Our Latest Blogs

The Wendy Way: In Memory of Wendy Champeix (1962–2016), A True Champion for Mental Health Recovery

Wendy

Laurel House, Inc., the non-profit sponsor of www.rtor.org recently lost a beloved, long-time employee, Wendy Champeix, who is honored in this post about her life as a Champion for Recovery.   The last time I saw Wendy she was conducting a walk-through of the Laurel House kitchen and café areas to make sure everything was in […]

Patty Duke: Award-winning Actor, Champion of Mental Health Recovery

Patty_Duke_1975

  Yesterday, when I first learned of Patty Duke’s death (on Twitter, of all places), the first thing that went through my mind was the theme song from her hit TV show of the mid 1960s, The Patty Duke Show. If you are over 55 and grew up in America, it’s probably etched in your […]

Four Lessons to Learn from “The Center Cannot Hold”

elyn-mental-illnes-quote

  I recently read The Center Cannot Hold by Elyn R. Saks, an autobiography about the Yale-educated law professor’s life-long struggle with schizophrenia. It would be easy to write a book review, judging the work solely on its entertainment value and well-crafted prose. Yet, the core of the book contains serious messages about mental health, mental illness […]

A Review of “The Visit”: An Open Letter to M. Night Shyamalan

the visit movie

This article contains spoilers for The Visit, The Village, The Happening and The Sixth Sense. If you don’t want the details of these films ruined for you, watch them first and meet me back here.   Dear Mr. Shyamalan, I want to discuss your latest work, The Visit with you. I went to see this […]

‘Love & Mercy’ and Recovery: Beach Boy Brian Wilson’s Comeback from Mental Illness

brian-wilson-2015

  Rarely does a movie get beneath my skin the way that the Brian Wilson biopic Love & Mercy did. As a child growing up in the 60s I preferred the American pop sound of the Beach Boys to the anglicized rock and roll of the Beatles. So I silently cheered when Paul Dano playing […]

Panic Disorder Broke-Up My Favorite Band: Ending Anxiety Stigma

meg

  In late summer 2007, my teenager self got the devastating news that my favorite band, The White Stripes had cancelled their tour. I was not going to be able to attend their concert that was only a few weeks way in my local area. Like any teen with a music obsession, I was crushed. […]