by Valerie Herber, APNP, PMHNP-BC, Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner at Southwest Behavioral Services “Marijuana is harmless!”, “I won’t get addicted!”, “Everyone is doing it!” or even, “I could be doing worse!” If you’re a parent of a teenager who is using marijuana or you accidentally fell upon your child’s “stash” while cleaning or looking [read more]
By Jennifer Miller Kass, MSW, LCSW, Behavioral Health Administrative Director at Southwest Behavioral Services With all the fog that has fallen on our picturesque community lately, it can be hard to feel excited about getting out of bed or finding motivation. Gloomy and dreary winter weather has this effect on many of us. The days are [read more]
by Stephanie Gile-Contreraz,CSW & Cindy Reading, RN, BSN, ADON at Epione Pavilion When your loved one comes to need 24-hour skilled nursing care, you’re faced with difficult and stressful decisions. A move to a nursing facility presents a big change in your life, yet it’s an even bigger one in your loved one’s world. Getting [read more]
By Noelle Hebgen, RN, Director of Inpatient Behavioral Health at Southwest Behavioral Services We have all been there. Lying in bed at night, exhausted from the day’s activities yet unable to turn our mind “off” and fall sleep. If this describes you, you are not alone. According to the National Sleep Foundation, 75% of American [read more]
By Jodi Knight, MS, CCC-SLP, Speech Therapist at Southwest Health Can you repeat that? What did you say? I can’t understand what you’re saying. If you have Parkinson’s disease you have probably heard these phrases at least a hundred times. Parkinson’s disease is a progressive, neurological disease. In simpler terms, this means that there are [read more]
By Jaime Collins, Director of Marketing and Communications It’s been buzzing through social media like an angry hornet. News about recent sexual assaults and their clueless, sexist, misogynistic, violent, and criminal perpetrators is everywhere. And it’s shocking. But our goal should not be to make Facebook explode or to shock people by detailing the damages [read more]
By Jodi Knight, MS CCC-SLP, Speech Therapist at Southwest Health School’s out for summer! Are you worried about your kiddo losing his/her speech and language skills over the summer months? Have no fear; there is a new speech therapist in town! So many parents worry about skills lost over summer break and for good reason. [read more]
by Jennifer Miller Kass, MSW, LCSW at Southwest Behavioral Services We all know life can be stressful at times. But what if simple worries become too much to handle? For people with constant worry or anxiety, life can be an endless round of stress, disrupting sleep, reducing productivity, and wreaking havoc on relationships and even [read more]
By: Dana Groom, Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist at Southwest Behavioral Services As the activities director, I continually look for new and different activities and programs to incorporate into our busy days at Southwest Behavioral Services (SBS). My goal as a recreation therapist is to facilitate fun, educational, and interesting activities that not only bring joy [read more]
By Pam Brookens, Community Education Manager at Southwest Behavioral Services When faced with bad news and challenges, we’ve all received advice to “stay positive.” The greater the challenge, the more this glass-half-full wisdom can come across as pollyannaish and unrealistic. Sometimes it’s difficult to stay positive no matter how hard we try, yet learning to [read more]
