public organization.
Speaker B:This is simply a series of conversations with people who have some connection to hardship, suicide, mental health or loss.
Speaker B:There's so much we can learn from one another.
Speaker B:So let's get started.
Speaker C:Welcome to a very special episode of One Minute Can Save a Life.
Speaker C:I'm your producer, Timothy Bryan.
Speaker C:Over the past year, we've sat down with governors, coroners, clinicians, veterans and survivors.
Speaker C:And on the surface, their daily lives couldn't look more different.
Speaker C:But underneath, every single conversation pointed back to one fundamental truth.
Speaker C:Prevention doesn't happen in isolation.
Speaker C:It happens in the space between people.
Speaker C:In this episode, we're bringing together the highlights from those conversations to show you how all the pieces fit into a single life saving puzzle.
Speaker C:We'll move from how leaders shape statewide policy to the raw strength of lived experience, into the specialized support systems built for our veterans, and finally to the front lines of clinical care.
Speaker C:Let's start out at the top with how a community decides that enough is enough.
Speaker C:When we talk about saving lives on a large scale, it has to start with leadership.
Speaker C:Willing to break the silence.
Speaker C:Earlier this year, we had the privilege of speaking with Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon about the why We Care initiative and what it takes to shift an entire state's culture around mental health.
Speaker D:Because if you look at it and you get in that frame of mind, it's so easy to just find all the reasons.
Speaker D:And that's what I hear from these survivors, is I couldn't see any worth in my life.
Speaker D:I couldn't see any worth that I was to anybody.
Speaker D:Nobody would miss me.
Speaker D:I'm just going to be better for the world if I am not here afterwards.
Speaker D:It's not like this is the way I establish my worth.
Speaker D:It's getting more of an understanding of just how much people care about you.
Speaker B:Exactly.
Speaker B:And of course, we don't know who's struggling unless we are taking the time to care and to ask.
Speaker B:When I think of these attempt survivors, the words grit, persistence, perseverance, self reliance, independence, resilience, those are the words that come to my mind.
Speaker B:Fortunately, they made it through their attempt.
Speaker B:And in a way, they embody the very values that I think characterize the cowboy culture and many of the very hardened, resilient Wyoming Residents, I would agree.
Speaker D:And I think there's something to it about courage as well, in the sense that to come out of that kind of an experience.
Speaker D:I can think of two examples there.
Speaker D:A young man who horribly disfigured himself in his attempt, but now has an incredibly buoyant view of life and wants to be helpful to others and the courage to be able to step out and face.
Speaker D:He's now got a sort of a speech impediment and remanufactured jaw and other things.
Speaker D:And to be able to come out and speak as confidently as he can.
Speaker E:You.
Speaker D:You just have to say, now there is grit, there is courage, there is perseverance.
Speaker D:And I think the other thing too is being able to.
Speaker D:And we've talked about this before, but in those moments where we most depend, I think, on somebody being there for us, sometimes we're as removed as we possibly can be.
Speaker D:And I think.
Speaker D:And we're hoping that we can sort of take the stigma away from seeking help and seeking mental health care and being able to contact a professional.
Speaker D:That's been the effort behind the 988 line.
Speaker D:And for me, this is the second example.
Speaker D:A young man who told me that he'd had several moments where he'd really pondered whether he was of any value to anybody.
Speaker D:And every time he reached out to the 988 line, he was reaching out to somebody in Florida or Missouri or California or somewhere else other than Wyoming.
Speaker D:And it wasn't that helpful.
Speaker D:It was, you know, the people walked through whatever they were supposed to walk through, but they had no idea where he lived.
Speaker D:They didn't know anything about the mountains in Wyoming or fishing or anything else.
Speaker D:And so having our legislature finally come through and fund that now means that we have people that can relate.
Speaker D:And that's, I think, so key.
Speaker D:And you would know this better than I.
Speaker D:When you want to reach out, you want to reach out to somebody who maybe can get to you in a different frame of reference.
Speaker B:I think that's a great point.
Speaker B:We often find it easier to open up to those with whom we have common ground.
Speaker B:And so if we reach out to the 988 line and it is answered by folks in Wyoming, which, thank goodness the legislature did pass that, and now it is supported by those who are in wyoming, there are two different centers, and around 90% of all contacts are answered by those two centers.
Speaker B:If they're busy and the lines are tied up, it will bump over to another state.
Speaker B:But 90% is a good amount.
Speaker B:And this is between 900 and 1,000 calls or texts per month.
Speaker B:So that's a pretty large volume.
Speaker B:And I think it's also a testament to the idea of build it and they will come.
Speaker B:If we make these resources available, people are going to take the opportunity to use them.
Speaker B:And I think that's, again, it goes back to what you were saying a few minutes ago about talking and supporting and using these resources.
Speaker B:It's a testament that they're working from.
Speaker D:A government point of view, if this makes any sense.
Speaker D:You know, over 95% of those are resolved without having to call police, without having to call first responders or anything else.
Speaker D:And I think that speaks to.
Speaker D:We all have such a, I think a built in kind of aversion, if that's the right word, to wanting to do that.
Speaker D:And maybe it's.
Speaker D:I think you were talking about this a little bit before that independent streak that we prize so much here in the West.
Speaker D:But when you think about that, in fact, every time we do a branding, we get all the neighbors around.
Speaker D:Anytime we're supposed to have a big event or we need help, the neighbors all come.
