To celebrate National Friendship Day, let’s remember how it was originated. Joyce Hall, the founder of Hallmark cards in 1930, wanted people to celebrate their friendships in the same fashion as holiday celebrations and designated August 2 as the day we observe our friends. Friendships enable...
By: James Freeman, Casa Pacifica Director of Training It’s mid-summer and even kids in extended school year are wrapping up their online classes. It’s been a different summer than any of us had planned or expected. Not since the world wars or the flu pandemic in...
July is a powerful month as National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month raises the awareness of the mental health of minorities. Multicultural communities often face unique issues when getting care for mental health. Despite advances in research and health impartiality, disparities in mental health care...
By Dr. Joshua Lepore, Senior Director of Campus Services “Recent events have again brought to light systemic racism in our law enforcement institutions, but we know it exists in other systems as well. We cannot pretend that these realities that our neighbors of color experience in...
The terms genderqueer (also known as GQ), non-binary, and genderfluid have become more mainstream recently, but what do they mean exactly? According to Psychology Today, “a GQ or nonbinary person is someone who feels that their felt gender doesn’t fit with social constructed norms for...
By Laura Niedringhaus, Casa Pacifica Clinical Outreach Manager & James Freeman, MA, CYC-P, Casa Pacifica Director of Training Mental health is such a vital component of overall wellness but is often overlooked as a negligible determinant of our health. More than 42 million Americans experience a mental...
Staff spotlight on Clinical Program Manager Elizabeth Zacher Burke, LCSW In her short time with Casa Pacifica, Ventura County native Elizabeth “Beth” Burke has used her experience working with LGBTQ+ youth in New York to strengthen our SOGIE (Sexual Orientation Gender Identity Expression) support on campus....
By Elizabeth Burke, LCSW Camino a Casa Clinical Program Manager While mental health challenges can occur at any age and in any population, LGBTQ+ youth are at greater risk of suffering from depression, anxiety, substance abuse, and even suicidality. A 2018 study published in Pediatrics, “Sexual Orientation...
The impact of COVID-19 on our daily routines and habits has been life changing. It’s led us into different ways of living, including how much time we spend together with some and how much time we spend apart from others. It’s especially impacted our time...
An effective (and adorable) therapeutic approach Dogs are often used in hospitals, mental health institutes, and rehabilitation centers where their presence diminishes feelings of fear, distrust, rage, and aggression and helps enrich interpersonal relationships. During a visit from therapy dogs, patients break from their monotony and...
