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In this episode I give a special thanks and some audience shout-outs. Then, I speak with Monica Mlinac. Monica serves as the Executive Director of Stark, Summit and Portage County programs for Ohio Guidestone. OG is one of the largest behavioral health agencies in the state.
In our talk we discuss:
The toll the pandemic is taking on mental health
The stigma of mental illness
Resources for seeking mental wellness
Monica's inspiration for working in social services
If someone you know is struggling with mental health. Here are some resources:
Transcript
7MS 102 Mental Health Conversation.mp3 - powered by Happy Scribe
Hey everybody! Aaron here, how are you doing? I hope you're doing well. Before we get to this week's episode, I have several items I want to get through, but they're important. So, thanks for hanging with me. First, I wanted to say thank you for your response to last week's episode, episode 101, The Confession. And that's what it was. It was a confession. And if you haven't listened to it, please go back and do so.
But in it, I talk about my struggles with anxiety for decades and the fact that I hid it from so many people. And it was the first time I went public with something like that. And I wasn't sure if I should, and to put it out there on across such a broad spectrum and to so many people. Was important for me, it was also scary, but the way that you responded with such compassion and such grace, I'm just grateful and I'm really humbled by it. I got your messages, your texts, your emails, your phone calls, your stories of your own struggles that you deal with that you shared with me. That's what this whole thing is about. And to connect with you in that way. And and if I added any value to your life, I can tell you the value is equal and much greater on my side, for your feedback and even just for your listenership. So thank you for that.
This week, I figured I would put a bookend to this mental health/wellness conversation and not that it ever ends, but programmatically, I'm not going to, you know, talk about every single week. That's not why we're here. But I wanted to have a conversation with someone who works professionally in that space, who are helping people, you know, back on their journey, restore their lives in a mental health capacity. And I had a colleague that works at an organization called Ohio Guidestone, and they're one of the largest behavioral health agencies in the state of Ohio. And she recommended that I talk to a woman named Monica Mlinac. Now she'll tell you her title and all that stuff during the conversation. But in this convo, we touched on several topics. I wanted to ask them organizationally what they're seeing on the ground, especially during the pandemic. We talked about stigma of mental health. We talked about resources, things you can do to get help. And we even dove in a little bit to her story about why she does what she does. And wherever you're listening to this podcast, Apple Podcast or my website or Pandora in the description area, I'm going to have a bunch of links for resources, whether it's for you or someone that you know, if you need help. That's what this thing is all about. So, and I know how much help, has helped me.
Before we get this conversation with Monica, I have a few shout outs that I have to do for our listeners. First, there's a listener out in the Pacific Northwest, out in the Seattle area. Her name is Jamie. And she reached out to me just a couple of days ago on Instagram and she shared this picture of her in a video too of her with a mask on. She's doing the responsible thing. She's got her mask, she's going shopping. And she said in the caption representing 7 minute stories, and she had taken a white mask and with black permanent marker, like wrote our logo, 7 minute stories on her mask and is walking around the grocery store, reppin in the podcast. How awesome is that? So, I had to give you a shout out, Jamie, for doing that for us, because it's such a great way to show this podcast love. And, you know, every week I want to share a part of my soul with everybody here through storytelling. And for her to do that, that's a beautiful thing. So thanks for repping the podcast, Jamie. Thanks for being such an amazing person and listener. And you inspired us, actually, because we're going to do something special where we create some masks here and print the official logo out and we're going to do a giveaway literally, where we give them away to a bunch of people and we're going to have a limited supply, but we're going to try to make it fun where we give that out so people have masks when they're going out. But that's because of Jamie. So shout out to you.
Lastly, I want to give a shout out to Maurice Benard. If you listen to an episode about a month ago, I believe, called Sonny Corinthos, that I did a story I told about Sonny Corinthos, the the fictional character on General Hospital. Well, the actor that plays him is Maurice Benard. Well, Maurice heard his story that I did and loved it and shared it with his social media crew. So we got connected that way. But he also shared last week's confession episode. And Maurice, just so you know, is a leading spokesperson. He was one of the first people that I knew of that came out and started talking about his struggles with mental health. And he's a great example and really was one of the inspirations for me to do that on this podcast. So I have to give him props for that. And also wanted to thank him for sharing our our podcast out with his his following. It was an awesome thing. And I think there's going to be some cool projects and intersections between me and Maurice here in the coming months. So stay tuned for that. But without further ado, here is my conversation with Monica Mlinac. And stay tuned next week and we'll be back to stories.All right, enjoy.
So this is Monica Miletic and I'm the Executive Director of our Stark, Summit and Portage County programs at Ohio Guidstone.
Is there an uptick, whether it's people calling that number, needing services? Are you are you seeing that really clearly?