Speaker D:We all are volunteers for a fire department.
Speaker C:Governor Gordon highlighted that policy only works if the community embraces it.
Speaker C:And that leads us directly to Stephan Johansen, who looks at health challenges through what he calls an upstream lens.
Speaker C:Stefan reminded us that if we want to fix behavioral health, we have to meet people where they already live, work and play.
Speaker C:Integrating mental wellness into every aspect of.
Speaker F:Primary care, telling people what the right prescription is for how to live their lives is not an effective way to get the message across.
Speaker F:It's really listening to people's perspectives at the individual and community level to understand how you can lean into those strengths and build better systems and infrastructure.
Speaker F:And I think we learned from that, Kent, in the Department of Health that, you know, we should not be the regimented health department that says, here's what the data says, here's what the science says, here's exactly how you should live your life.
Speaker F:Instead, inform our communities, inform our providers, inform our public about here's what we're seeing in best practices or the best models to deliver care or to deliver population health.
Speaker F:How can we help you build that for your organization, for your local community, or for yourself as an individual?
Speaker F:And I think that's a way more productive and effective way to manage.
Speaker B:I couldn't agree more, Stefan.
Speaker B:It's sort of like, let's make sure we educate people, give them information, and then empower them to make decisions.
Speaker B:And we don't presume to know what's best for them.
Speaker B:They know what's best for them.
Speaker B:I think you're also taking it one step further and you just haven't mentioned this, but you're giving them choices and that's the responsible thing to do.
Speaker B:Give people information so they understand what's happening and then give them choices so they can make an educated decision as to what works for them.
Speaker B:And I think that's a really helpful way to wrap up this discussion.
Speaker F:It's a great way to frame it.
Speaker F:Ken, I totally agree.
Speaker F:And you, you know, we're certainly not perfect at it, but some of those aspirations that you mentioned are absolutely what we're trying to move forward.
Speaker F:And I think certainly over the past several years, a lot of good things on the larger health front, the behavioral health front and mental health front in Wyoming.
Speaker F:We've seen some pretty incredible results with the, you know, again, not perfect, but the Crisis Services, the 988 line that we have in state for folks in crisis, the rebuilding of some of our state facilities to have state of the art infrastructure for that safety net, a rethinking of our partnership and for community mental health and how that should be delivered and who for and also, you know, judicial reform that we, we know that so many of our folks in need might cycle through legal systems and we've done great partnerships with the judiciary and our court system and our law enforcement system to start the process of thinking differently about not only behavioral health, but its connection to physical health and how we can do things differently.
Speaker F:So a lot of optimism and a lot of good things on the horizon for Wyoming.
Speaker F:But Kent, I have to say I really appreciate the invite.
Speaker F:I've gotten to know you a little bit over the past couple of years and really appreciate your engagement and your dedication to Wyoming, which I'm sure is a state that looks very different from other places that you work and provide service, but that there's a consistency in the challenges that people deal with that really do bring us together in coming up with better answers for these things.
Speaker F:These are daunting issues to deal with, especially at a societal level, but also really empowering and rewarding.
Speaker F:And it's not just folks who work in, you know, big government bureaucracies like I do, but there's so much engagement around these issues that I think that leads to a lot of hope for me that folks care.
Speaker F:And so, you know, daunting issues aside, couldn't be more optimistic about the future of where we're going with some of these things.
Speaker F:But Kent, really appreciate the invite and the fact that you're discussing these issues in a broader setting.
Speaker F:I think it's really important.
Speaker C:Notice the connection there.
Speaker C:Governor Gordon builds the macro level commitment, and leaders like Stefan build the upstream infrastructure to support it.
Speaker C:But infrastructure means nothing without the human voice.
Speaker C:That human voice, that willingness to share the darkest moments so someone else can find light is where systematic policy meets real life.
Speaker C:Now we sat down with Kerry Bollock, Mrs. Wyoming, America.
Speaker C:Kerry didn't just lend her name to a campaign.
Speaker C:She brought her own level of lived experience as a suicide attempt survivor.
Speaker C:She speaks about the why We Care initiative and the tagline that goes along with it.
Speaker C:Keep breathing.
Speaker C:She reminded us that healing isn't about solving everything at once.
Speaker C:It's about surviving the next 60 seconds.
Speaker G:But you're driving, you've had a hard day, you look up and you see, keep breathing.
Speaker G:And you just take that deep breath and it automatically just resets.
Speaker G:It just automatically resets.
Speaker G:Kind of gives you like, okay, exactly.
Speaker G:Everything's fine.
Speaker G:And so Keep Breathing for me has been, like I said, a challenge in my life because I'm always, go, go, go, go, go.
Speaker G:I don't even sit to stop, to think, to breathe.
Speaker G:But especially over the last few years in particular, something that has just resonated with me.
Speaker G:And so when we talked about this, about doing this for the campaign and using Keep Breathing, I was like, yes.
Speaker G:Like, I'm so excited to have this because it's just an automatic.
Speaker G:It's something that's super, super simple.
Speaker G:You can learn this in therapy too.
Speaker G:How to use breath work to help you calm down in situations that are overwhelming.
Speaker G:So for me, it was a really cool thing to see.
Speaker G:It was a really cool thing to use.
Speaker G:Keep breathing.
Speaker G:It's just simple.
Speaker G:It's easy and resets in a time where you just need it instantly.
