Mental Health Awareness Charity Cause
Donation protected
campaign ended April, 5, 2015
#youarenotalone, #mental, #health, #awareness, Be Different, Be Weird, and Be Proud!
I'm trying to raise money in order to bring much needed Peer Services to help the many people who are in need of these services as well as Raise Awareness to #STOPtheStigma, and let people know they are Not Alone!
*All Donations go to a non profit to help bring services that are needed to the New River Valley. All donations are 100% tax deductable. The deadline is April 1, 2015.
"Mental illness is nothing to be ashamed of, but stigma and bias shame us all" -Bill Clinton
http://www.gofundme.com/Stigma-Awareness
Communities, where fear and stigmatization prevent individuals from seeking the appropriate treatment necessary in order to deal with a mental health illness. It could happen to anyone, anytime! 1 in 4 Americans have a mental health illness, it does not have a zip code nor does it discriminate! There are many famous people through out history who have battled a mental illness. President Abraham Lincoln’s first major depression happened in his 20s and he struggled with it for the remainder of his life, in addition to anxiety attacks. Heisman trophy winner Ricky Williams was diagnosed with social anxiety disorder. It could be your wife, daughter, someone you know, or you yourself? You would never say "it's just cancer, get over it"!
I am a person with “Lived Experience”. I can proudly say that as of January 7, 2015 I have been 9 years drug free! People had no clue how much pain I was in back then, and that the majority of my time was spent wanting and thinking about the different ways to end my life. It wasn't an easy fight, it was one of the toughest things if not the toughest thing I've ever been through that almost killed me! I can honestly say that if it wasn't for the right treatment I recieved I would not be alive today to tell my story. I now enjoy running daily, hiking, yoga, and community service volunteering. A local community Service Board in Virginia produced a video a few years ago called “Katrina's Story” and it was finally published in November 2014, to raise awareness and reduce the damaging stigma that still lingers around mental illnesses today. "Katrina's Story" is a brief 8 minute video about my life and struggles with addiction that nearly ended my life on numerous occasions, suicide attempts, and my long, hard road to recovery. The link to my video is:
https://youtu.be/XjYutBho17k
I'm at the point in my life to where I am able to open up and share my story with the world, and not be ashamed! I've never had a passion or dream that I felt so strongly about! I now advocate at local and government levels as well as on a peer to peer level. I was sponsored in January 2015 to go to Richmond, Virginia and advocate and speak to the Virginia Legislators at the General Assembly. I am the NAMI Independent Local Community Contact and Consultant for the New River Valley and surrounding areas. I also volunteer with different non-profit agencies, local food banks, the Humane Society, as well as help help people one on one as a Peer advocate and consultant to help them find the proper service/treatment.
I want people to know that there is help out there and that they are not alone, #youarenotalone. When left untreated, mental illnesses can destroy quality of life, derail academic trajectories, interfere with occupational goals, and reduce life expectancy. Not only does it affect the person dealing with it, it affects their loved ones as well. When someone is open about what dealing with mental illness is like, that helps create a climate in which everyday people who struggle can feel more comfortable to reach out for the help they need.
The Drug Policy Alliance is committed to identifying and promoting health-centered alternatives to harmful, punitive drug laws. We are working to stem the tide of low-level drug arrests, to reverse draconian sentencing practices that cultivate discrimination, and to eliminate life-long barriers faced by people with even a minor drug conviction. The United States imprisons more people than any other nation in the world. To compound the issue, most people who struggle actually delay or avoid seeking out whatever treatment options might be available. They may not tell anyone at all that they have a problem and the stigma attached to it and judgment and isolation are primary reasons.
The problem is Stigma and Denial.. Instead of isolating and putting people behind bars lets find a program that fits that persons needs to get rehabilitated and as long as all the rules are followed, they can actually contribute to society! Our tax dollars are being spent on locking these non violent criminals up, from $300-$500 per day, per inmate! Instead of placing them in programs, which have been proven to work and rehabilitate people and in the end will save a substantial amount of our tax dollars! One in three, or 35.2 percent, of people getting federal disability insurance benefits have been diagnosed with a mental disorder, according to the latest data from the Social Security Administration (SSA). Washington, D.C., the seat of the federal government, ranked in the top-ten list of states where disabled beneficiaries were diagnosed with mental problems.
