Oak Ridge Today

Mental illness & capital punishment to be discussed Tuesday

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Sarah Graham McGee

Sarah Graham McGee

 

Mental illness and capital punishment will be discussed during a lunch in Oak Ridge on Tuesday.

The speaker will be Sarah Graham McGee, statewide coordinator for the Tennessee Alliance for the Severe Mental Illness Exclusion, or TASMIE, a press release said. TASMIE is a coalition of mental health advocates and other organizations that are educating Tennesseans about their concerns with sentencing those who have severe mental illness to death, the press release said.

The program is for Lunch with the League on Tuesday, February 5. The meeting is scheduled from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday in the Social Hall of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church, which is located at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike. [Read more…]

Crisis intervention training helps save life in Rocky Top

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Twenty law enforcement personnel graduated from Crisis Intervention Team, or CIT, training on March 10, 2017. The graduates represented Anderson County Sheriff’s Department, Oak Ridge Police Department, Rocky Top Police Department, Anderson County Corrections Office, and Blount Memorial Security. (Submitted photo)

Twenty law enforcement personnel graduated from Crisis Intervention Team, or CIT, training on March 10, 2017. The graduates represented Anderson County Sheriff’s Department, Oak Ridge Police Department, Rocky Top Police Department, Anderson County Corrections Office, and Blount Memorial Security. (Submitted photo)

 

Twenty law enforcement personnel graduated from Crisis Intervention Team, or CIT, training on March 10. The graduates represented Anderson County Sheriff’s Department, Oak Ridge Police Department, Rocky Top Police Department, Anderson County Corrections Office, and Blount Memorial Security.

CIT is an innovative first-responder model of police-based crisis intervention with community, health care, and advocacy partnerships. CIT provides 40 hours of specialized training for problem solving and de-escalating crisis situations with individuals who have a mental illness. Studies show it also improves the safety of patrol officers, consumers, family members, and citizens within the community, a press release said.

“Thanks to the partnership between the Oak Ridge City Police Department, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department, Ridgeview Behavioral Health, NAMI Oak Ridge, the Mental Health Association of East Tennessee, and other community health advocates, our community has better equipped itself with first responders who have an effective set of communication and problem solving skills,” Oak Ridge Police Department Chief James Akagi said in his opening remarks.

So far, the East Tennessee Crisis Intervention Team has trained more than 180 law enforcement personnel, the press release said. [Read more…]

Grace Lutheran hosts candle lighting service on May 7

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May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and in observance, Grace Lutheran Church will host a candle lighting service in support of those challenged by mental illness, substance use disorders, and other brain disorders. The service will be held on Saturday, May 7, at 5 p.m. in the church sanctuary, which is at 131 West Gettysburg Avenue in Oak Ridge.

This is a free community event, and everyone is invited to attend. A special invitation is extended to family members, caregivers, community support organizations, and the healing professions.

According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), more than 60 million American adults experience mental illness in a given year. About 13.6 million of those live with a serious mental illness such as schizophrenia, major depression or bipolar disorder. [Read more…]

Learn how music therapy can help treat mental illness, health on Oct. 17

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Erica Buchhammer Music Therapy

Erica Buchhammer, music therapist (Submitted photo)

“Music Therapy and Mental Health” is the topic for the Mental Health Ministry program to be held at 10:30 a.m., Saturday, October 17, at Grace Lutheran Church.

The presenter, certified music therapist Erica Buchhammer, will discuss and demonstrate with numerous musical instruments how music may be used in the treatment of individuals challenged by mental illness or other health issues.

In her synopsis about the presentation, Buchhammer describes music therapy as “a psychotherapeutic method that uses musical interaction as a means of communication and expression, with the goal of developing relationships and addressing issues where words alone may not suffice.”

A part of the presentation will be interactive, demonstrating the various categories of music activities used in the therapy from listening and responding to playing and composing to movement, recreation and relaxation, or combined with other expressive arts. [Read more…]

Pancakes with Santa fundraiser for CONTACT Care Line on Saturday

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Santa

CONTACT Care Line is hosting a Pancakes with Santa fundraising event this Saturday, December 6, from 8 to 10 a.m. at the First United Methodist Church at 1350 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

Santa Claus and Mrs. Santa will be there to greet children of all ages, and parents can take photos of their children with Santa, a press release said. Youth choirs will entertain the crowd with carols, and there will be plenty of merry elves serving pancakes with butter and syrup, bacon, fruit juices, hot chocolate, milk, and coffee too.

CONTACT is in its fifth decade serving people in need throughout East Tennessee, the press release said. Trained volunteers field nearly 19,000 critical support calls every year. Anderson County, where CONTACT is headquartered, has one of the lowest suicide rates in the state of Tennessee. However, suicide is on the rise in Tennessee and across the United States. [Read more…]

Grace Lutheran has candle lighting service for those with mental health issues

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Grace Lutheran Church of Oak Ridge will host a candle lighting service in support of those challenged by mental illness, substance use disorders, and other brain disorders at 5 p.m. Sunday. Everyone is welcome, and a special invitation is extended to family members, members of all area churches, community organizations, and the healing professions from neighboring counties.

One in four adults experiences a mental health problem in any given year, and 50 percent will experience this problem at some time during their lives. One in five young people aged 13 to 18 also experience mental illness. These numbers continue to grow.

“The church is in a unique position to provide a community of support for those who are in pain,” Pastor Steve Damos said. “We can provide solace and faith, and be compassionate advocates for those seeking recovery and wholeness.” [Read more…]

CONTACT Care Line celebrates 40 years with concert, workshops, new director

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CONTACT Care Line of East Tennessee is marking 40 years of service to neighbors in crisis with a fundraising concert, a new series of listening workshops, a new executive director, and a new look.

The Oak Ridge-based nonprofit fields some 10,000 telephone calls annually from people who are lonely, facing a crisis, and at times contemplating suicide. It is staffed almost entirely by volunteers, including a contingent of University of Tennessee psychology students whose time listening to callers provides valuable experience. [Read more…]