Speaker B:I love that you four came up with the tagline, Keep breathing.
Speaker B:Some of our listeners may not know that breath work is not just something you learn in therapy.
Speaker B:If you've done any yoga, any martial arts, breath work is really important.
Speaker B:If you play a instrument or you've ever sang in any kind of a choir.
Speaker G:Pageantry.
Speaker B:Pageantry and pageants.
Speaker B:Absolutely.
Speaker B:Public speaking requires certain types of breathwork.
Speaker B:And let's be honest, if you've had any military or firearms training, breathing is critical for shooting on target.
Speaker B:And so there's a reason why in firearms training, they advise you to take a deep breath before you pull the trigger.
Speaker B:It's because it stabilizes muscle control, attention, and it shuts off your fight or flight response.
Speaker B:And so keep breathing is not only something that is practical, but it helps us get from one moment to the next when we are in crisis, when everything seems so overwhelming, where maybe it seems like we're in so deep that it'll take so long to climb out of that hole, or whether we're feeling like there are so many things crashing down around us.
Speaker B:Where do we begin with trying to tackle it all?
Speaker B:And it all comes down to what you four said.
Speaker B:Keep breathing.
Speaker B:The more you focus on this moment and just even the sensation of breathing, the more you get to that next moment and then that next moment.
Speaker B:It's not about tackling it all in one day or one week.
Speaker B:It's about tackling each moment by moment.
Speaker B:And I think it's brilliant advice.
Speaker B:The research certainly backs it up, and I think it's a little bit of guidance and some encouragement from four people who really know what it's like to be in that dark place.
Speaker G:Well, Kent, like, I kind of just want to emphasize that not only that portion of it right there, but, like, kind of taking it back to when you were saying, you know, why are we putting these people on billboards?
Speaker G:And, you know, we.
Speaker G:It's not about that.
Speaker G:Like, for me, I feel like it's giving an opportunity to speak, a message that someone's available to listen.
Speaker G:So, like, through this campaign, I want people to know.
Speaker G:Like, you literally could reach out to me, and I will be there for you.
Speaker G:I will listen.
Speaker G:I will help you get the resources.
Speaker G:Like, it's not about putting our faces up there to be, like, the next clip.
Speaker G:Coolest famous person in Wyoming.
Speaker G:I think that's not what this is for.
Speaker G:It's for to make that connection.
Speaker G:And I think that that's something that I really wanted to kind of hone in on about.
Speaker G:The campaign project is all four of us.
Speaker G:And I feel like I can speak for all four of us on that sense because I've connected so well with them that we would be there in an instant to help somebody and guide them to a resource or just, you know, like, just listen for a minute.
Speaker G:So take that breath and listen.
Speaker G:And sometimes that's all we can do.
Speaker G:And that's, like, a big part of my platform is, you know, just when I go to speak to people and let people know what I'm about, and when I talk on Wellness Wednesday, it's just as simple as, you know, taking your breath.
Speaker G:Go put your screens up, be present in front of screens all the time, and Something you're for throwing some gratitude.
Speaker G:And sometimes that's just.
Speaker G:It just helps you get back to that good place.
Speaker G:And then in the moment of crisis for me, I really wasn't in a place where I could really listen to anyone.
Speaker G:So just to be able to take that breath is such a good tool to have.
Speaker C:Carrie's story of post traumatic growth connects seamlessly with Will Wagner, a master electrician who walked through the fire of a suicide attempt and came out on the other side with a message that everyone needs to hear.
Speaker C:You are not broken.
Speaker H:It's okay.
Speaker H:You're not broken.
Speaker H:You're not messed up.
Speaker H:If you've thought about it, don't be shame, like feel shame or guilt.
Speaker H:It is okay.
Speaker H:But you need to talk to somebody about it.
Speaker H:It is not easy to be happy.
Speaker H:Every day my little brother and I argue about it.
Speaker H:He's like, just wake up and be happy.
Speaker H:And I'm like, yeah, I wish that would be the case.
Speaker H:I know that's not the case.
Speaker H:I know that it's a struggle to smile every single day, but there are days that it comes easy.
Speaker H:Just make sure you do it.
Speaker H:I was told in the hospital that perception is everything.
Speaker H:And that was one of the things that really stuck with me.
Speaker H:I look at things in life and if I look at it one way, it's.
Speaker H:It's one outcome.
Speaker H:And if I look at it the other way, it's a totally different outcome.
Speaker B:It's that idea that the glass is half full or half empty, right?
Speaker H:Yes.
Speaker H:And there are days that I wake up and that glass is 3/4 empty.
Speaker H:And there are days that it's full and the days that it feels 3/4 empty.
Speaker H:I know that I just.
Speaker H:I need to actively work to be happy and realize that it will be okay.
Speaker H:This day will pass.
Speaker H:It might not be the most fun day, but you will get through it.
Speaker H:The people say, find the little things.
Speaker H:And I didn't know if that was really a thing.
Speaker H:And then I did.
Speaker H:Sunrises are my thing.
Speaker H:I love sunrises.
Speaker H:So I will get up at early, early mornings and I will go drive an hour and my dog and I will sit and have coffee and watch the sunrise.
Speaker B:That's beautiful.
Speaker B:That's beautiful.
Speaker H:I am tired because I woke up early.
Speaker H:So then her and I'll take a nap on the mountain or whatever.