People living with mental illness need help and hope: they need a community that supports them, their families and their recovery. Americans who, through successful intervention programs, can put their lives back on track. There is a huge Stigma attached to Mental Health Illnesses. The unfortunate circumstance of many mental health illnesses which are not addresses or properly identified get left untreated which can lead to dangerous behaviors, jail, and/or suicide.
By highlighting programs like Crisis Intervention Training (CIT), Jail Diversion/ Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD), and Housing First, Over Criminalized explores the possibility of ending incarceration for millions of Americans who, through successful intervention programs, can put their lives back on track. Over Criminalized focuses on the people who find themselves being trafficked through this nation’s criminal justice system with little regard for their humanity and zero prospects for actual justice. Most people leave the system worse off and with fewer options for getting needed treatment and services.
More than half of all jail and prison inmates have a recent history or symptoms of a mental health problem They are victims of unwillingness to invest in solving major social problems, and the consequent handling off of that responsibility to the police, the courts, and the prisons. They are the mentally ill, the homeless, and the drug addicted. Sometimes they are all three. Not only is all of this inhumane, it’s expensive. When our tax dollars are picking up the tab, it makes sense to put funds where they will make the biggest impact. Because mental illness devastates the lives of so many Americans.
Raising awareness and providing more mental health services such as Peer Services, will free up police involvement, as well as make more room freeing up hospital beds. I can't do this alone and I am asking for your support. Don't be ashamed of if you have a story, it will inspire others! I need help from friends, family, and anyone who is ready to help make a change, to donate and show support to this desperate, much needed cause! In hopes to making a change, a change we can make together!
I believe that if we can unite to #STOPtheStigma and count on donation to support this veryimportant cause then we can together make a difference! Every donation, big or small will inspire people everywhere to help contribute in taking this matter into our own hands, and start making the changes needed to help the people and families who are suffering from this eppidemic.
"Be the Change You Wish to See in This World" -Ghandi
Thank you so much for your support!
Sincerely,
Katrina Milburn
Link:
My video "Katrina"s Story"
https://youtu.be/XjYutBho17k
Website and Blog
http://katrinamil55.com/
and
http://katrinamilburn.blogspot.com/
#youarenotalone, #mental, #health, #awareness, Be Different, Be Weird, and Be Proud!
I'm trying to raise money in order to bring much needed Peer Services to help the many people who are in need of these services as well as Raise Awareness to #STOPtheStigma, and let people know they are Not Alone!
*All Donations go to a non profit to help bring services that are needed to the New River Valley. All donations are 100% tax deductable. The deadline is April 1, 2015.
"Mental illness is nothing to be ashamed of, but stigma and bias shame us all" -Bill Clinton
http://www.gofundme.com/Stigma-Awareness
Communities, where fear and stigmatization prevent individuals from seeking the appropriate treatment necessary in order to deal with a mental health illness. It could happen to anyone, anytime! 1 in 4 Americans have a mental health illness, it does not have a zip code nor does it discriminate! There are many famous people through out history who have battled a mental illness. President Abraham Lincoln’s first major depression happened in his 20s and he struggled with it for the remainder of his life, in addition to anxiety attacks. Heisman trophy winner Ricky Williams was diagnosed with social anxiety disorder. It could be your wife, daughter, someone you know, or you yourself? You would never say "it's just cancer, get over it"!
I am a person with “Lived Experience”. I can proudly say that as of January 7, 2015 I have been 9 years drug free! People had no clue how much pain I was in back then, and that the majority of my time was spent wanting and thinking about the different ways to end my life. It wasn't an easy fight, it was one of the toughest things if not the toughest thing I've ever been through that almost killed me! I can honestly say that if it wasn't for the right treatment I recieved I would not be alive today to tell my story. I now enjoy running daily, hiking, yoga, and community service volunteering. A local community Service Board in Virginia produced a video a few years ago called “Katrina's Story” and it was finally published in November 2014, to raise awareness and reduce the damaging stigma that still lingers around mental illnesses today. "Katrina's Story" is a brief 8 minute video about my life and struggles with addiction that nearly ended my life on numerous occasions, suicide attempts, and my long, hard road to recovery. The link to my video is:
https://youtu.be/XjYutBho17k
I'm at the point in my life to where I am able to open up and share my story with the world, and not be ashamed! I've never had a passion or dream that I felt so strongly about! I now advocate at local and government levels as well as on a peer to peer level. I was sponsored in January 2015 to go to Richmond, Virginia and advocate and speak to the Virginia Legislators at the General Assembly. I am the NAMI Independent Local Community Contact and Consultant for the New River Valley and surrounding areas. I also volunteer with different non-profit agencies, local food banks, the Humane Society, as well as help help people one on one as a Peer advocate and consultant to help them find the proper service/treatment.