Yes. There's a lot more families reaching out for help right now. I think, you know, there's just a lot of uncertainty and a lot of family togetherness now with people working from home or being together, you know, more than they usually are, economic struggles, housing concerns, substance use disorder, stress and anxiety. I just think that there is a lot now, especially with school starting back up again and a lot of virtual learning. Are they doing it face to face or are they going to be learning from home or mixture? I just think there's a lot of challenging times right now. And, you know, we're just grateful to be here for families to reach out for help.
You know, I know for myself, you know, I was always good at telling people that if they needed help, they should ask for it. But I wasn't always good at doing it myself. Is it still something that we have a really hard time as a society talking about and normalizing?
Yes, I do think so. I think there is still a stigma. And, you know, there's a lot of misconceptions about mental health concerns or substance use disorder concerns. And I think that it's really everyone's responsibility to educate themselves, to educate others. And really you just talk about and listen.
So like, what are some of the misconceptions that that you see and hear about about mental health?
I think people are concerned that they're going to be looked at differently if they have a diagnosis or a disorder. I think people are concerned that they're going to be thought of as weak or maybe not as capable. But I really know that that's not true at all. That really it takes a lot of strength and courage to speak your truth, reach out for help and. You connect with with others, especially during the pandemic.
I can tell you that, like in my situation, it took. I mean, I really should have been talking to a therapist for 30 years, but it took you know, everyone gets to it when they can. As far as that moment, I can say realistically that, like, since I've been talking to a therapist every week, you know, it's one of those things where it's a realistic movement forward. It's not like a cure, but I feel so much better. I feel like I have a direction. I feel like there is a goal now, as far as getting me to a place, just a better state, is that the goal when people reach out to you guys, like especially in Ohio, is the goal to create that space where people can come to and start that journey?
Yes, absolutely. And it is about everyone being ready and meeting people where they are and creating that safe space for them, where they can explore whatever concerns they have and Ohio Guidestone has a continuum of services. So, depending on what people need, whether it's counseling or case management or a myriad of services, that's what we're here to help with. And then in addition, we have workforce programs and other programs to to kind of help everyone with different needs that they have. So, it's it's really a one stop shop.
What got you into this kind of work?
It's really a lifelong work that I've been doing, I've been in the field for over twenty seven years and there's so many success stories and transformations that I've seen people have. And I think that's what's the most inspiring
Transformation is possible regardless of where you start. correct?
Recovery is possible for everyone. Absolutely.
Did you have an "aha" moment that got you into it?
When I was in kindergarten, our school counselor actually helped me on my very first day of school because I was stressed out about going to kindergarten and..
That's awesome, not that you were stressed out but that she helped you!
(laughing)Just being this little person, and didn't want to separate from my mom. And the school counselor came down and held my hand and talked to me. And, you know, I was five years old and I won't forget that day, and the feeling of safety and learning a new skill and feeling connected and being successful. And I think, you know, she didn't spend that much time that day and checked in with me sometimes. But it definitely got me on the path of of wanting to help others the way that she helped me, because that was a really important milestone.
Isn't that funny how these stories are so deeply embedded, even back into our youth?
Yeah.
Like even a seed for something that you now are talking about here, on this podcast, or in the daily work that you do, it's so beautiful for me to be able to hear that and to and to trace that story back to that moment. Right? Where someone offers those services makes you feel OK that you need help or that you're in a state she met you where you are at, right? You were five years old. You're scared and stressed out about class. And here's this person who offers this safe space for you to navigate. And now, years later, many years later, you're doing it for other folks at an organizational level. That's a pretty cool narrative thread, don't you think?
Yes, it's it's amazing.
For Ohio and especially the region that you cover. What where can people reach out for the myriad of services you offer? But even from a mental health standpoint, where should they start?
Ohio Guidestone's phone number is 1 844 622 5564 , our website www.ohioguidestone.org , or you can email us at gethelp@ohioguidestone.org
Where can people outside of Ohio, where should they start looking?
Your primary health physician is a great place to start. They can do a holistic evaluation and see, you know, just do a check in with people as well. There are local mental health boards in every community everywhere that can connect people to mental health and substance use disorder providers. There's also a national suicide prevention hotline that's 1-1800-273-TALK. And there's also a crisis text line where you can text 741741 and that's national. So, some people don't like to talk about stuff, but they feel comfortable texting. And so that's another resource. There's just tons of ways, especially now, when people aren't able to go to offices or meet people in person. Telehealth is a great strategy to use and can reach people wherever they are.
Hey, Monica, thanks for chatting with me. I really appreciate it, Aaron. Thank you. It was a pleasure.
7 minute stories is created and performed by Aaron Calafato, audio production by Ken Once you can connect with Ken at Media two on six Dotcom original artwork done by Pete Whitehead, Pete's work at Pete Whitehead, Dotcom and Leslie. I'm courageous and I coordinated the podcast. Make Sure and tune in next week for another story.
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