Speaker H:But it's those little small things that I have found that nothing else is working that day.
Speaker H:And so that's it.
Speaker H:I was always told that you don't know.
Speaker H:It was always a sticky note.
Speaker H:That was on by our computer.
Speaker H:My dad wrote it.
Speaker H:He saw it somewhere.
Speaker H:But always be nice to people because you don't know the battles they're dealing with.
Speaker H:And I always thought about it, but I never really kind of sat down and put it to it.
Speaker H:And now I realize it.
Speaker H:And one of the biggest things I've learned with everybody is that everybody takes everything differently and experiences are different.
Speaker H:And my biggest one that I've.
Speaker H:I say to people is that if you, Dr. Corso and I were.
Speaker H:We both had our coffee in the morning and you spilled your coffee, to you it might be the straw that breaks the camel's back.
Speaker E:And it's the end of your day.
Speaker H:And it ruins your day.
Speaker H:And you come to me and you tell me this, and I just look at you like, what?
Speaker H:Why?
Speaker H:Like, what's the big deal?
Speaker H:It's coffee.
Speaker H:You'll get another one.
Speaker H:Because to me, I'll just buy another coffee or I'll make another coffee, but then in turn, my order is wrong at lunch and that ruins my day.
Speaker B:I think what you're saying, Will, is that pain is subjective and a painful experience.
Speaker B:What bothers one person may not bother another person.
Speaker B:And what I love about what you're saying is, in the context of life, that life is hard and life is full of speed bumps and curveballs and things that are going to hurt and things that are going to, frankly, keep you on your toes.
Speaker B:And I love your message, Will.
Speaker F:Your message is, it's okay to think.
Speaker B:About suicide because that's an escape.
Speaker B:My pain will finally be over.
Speaker B:But I also hear you saying it's not okay to act on it.
Speaker B:In other words, take it from someone who's been there.
Speaker B:It's not the answer.
Speaker H:Correct.
Speaker H:It isn't the answer.
Speaker B:One of the other things I hear you saying, Will, is that the road to recovery is a gradual one.
Speaker B:It's hard work.
Speaker B:Just having a good day sometimes is hard work.
Speaker B:But you have to start with small steps.
Speaker B:And I love your example of sunrises.
Speaker B:Find the one or two small things in life that you enjoy.
Speaker B:And for you, in that example, it's your dog and the sunrise.
Speaker B:And I think that's so important because when life feels overwhelming, it's so difficult for people to know where to start to tackle all those things that are going on.
Speaker B:So to break it down into this simple, just do something positive for yourself.
Speaker B:Have that positive experience every single day.
Speaker B:And if the rest of the day goes horribly, at least you've got those one or two moments, those things you've done for yourself.
Speaker B:And I think that's really, really good advice for people who might be listening right now and are struggling.
Speaker C:And when we talk about grassroots action born from pain, we have to look at Jenny Hunter, founder of JR's Hunt for Life, as a suicide loss survivor.
Speaker C:Jenny showed us how personal grief can be transformed into a community shield, proving that hope is truly the greatest enemy of suicide.
Speaker I:Ask the question.
Speaker I:Don't.
Speaker I:I might use this acronym.
Speaker I:Don't pussyfoot around it.
Speaker I:Don't tiptoe around it.
Speaker I:Ask the question.
Speaker I:And I teach in my teachings a lot that when people say, well, if you ask them the question, they're going to think about it.
Speaker I:You're planting the thought.
Speaker I:And I say no.
Speaker I:If someone were to ask me if I was pregnant and I'd say, no, I'm not, but that's a good idea, I think I'll go out there and get pregnant now.
Speaker I:No, it's the same exact thing.
Speaker I:So you need to ask the question.
Speaker I:Yes, that is on our web page, that's on our Facebook, our Instagram, anywhere is JR's hunt for life.
Speaker I:Or they can go to SafeTalk and reach me through that.
Speaker I:Also.
Speaker I:I can also share my email if you'd like.
Speaker I:I share it globally so I might as well share it here, right?
Speaker I:It's jlh35hotmail.com I get a lot of people reaching out through my email.
Speaker I:I have people from other countries that reach out to me through email.
Speaker I:And that's what's so good about social media.
Speaker I:It, you know, can't.
Speaker I:We're saving lives, you and I, through social media all over the world.
Speaker I:And to me, being a helper, I've always been a helper, so have you.
Speaker I:I like to help people.
Speaker I:I like volunteering and that is what absolutely keeps me going.
Speaker I:If there's a day where I can't help somebody, I'm not quite as smiley as I am right now.
Speaker I:Well, my first thought is this topic doesn't have to be depressing.
Speaker I:We save lives.
Speaker I:We don't do it to watch people take their life, we do it to save their lives and we do it to help other people save lives.
Speaker I:And if we can network and spend, spread the word, how to ask the question, how to deal with people, how to listen, how to be non judgmental, how to reduce the stigma, then it is not depressing.
Speaker I:It is uplifting to think that maybe today someone's life was saved because of what we're doing.
Speaker I:You are 100% correct, right?
Speaker I:I would tell them that of the many people that I have talked to that have attempted to take their lives, 100% of them say they are glad they did not die.
Speaker I:100%.
Speaker I:And I would say if that is 100%, then you are.
Speaker I:Your odds are very good of joining that.
Speaker I:100%.
