May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and after the last two years, most of us are well aware of the state of our mental health. Coloradans statewide are struggling with mental health more than ever. A 2021 Colorado Health Access Survey revealed that 38% of Coloradans over the age of 16 experienced a decline in […]
Mental Health Colorado
Posted inHealth, News, Politics and Government
A mental health hold can help Coloradans in crisis. But for many who are seriously ill, that’s where the help stops.
It was the most hopeful Sandy Sharp had felt in a long time. Her 29-year-old son, Drew, had landed a bed at Grant House, a residential treatment facility in Denver. He was on track to stay there for a year. It seemed to be a huge breakthrough for Drew, whose schizophrenia and substance use had […]
Posted inHealth, News
Colorado has half a billion dollars to fix its mental health system. But it won’t work without workers.
In the spring of 2020, the community mental health center that serves Jefferson, Gilpin and Clear Creek counties had a completely manageable number of job openings — 11 therapists, counselors and other clinicians. But as the coronavirus pandemic gripped Colorado, the vacancies started to climb, first into the teens and then the 30s and then […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: Another factor to keep in mind in Colorado’s oil and gas communities — healthy minds
She woke up in the middle of the night, terrified. Her immediate thought was that a truck had just rammed into her home, and her family was in danger. After the adrenaline had passed and the fog of sleepiness cleared, she realized it was just the oil and gas trucks again, heading down the street […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: The mental-health emergency facing Colorado’s children demands an emergency response
Children’s Hospital Colorado declared a “pediatric mental health ‘state of emergency’” last month, as the system now routinely runs out of beds for kids who’ve attempted suicide or presented with intense mental health needs. While this is a crisis, it’s the result of one that was burning long before COVID-19. The stresses and isolation of […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Rep. Amabile: Solitary confinement is tantamount to torture. Our bill would restrict it in Colorado’s jails.
This past year has been one of loneliness and isolation for many. We have been denied the company of family and friends. The things that bring us joy and help us mark the time have been taken away. Social distancing and quarantine have taken a toll on our collective mental health. However, as we’re isolated […]
Posted inColoradans, COVID, Health
On Edge: Heightened anxiety, depression are testing Colorado’s already-frayed safety nets
On Denver’s west side, an elderly man had been managing his solitude just fine until the pandemic hit, taking with it what social life he had and leaving in its place a loneliness he had not felt for years. Not far from his house, a young woman fights panic attacks after COVID-19 killed her grandfather […]
Posted inCOVID, Health, News
Mental health care in Colorado has gone virtual thanks to coronavirus. For some patients, it’s long overdue.
Deby Williamson used to take note of her clients’ body language and the vibe that filled the room when they came to see her for mental health therapy. That’s not happening now, since she meets them via computer. Williamson, a licensed clinical social worker in private practice in Colorado Springs, is one of thousands of […]
Posted inCOVID, News
Social distancing could drag on for months in Colorado. How will we stay sane?
Vincent Atchity found himself in the near-constant company of his family this week as he worked from home in his role as president and CEO of the advocacy group Mental Health Colorado. At one point, he half-jokes, he had to hide in the basement from his two kids, 7 and 9, to get things done. […]
Posted inHealth
For farmers in a mental health crisis, it’s often tough to seek help. A Colorado program aims to begin conversations.
Maggie Hanna grew up a typical rural kid: in school on weekdays; helping with the cattle on her family’s ranch southeast of Colorado Springs on weekends. Except Hanna had something else to contend with. When she was 9, her father, Kirk Hanna, died by suicide. Now, she’s working to bring more mental health resources to […]