Helium's Mental Health Professionals

Welcome to this new group designed to help mental health professionals who write at Heilum to get to know each other and share interesting discussions (or welcome distractions).

I'm Barbara Whitlock, New Member Outreach Manager and Coordinator of Helium's Credentialed Professional Program. My inbox is always open: bwhitlock@helium.com.

We're delighted to have you in our writing community, and I'm hopeful you'll enjoy this group opportunity!

Hi Barbara,

Don't mean to be a techno-peasant,  but is this where I post my intro?  Or - do I go to the Mental Health Professionals Link? 

Thanks,

Jen

http://www.helium.com/zone/2893-mental-health-professional-writers-at-helium-com

Barbvara,

Is the above link the one I post my intro to?  Do I need to send it to each person in this group or does it go to all of them automatically?

Thanks,

Jen

Hi Everyone. . .

My name is Jenna Pope, and I am the manager of this zone.  I am a Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor and work with women in Drug Court.  I love to write and have been doing so for over ten years.  I have been published (on real paper!) a few times and also on the net.  I love Helium and the opportunities that it offers. 

In my field, there have been many budget cuts which translate to less substance abuse and mental health treatment for people who really need it.  It's sad.  Hopefully, the pendulum will begin to swing in the other direction, but these things take time. 

I am married with four grown children and four grandbabies. 

I hope to hear from all of you.  Feel free to post.  We can compare ideas and insight. 

Welcome!

Jenna Pope

Hello, My name is Christine Sandor and I am also a manager of  this group. I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and have worked in the field for two decades now. I have worked with chidren, teens and adults and specialize in trauma, behavioral concerns and child development.

I am also an Ordained Minister currently in a private Spiritual Counseling practice. I believe in taking a holistic approach to therapy. 

I have published two books: "Warming the Stone Children" is about the healing process from mother-daughter incest and my new book "This is Not Goodbye: A Holistic guide to helping grieving children" takes a personal, clinical and spiritual look at helping children deal the death, dying and grief. 

I am currently a freelance writer as well.

Please let me know if I can be of any assistance to you. I look forward to getting to know you all!

Blessings and Namaste,

Christine

Hi Christine.  Glad to meet you.  It sounds like you've had a lot of great experience.  I work with addicts, also. 

Jenna

Welcome Jenna, you're in the right spot!

I'd love to know if folks are participating in the mental health professional contest and how you're finding the questions? Seems like not many have contributed yet?

Thanks,

Barbara

Great to meet you as well!  Loved your profile! Seven pups!!! Wow..  I have three children, two teenagers and pre-teen (who thinks he's a teenager already!) .  Three cats and one pup... our dog is a shitzu-Bichon mix... (I call the breed a shitzon!) ..  So looking forward to this group and having a chance to connect with all the wonderful mental health professionals who write!  Our collective voices are so important!

Blesssings and Namaste,

Christine

Not too many are participating in the contest yet.  A few, though.  Also, it sounds like the group members create the questions for the contests.  Correct?

Jen

Hello everyone

My name is Holly Rogers. I am a registered psychologist in Australia. I have only recently finished my full registration and am currently employed in a correctional centre. My main experience is in the area of at risk management, but the role also covers individual intervention in areas such as trauma, anxiety and managing the symptoms of the common mental illnesses that occur within the correctional environment. I have been employed in my current position for over 2 years.

Regards

Holly

Hello, everyone.  My name is Deborah Bauers and I am the Mental Health Sub Channel Steward.  I've been trying to access this site, off and on, for two months, but due to a glitch, I could never post, although I was showing as a member.  It's good to finally be able to say, "hello!"

I've been on the job as stew for about two months and working hard to get to know many of you as well as do some reorganizing to the Mental Health Channel.  Let me just throw out, that I welcome input and ideas.  Please drop me a post if you would like to share an inspiration or ask for help.

I have a Doctorate in Counseling and have been in mental health practice for over 25 years. I have both agency and private practice experience.  I've also worked closely with law enforcement and forensics.

My areas of specialty include depression, eating disorders, anxiety disorders, PTSD, and family systems.  About half of my practice is made up of marriage and family and the other half, more clinical issues.

I'm also an adjunct professor for a local seminary and teaching psychology/counseling classes to undergrad and grad students. Teaching is a passion of mine and as I move toward retirement, I plan to involve myself more in education and in writing. 

I've written a marital paradigm for counseling couples based upon my own experiences in learning what works and what doesn't work in seeking a comprehensive and intentional model for helping couples and families. 

I'm excited to be a part of Helium and try to spend at least 10 to 15 hours a week writing.  I'd love to spend more, but at the present time, I wear a few too many hats. :)

I look forward to getting to know more of you.  Let's try to invite other contributing writer's to the mental health channel to come and introduce themselves.  It would be great if we could network and "pick each others brains" for resources and opportunities.