Speaker I:So I would ask them to reach out to a trusted person, to a safe person, someone that you know will remain confidential.
Speaker I:If that's something that concerns you, your doctor, your pastor, your therapist, your counselor, get in, talk to someone that you know will keep them to themselves and that you can be honest and you can be heard and they will listen.
Speaker I:And I'm sorry to interrupt, but.
Speaker I:And I might add that many of them are disappointed.
Speaker I:Many of them suffer head wounds, facial disfigurement, they are paralyzed.
Speaker I:Whatever the case, is that the way that they attempted?
Speaker I:They are carrying those wounds with them, but they are still 100% glad that they are alive.
Speaker I:And many of them have gone on to help people just like we are.
Speaker I:Yes.
Speaker I:That is so hopeful to me.
Speaker I:And that tells me a lot about the human spirit.
Speaker I:Yes, absolutely.
Speaker I:As a lost survivor, it is very hard to find your path in this journey.
Speaker I:It's very hard.
Speaker I:And I would say that to go with your gut, to go with your heart, if you don't feel like doing what I'm doing, don't do it.
Speaker I:Just live your life.
Speaker I:I know lost survivors that live their life to the fullest.
Speaker I:And they really are not in the business that I'm in.
Speaker I:Right.
Speaker I:They're just living their life with their family the best they can, making their family happy, doing things with their family, and they have hope for the future with their family and themselves.
Speaker I:So I would say that hope is the enemy of suicide and that you have to keep that hope.
Speaker I:Whether you're a lost survivor or you're a person at risk, keep that hope.
Speaker I:Because hope is the enemy of suicide.
Speaker I:And you will not end your life if you have hope.
Speaker I:Absolutely.
Speaker I:Because only humans can save humans.
Speaker I:We are the ones that are going to save each other.
Speaker I:And we need to be connected in order to have that saving ability, so to speak.
Speaker I:So we connect.
Speaker I:I connect with you, I connect with my family.
Speaker I:I connect with other people.
Speaker I:Because if you sit in a dark room, you are not connected.
Speaker I:Then you are, to me, more at risk.
Speaker I:And other people are not there to.
Speaker I:I don't know how to say this.
Speaker I:I'm sorry, Tim, I don't know how to say this, but being connected brings hope.
Speaker I:If you're not connected, you truly have a hard time finding any Hope.
Speaker C:When you look at grassroots strength, specific sub communities require tailored approaches.
Speaker C:Our military, veterans and faith communities, for example, rely heavily on trust and shared identity.
Speaker C:Dr. Silas Sessions, executive director of the Kentucky Office of Veteran Services, joined us to explain how public policy, clinical tools and faith based organizations must align to create safety nets around our service members.
Speaker E:If somebody is having symptoms of a stroke or symptoms of a heart attack, yes, we should pray, yes, we should do all that.
Speaker E:However, if they have a stroke, we are going to take them, we're going to pray and we're going to hope that they get better, but we're also going to take them to a hospital to ensure everything is understood.
Speaker E:And with mental health, it's the same thing.
Speaker E:I mean, we will continue to support them, we'll continue to help them.
Speaker E:We do believe that all abilities and wisdom comes from the Creator.
Speaker E:So even the help we get from physicians.
Speaker E:And again, I want to use it as if I'm not diminishing their abilities.
Speaker E:I'm just saying that they have, though they may not, some may not agree and believe they have that ability because of the wisdom that for those of us who believe has been given from the Creator.
Speaker E:So that is to help mankind with mental health.
Speaker E:People are struggling, some are, some have extreme issues and on that trajectory is suicide ideation and things like that.
Speaker E:And problems are so significant.
Speaker E:It is both are needed.
Speaker E:We need to assist people from a, from their physical and their mental and emotional struggles and assist them when it comes to what we believe to be their spiritual assistance or their spiritual struggles and things like that.
Speaker B:I couldn't agree more.
Speaker B:It's really disheartening when we hear people talking about how the church needs to fix everything.
Speaker B:I mean, on one hand I have the utmost faith in our church, whatever church that is, right?
Speaker B:Or temple or synagogue or mosque.
Speaker B:I mean, again, this is not just about Christianity, but I have so much faith in the faith community and their ability to make incredible change around the world or even just locally in their own town or their own city.
Speaker B:But when we think about it, we, it can't be one size fits all and they can't handle everything.
Speaker B:I mean, if I can't pay my bills, yes, I'm going to pray about it, but I'm also going to do something about it to try to get them paid, right?
Speaker B:I mean, God's not going to pay my bills.
Speaker B:Even if I say like God, please bless me and please help me out of this financial crisis, I can't just pray away my bills, right?
Speaker B:And if we see people Starving.
Speaker B:If we see people homeless, yes, we're going to pray for them.
Speaker B:And at the same time, we're also going to try to find a way to feed them.
Speaker D:Right.
Speaker B:Or clothe them or, or help them get out of the situation they're in.
Speaker B:So I really appreciate what you're saying because it's not an either or, it has to be a both.
Speaker B:It has to be a partnership between the faith community and the rest of the community who don't necessarily have faith, but have this commitment to helping their fellow man or fellow woman, their commitment to making the world a better place.
Speaker E:Absolutely, I totally agree.
Speaker E:And even one of the, I guess the most famous sermon, you know, in Scripture's Sermon on the Mount, and, and here it is.
Speaker E:Jesus was teaching all of those individuals and he was helping them tremendously.