I want people to know that there is help out there and that they are not alone, #youarenotalone. When left untreated, mental illnesses can destroy quality of life, derail academic trajectories, interfere with occupational goals, and reduce life expectancy. Not only does it affect the person dealing with it, it affects their loved ones as well. When someone is open about what dealing with mental illness is like, that helps create a climate in which everyday people who struggle can feel more comfortable to reach out for the help they need.
The Drug Policy Alliance is committed to identifying and promoting health-centered alternatives to harmful, punitive drug laws. We are working to stem the tide of low-level drug arrests, to reverse draconian sentencing practices that cultivate discrimination, and to eliminate life-long barriers faced by people with even a minor drug conviction. The United States imprisons more people than any other nation in the world. To compound the issue, most people who struggle actually delay or avoid seeking out whatever treatment options might be available. They may not tell anyone at all that they have a problem and the stigma attached to it and judgment and isolation are primary reasons.
The problem is Stigma and Denial.. Instead of isolating and putting people behind bars lets find a program that fits that persons needs to get rehabilitated and as long as all the rules are followed, they can actually contribute to society! Our tax dollars are being spent on locking these non violent criminals up, from $300-$500 per day, per inmate! Instead of placing them in programs, which have been proven to work and rehabilitate people and in the end will save a substantial amount of our tax dollars! One in three, or 35.2 percent, of people getting federal disability insurance benefits have been diagnosed with a mental disorder, according to the latest data from the Social Security Administration (SSA). Washington, D.C., the seat of the federal government, ranked in the top-ten list of states where disabled beneficiaries were diagnosed with mental problems.
People living with mental illness need help and hope: they need a community that supports them, their families and their recovery. Americans who, through successful intervention programs, can put their lives back on track. There is a huge Stigma attached to Mental Health Illnesses. The unfortunate circumstance of many mental health illnesses which are not addresses or properly identified get left untreated which can lead to dangerous behaviors, jail, and/or suicide.
By highlighting programs like Crisis Intervention Training (CIT), Jail Diversion/ Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD), and Housing First, Over Criminalized explores the possibility of ending incarceration for millions of Americans who, through successful intervention programs, can put their lives back on track. Over Criminalized focuses on the people who find themselves being trafficked through this nation’s criminal justice system with little regard for their humanity and zero prospects for actual justice. Most people leave the system worse off and with fewer options for getting needed treatment and services.
More than half of all jail and prison inmates have a recent history or symptoms of a mental health problem They are victims of unwillingness to invest in solving major social problems, and the consequent handling off of that responsibility to the police, the courts, and the prisons. They are the mentally ill, the homeless, and the drug addicted. Sometimes they are all three. Not only is all of this inhumane, it’s expensive. When our tax dollars are picking up the tab, it makes sense to put funds where they will make the biggest impact. Because mental illness devastates the lives of so many Americans.
Raising awareness and providing more mental health services such as Peer Services, will free up police involvement, as well as make more room freeing up hospital beds. I can't do this alone and I am asking for your support. Don't be ashamed of if you have a story, it will inspire others! I need help from friends, family, and anyone who is ready to help make a change, to donate and show support to this desperate, much needed cause! In hopes to making a change, a change we can make together!
I believe that if we can unite to #STOPtheStigma and count on donation to support this veryimportant cause then we can together make a difference! Every donation, big or small will inspire people everywhere to help contribute in taking this matter into our own hands, and start making the changes needed to help the people and families who are suffering from this eppidemic.
"Be the Change You Wish to See in This World" -Ghandi
Thank you so much for your support!
Sincerely,
Katrina Milburn
Link:
My video "Katrina"s Story"
https://youtu.be/XjYutBho17k
Website and Blog
http://katrinamil55.com/
and
http://katrinamilburn.blogspot.com/
Organizer
Katrina Milburn
Organizer
Blacksburg, VA