Thanks to those who started and have been editing this zone.  Keep up the good work!

Deborah

Hi Deborah,

I studied family systems in addiction counseling.  It is so fascinating!  I did a genogram and learned a lot about myself and how to help addicts trying to overcome disfunctional family roots.

I'm sure that you have read John Bradshaw's "On the Family."  I re-read it every few months.

Jenna Pope

Hi Jenna,

Yes, I've read a number of Bradshaw's books.  His "inner child" work has shaped some of what I do with clients. 

I've been giving the contest some thought; the challenge for me is that addictions is just not my forte.  I only work with it as a dual diagnosis situation.  I could write to several of the articles, but the interest isn't high.  Sorry!  I'll revisit the topics again though and think some more about it. I do want to see the contests keep going. 

I think that if titles could be a bit more widespread and not focused on one aspect so tightly that it would draw more therapists; especially until our numbers grow a bit more. 

Nice to be able to chat.

Hi,

I suggested to Barbara that the subjects not be so specific.  My idea was to have titles in different areas, i.e., child counseling, addiction, trauma therapy, etc., be interspersed within the same contest.  But I was surprised when this contest was all on addiction.

Maybe the next one will be more varied.

Nice to talk to you.  I will pick up Bradshaw's inner child book. 

Jenna

Please share your feedback on contests and suggest titles and topic areas for future contests!

I'd love to partner with more non-profit associations where mental health pros and social workers can be found. By boosting the number of mental health professionals we increase the chances of attracting relevant publishers in Marketplace who will pay you for assignments restricted to professionals.

Also, Helium's non-profit program is such a win-win for any non-profit. Helium provides free publicity and the opportunity to get donations from article earnings for writers who donate.

Also, as some of you have seen with the Teacher Connections Writing Contest (Nov 18-Dec 9) cosponsored with Teachers Without Borders, we can increase the scope and contest earnings -- as well as generate lots of excitement -- when we cosponsor contests with nonprofits.

Lots of benefits to the non-profits for no cost and plenty of benefits to Helium to attract more professionals to share their expert content.

Share your leads, suggestions and affiliations to help us connect!

Thanks,

Barbara

I'd love tips on places on the Internet or elsewhere where I can connect with an invite more mental health professionals to come to Helium.

And I'd love to encourage you to invite your professional peers too. Feel free to share my email address with anyone: bwhitlock@helium.com.

Thanks,

Barbara

Hi Barbara,

I generally don't participate in the contests because the fluctuations in ratings drive me nuts.  Having said that, though, if the topics coincided with my specialty (persons who have both a mental health issue and a developmental disability) I'd find them hard to resist.  I'd love to see more article topics in this area, maybe as pertains to law, education, civil rights, etc.  I would think they'd come up really high on a Google search as well, because there simply isn't much information out there on those topics, and parents are often desparate to find info.

Melinda

Please send me any title suggestions to bwhitlock@helium.com

Thanks!

Barbara

Hi, Barbara.

I think they're going to be hard to come by, at least any who are true experts or greatly experienced in their field. I haven't written an article yet since joining months ago, but mainly due to a lack of time and incentive. I'll keep it as a possibility for future endeavors, but I already have my hands full with well-paying work: my clinical practice, teaching, and writing for companies that pay for my educational background and professional experience.

I'm not trying to bag on Helium by any means, but I don't think they can come close to what other professional sites such as Livestrong, About.com, and the various magazines out there that employ licensed, experienced mental health practitioners offer in terms of both compensation and exposure.

If I can think of anyone, of course, I'll send them this way. But none of my colleagues or ex-classmates are working as freelance writers that I know of.

Best of luck,

Brently

New to Helium and looking to talk to like minded people. I have been practicing psychiatry for over 20 years.

Hi all, it's been a busy time around my house, but now that I'm facing the prospect of 2 toddlers in pre-school this Fall and a couple of months respite before the new baby arrives, I'm hoping to share a lot more insight!  To let you all know who I am, I currently stay home full-time.  Until about 2 years ago, I was a behavior specialist / outpatient therapist with a focus on autism and developmental delays.  I earned my MSW in Dec 2005 from the University of Pittsburgh.  Before that, I worked as a youth counselor at Girls' & Boys' Town USA on their home campus in Omaha, NE during and after the time I earned my BSW from a small college in that area.  My primary experience is with children and teens, but I also have experience with grief and loss and with addictions.  Any questions and comments are welcome and my goal is to log in here at least twice a week so you shouldn't have too long to wait for a response.  I check email daily at danagirl28@hotmail.com so if you want something faster, feel free to write there instead.

Have a great day!