Speaker E:And they sat there for a long time.
Speaker E:However, he saw within himself that they also needed, they needed substance.
Speaker E:So that's where the, you know, the feeding of 5,000 came.
Speaker E:But though it was a, you know, there was a spiritual miracle in the food, they didn't, the eating wasn't a miracle.
Speaker E:They actually ate food.
Speaker E:So again, you know, hope you see what I'm trying to get at with that example.
Speaker E:So when it comes to the physical needs of people, those are real.
Speaker E:Those are real and they need to be satisfied.
Speaker E:And sure, the way to do that is through the, the God empowered and ordained entities that do those things.
Speaker B:So in your opinion, I mean, I happen to agree with you, but in your opinion, how do we handle situations when people shoot these ideas down?
Speaker B:Let's just say people are not of a faith based background, which is fine, no judgment, right?
Speaker B:I mean, if faith is not important to you, okay, cool.
Speaker B:But how do we bring them into the fold?
Speaker B:How do we unite all these different folks who believe in different things to get behind common priorities?
Speaker E:That's a great question.
Speaker E:And the power of that question is for all sides.
Speaker E:Because sometimes in our interactions on either side, we could down the other person.
Speaker E:So here's a couple of ways.
Speaker E:Number one, we need to not forget our past.
Speaker E:No one was born a believer.
Speaker E:No, I mean, we had to.
Speaker E:For those of us who do believe and truly believe, we had to be coming to that through our learning.
Speaker E:So we had some other ideas before.
Speaker E:That exactly is a journey.
Speaker C:Dr.
Speaker C:Sessions set the structural groundwork, but Dr. Julie Elledge showed us how that looks on the ground through peer coaching.
Speaker C:She introduced us to veterans talking to veterans, a model showing that sometimes the best support doesn't come from a textbook.
Speaker C:It comes from someone who has walked in your boots.
Speaker J:A lot of times people blow up because they don't feel good.
Speaker J:And so our trauma informed coaching is not to treat them.
Speaker J:Oh, you're broken.
Speaker J:Oh, you, you saw war.
Speaker J:Oh, no, actually that makes people stronger, not weaker.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker J:Having experienced something like that, but to be able to regulate, to recognize, oh, that's trauma.
Speaker J:What it means is you change your approach so that person can bent you can improve the interaction and you can access their motivation, their resiliency in that circumstances.
Speaker B:So is your vision that every employer in Wyoming and beyond would have a veteran who's employed there trained as a coach, that if other veteran employees are struggling at work, whether that struggle is because they just had a fight with their spouse or whether that struggle is because their finances are in a tough spot.
Speaker B:Is that your vision?
Speaker J:Yes, actually we.
Speaker J:And we're expanded.
Speaker J:We've expanded beyond the borders of Wyoming, but we're born in Wyoming, so a lot happens in Wyoming.
Speaker J:But by training employees, they can have a.
Speaker J:We can get people into their pocket of performance faster.
Speaker J:And so our level one training that is behind the veterans talking to veterans and the Department of Corrections program number one begins with trauma informed suicide prevention.
Speaker J:Thank you very much.
Speaker J:Prosper for being part of our program.
Speaker B:Happy to do that.
Speaker J:And once we have those three skill sets down, so some in companies, they may just stop.
Speaker J:This is a new program we're launching where they can just train that trifecta right there.
Speaker J:We call them the gateway trifecta classes.
Speaker J:So they can.
Speaker J:Because if they're, you know, answering the phones, for example, it can be hard.
Speaker J:You know, you have to pick up the phone and answer and deal with a lot of people who are ill or don't feel good or who are in pain.
Speaker J:So how can you make that the best experience for the person on the other side and for yourself so that you don't get caught up in the stress of hearing a lot of stories.
Speaker J:Secondary trauma.
Speaker J:But then we have courses and our coaches have all of this training, financial intelligence, the relationship to money, but also financial coaching, not advising.
Speaker J:We have coaching and chronic illness coaching and healthy lifestyle.
Speaker J:We have coaching, group coaching, team coaching, and also workplace coaching.
Speaker J:So we teach trauma informed micro coaching, but also what's appropriate in the workplace to keep your workforce at peak performance motivated.
Speaker B:That's right.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:If this is all about motivation and performance, I think many supervisors or business owners would love to have that coaching in house.
Speaker B:Honestly, not just for the veterans, but for others, right?
Speaker J:Yes.
Speaker J:Well, that's what happened with the Department of Corrections Veterans talking to veterans started in the Department of Corrections and then it was very so successful that they then expanded it into all of the different properties and it's reclaim your voice specific to the Department of Corrections.
Speaker B:So the leadership found such benefit about how veteran performance and motivation was increasing that they said, wait a minute, this could be applied to all of our employees.
Speaker J:Yes.
Speaker J:And it was as successful and loved as much by the staff as it was the residents as well.
Speaker B:Got it.
Speaker B:So one other question here.
Speaker B:You're not just training employees, though, within organizations, you're training veterans to go out into their community, Correct?
Speaker J:Yes.
Speaker J:Yes.
Speaker J:That's our community program and some organizations.
Speaker J:What we're looking to do is do a veterans talking to veterans group at work to support them at work as well.
Speaker B:So what I love about that is there are multiple doors for someone to find a coach, but there are also multiple doors for coaches to sort of walk through in order to reach people to coach.
Speaker B:Is that right?
Speaker J:Yes.
Speaker J:And this is.
Speaker C:In the.
Speaker J:The world of coaching, you have, for example, most people are familiar with athletic coaching.
Speaker J:Okay, for athletes, sure.
Speaker J:But then you also have executives who have coach.
Speaker J:Who have coaches, political figures.
Speaker K:These.
Speaker J:The no executive CEO of a big corporation would not have a coach.
Speaker B:They all have coaches.
Speaker H:Absolutely.
Speaker B:Yes, of course they do.
Speaker J:It is also the trending in hr.
Speaker J:It's the chain of being embedded in a group, in a team, because coaching focuses on motivation, performance, goal achievement, resiliency.
Speaker J:That's right.
Speaker J:And so those skills are needed in all those different areas.
Speaker J:There's marriage coaching, there is family coaching, parenting, things like that.
Speaker C:So we have state strategy, grassroots lived experience, and specialized peer networks.
Speaker C:But what happens on the physical front lines when someone is reaching a breaking point?
Speaker C:We turn to James Whipps, Norona County Coroner.
Speaker C:It might sound unusual to talk to a coroner about prevention, but James brought a vital perspective, using the data and reality of death investigation to fuel early community intervention before crisis reaches his office.
Speaker K:One of the things that I've always said since really delving into this project, is that intervention is the absolute key.
Speaker K:When you look at these suicides, a lot of things that will go into making it up, but it's one brief moment in time where the blinders are on, everything goes dark and you're in that tunnel, and suicide is the only option.
Speaker K:If intervention can take place to get you past that one moment, then that life has been saved.
Speaker K:As far as what can we do?
Speaker K:Because suicides, at least from my research and my perspective on the whole thing, is very diverse.
Speaker K:It's very unique.
Speaker K:It's very hard.
Speaker K:Pinpoint any one cause like you would for any other problem and go after it.
Speaker K:Like I said, any one group, any one organization, they can't do it alone.
Speaker K:You're not going to be able to affect it.
Speaker K:What it takes is the entire community having an education and understanding what that dark place looks like and the things that make it up and being comfortable enough to make that intervention before they get to that point.
Speaker K:Especially in the youth bullying and all the crazy social media stuff that goes on now with our youth and all these factors and we have to be able to attack all of them.
Speaker B:I hear you saying a few things.
Speaker B:Coroner One thing I hear you saying is we need to raise awareness and we need everybody to understand what those.
Speaker F:Signs and symptoms look like.
Speaker B:Like, the second thing I hear you saying is that then people really need to lean forward and be part of that solution to do whatever training we give them in order to intervene.
Speaker B:I also hear you saying that one size doesn't fit all.
Speaker B:Or maybe another way to say that is there are multiple solutions that can be implemented.
Speaker B:It's not just one solution that's going to solve everything.
Speaker B:So let me ask this.
Speaker B:What do people in the trona need to hear to realize this is not just the way things are or things don't have to stay this way?
Speaker B:How do we help people understand that this is changeable, especially if their expectation is just more of the same?
Speaker B:More suicide or high suicide.
Speaker K:Awareness being probably that key word.
Speaker K:People have to recognize that there's a problem.
Speaker K:I. I talked to several people and they're literally shocked when I tell them the the numbers of where we're at.
Speaker B:Let's state those numbers clearly.
Speaker B:Coroner what where are we with the numbers and how does that compare to other localities in Wyoming?
Speaker K:Right now for this year, we're sitting on 22 suicides by percentage of population.
Speaker K:That's extremely high in Wyoming.
Speaker K:But I don't think it's probably the highest when it comes to that.
Speaker K:Vitals and statistics.
Speaker K:When they report this, there's always an asterisk near some of these because you may have a community of 3,000 people.
Speaker K:One suicide may make them one of the higher percentage by population that there is.
Speaker B:I see.
Speaker K:Right.
Speaker D:I see.
Speaker K:When it comes to suicide by total number, I'm right up near the top because I do have one of the higher populations in the state.
Speaker K:But Wyoming as a whole has always been in the top one, two or three in the nation.
Speaker K:And people won't believe me when I say this, but when you look at percentage of population, we're one of the top in the world.
Speaker K:So there is a specific problem.
Speaker K:Now, research has been done across the board on everything from wind to altitude to the world, to name it.
Speaker K:And because every case is unique and it's so diverse, you can't pinpoint any one thing.
Speaker K:And a lot of times when you can't pinpoint the root cause, you can't come up with a solution.
Speaker B:That's right.
Speaker B:And let's be honest, we can't change the wind, we can't change the altitude, we're not going to change the ruralness, because that's part of what makes Wyoming amazing.
Speaker B:The communities that are either farmers or ranchers or miners, there are such rich endowments in Wyoming of natural resources that drive many of the industries and many of the lifestyles, philosophies, cultural elements.
Speaker B:So what part of this equation is changing?
Speaker B:What part can we mitigate?
Speaker K:Again, it's going to be awareness and it's going to be prevention and intervention.
Speaker K:For example, when you look at our numbers, it equates to, in a bigger sense, if you had an airline going down every single day and killing everybody.
Speaker E:On board,.
Speaker K:Everybody would know about that and be jumping to and going, what's going on here?
Speaker K:Treating it, an epidemic, a pandemic, something bad that they're going to go after and try and fix.
Speaker K:People need to know what the problem is, recognize that there is a problem, and then, like I said, be educated and be willing to step in and do something about it.
Speaker C:Taking those early warning signs into practical care brings us to our final guest, clinician and author Brittany Bennett.
Speaker C:Brittany broke down how to recognize when life transitions or emotional strain are tipping past normal discomfort, offering clear guidance on how to seek help outside of the immediate family circles.
Speaker A:But one of the biggest things I love to highlight is that one of the symptoms of depression is guilt.
Speaker A:How many people experience feeling guilty for something?
Speaker A:I feel like it's ever present.
Speaker A:And I think that if we more so focus and normalize on things that we feel every day, people could connect with that a little bit more.
Speaker A:And if they realize how often we might be experiencing symptoms or traits of depression, changes in the sleep, the appetite, not wanting to, to get out of bed, or not wanting to have to do the things that we have to do around the house.
Speaker A:But sometimes we just do because we have to like show up to work or take care of the kids.
Speaker A:I think that people do not recognize when they are depressed because they're not aware of what the Symptoms really look like.
Speaker B:I love how you say that.
Speaker B:Rather than having people focus on symptoms or diagnoses, focus on quality of life.
Speaker B:If you find yourself not wanting to get out of bed or not wanting to eat the things you typically like to eat, that's important.
Speaker B:Don't ignore that.
Speaker B:And that means something.
Speaker B:It means perhaps go get some help or talk with a professional about getting help.
Speaker A:Absolutely, 100%.
Speaker A:That is the message I'm often trying to deliver.
Speaker B:I love it.
Speaker B:You've also said in our pre production preparation we talked a little bit about family members.
Speaker B:Can you talk about how you work with family members to help them be a part of someone else's healing or someone else's journey toward a more satisfying, happy life?
Speaker A:I truly try to encourage family members who come into therapy who want to learn more about what their loved one may experiencing if they are having symptoms of depression or any mental health condition.
Speaker A:But depression is really the, you know, it's a leading cause of disability worldwide.
Speaker A:So it truly deserves some attention to be spoken about.
Speaker A:And what I have found and what I have seen is when someone comes into therapy for their own depression, it is not common for them to want family to be involved.
Speaker A:And that kind of goes back to that earlier nod of sometimes family is not the most supportive.
Speaker A:And there's a different set of factors for that.
Speaker A:But let's just say it's because the family member doesn't understand it.
Speaker A:They don't understand why somebody's depressed or maybe they, they think their life isn't that bad or they're successful.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Or how could they be depressed when they've got a, B and C?
Speaker A:And unfortunately, family doesn't always understand or see or have the ability to interact with the one who has depression in a supportive way.
Speaker A:So what do I mean by that?
Speaker A:To kind of break it down.
Speaker A:What is a support?
Speaker A:How is a support defined?
Speaker A:And if a family member is experiencing depression, it is up to them to decide if they want to share what they are experiencing.
Speaker A:So for family members, I think it's very important if you know that someone does have depression, let's say, if they're not willing to engage with you to talk about what their depression looks like and what would be helpful and what's not helpful, go to receive some assistance and support yourself with learning about what does depression look like.
Speaker A:What can someone experience with depression?
Speaker A:What can be helpful?
Speaker A:How can I best put into practice trying to communicate and understand and show up and be a support to my loved one who is experiencing depression?
Speaker B:That's so important what you're saying there, Brittany.
Speaker B:What you're saying is that the more people educate themselves about these issues, not only does it help them to address it when they catch themselves feeling those things or having those experiences, but they can also better support their loved ones.
Speaker B:We can be our own worst critic.
Speaker B:And it's one thing to feel down or sad or unmotivated.
Speaker B:It's another thing to, on top of that, start criticizing yourself for being unmotivated or for feeling sad.
Speaker B:And humans do that.
Speaker B:We naturally appraise or judge things that we feel and think and do.
Speaker B:So I love how you say that.
Speaker B:The more you learn about it, the better you can identify it.
Speaker B:I also appreciate that you're encouraging family members to understand it, because even though we love our loved ones, we can also be pretty harsh with our loved ones sometimes.
Speaker B:And that's just sort of human nature.
Speaker B:So helping those family members, or even non family members who are loved ones to get a little more educated about how depression and anxiety and other mental health problems work.
Speaker B:We still have many people in this country who don't believe depression is a real thing.
Speaker C:From Governor Gordon down to our clinicians, peer coaches, and courageous survivors.
Speaker C:The thread connecting every single conversation this year is simple.
Speaker C:Connection saves lives.
Speaker C:You don't need a medical device to save a life.
Speaker C:You just need one minute.
Speaker C:One minute to check in.
Speaker C:One minute to ask the hard question.
Speaker C:One minute to sit with somebody in the dark until the light comes back on.
Speaker C:If you or someone you know is struggling, you don't have to carry it alone.
Speaker C:Dial or text 988 to reach the suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
Speaker C:It is free, confidential and available 24 7.
Speaker C:On behalf of me, Timothy Bryan, your producer, and our entire team at TKB Podcast Studio, I want to thank you for listening, sharing and being a part of this movement.
Speaker C:And as Dr. Corso would say, take care of yourself.
Speaker C:Take care of your neighbor.
Speaker C:Be bold.
Speaker C:Ask the hard question.
Speaker C:Because if you don't, who will?
