Category: One of these days I’m going to get organized!

On June 12th this year I have been invited to do my first keynote at the OCEACT Conference in Bend Oregon. This is a conference for providers who work on ACT teams throughout the state of Oregon. I feel it is a good fit because early in my career I used to work on a […]

The time of this training is officially being changed to accomodate people from different time zones. We currently have six people registered and approved at the new time and there is still space for you to join. Learn a system of care that teaches participants how to work with people who experience special messages. Special messages […]

I recently found myself explaining to a relative why the involuntary psychiatric treatment via California Care Courts being suggested on the March ballot under Proposition 1 is not a good idea. I suggested to my relative that there are many other innovative approaches to address the problem of homelessness that are being ignored. I mentioned having training for mental health […]

Completing eight-hours of the Journey Through Madness Workshop in the month of November was a great learning experience. It was a humble but auspicious beginning for what I hope to be a fruitful effort to train people how to feel comfortable going down the rabbit hole with someone who has extraordinary experiences and extreme beliefs. […]

How To Be A Healing Presence Without Becoming Anxious, Power-Struggling, Or Referring the Mad Person To A Hospital   How It Works Starting this November in two-hour sessions on Sunday evenings, I will teach you a new model for understanding psychosis that will help you be able to relate with a person in madness in […]

Over the last fifteen years, I have dedicated significant chunks of my weekend towards writing. I wrote a memoir, I developed draft after draft of my special message material, I built a website, and I grew my writing platform. It used to feel comfortable, like all this work was a natural part of my healing […]

Okay so creating an online course these days is quite the rage these days. Every entrepreneur and their cousin are out to sell you an online course. Therapists are becoming coaches and selling courses so they don’t get trapped in the therapy mill. I must say that fifteen years ago when I started work on […]

It has been a long time since I have written a blog post. I turned my efforts away from creative essays and introspective exploration. Instead, I focused on creating a 12-16 hour Master Class entitled: Redefining “Psychosis:” A Cultural Approach to Working with Madness, A Roadmap to the Rabbit Hole. Time away from weekly writing […]

Readers may have noticed that my productivity on my blog has decreased in recent months. Over the past couple of years, the community mental health program where I have worked for seventeen and a half years has undergone change. This has been a significant source of grief for me as the community has lost six […]

In a personal story I am currently working on for publication in Mad in America, I am starting to realize the impact of the 2015 release of my award-winning memoir: Fighting for Freedom in America: Memoir of a “Schizophrenia” and Mainstream Cultural Delusions. Six year later I am still dealing with a sense of alienation that preoccupies me. I […]

I am writing to alert my community and tell them to WAKE UP. I am coming out of hibernation! I have always been grateful to my community of readers and want to thank you for supporting me. But I admit my emails have been personal amblings and links to my blogs. First, they were monthly […]

In the upcoming months I will be doing a number of training/workshops that I wanted my supporters to know about. First I will participate in a panel discussion in a panel discussion at UCSF from 10-11:30 on Wednesday, September 9th representing the hearing voices network perspective. Then, later the same day I will be utilizing some portion […]

May is Mental Health Month!! Celebrate with me online with Solano County! I am excited to report that I will be providing two online events for Solano County this month: On Friday May 8th I will tell my story for peer counselors:.Entitled: Finding Meaningful Work, this event will stream online on Solano County’s Facebook Page . Check it out […]

The Corona virus is shutting down our social institutions. Our streets are full of displaced people living in shelters or tent encampments. The Federal Government is steering services away from the poor and the elderly in ways that seem to be working. Sure, it’s affecting me, man! But I am still here, scheduled to lead […]

Practice Updates: Have you ever felt that there is no way forward that doesn’t sell out your heart and soul? I believe the clinic I have worked for over the last fifteen years is fixing to be shut down. I am facing a crossroads. I have spent years developing skills that seek to reconstruct a […]

I learned a lesson in spontaneity some twenty years ago that I try to bring with me to each workshop I do. At the time, I was heavily engaged in writing poetry. I explored socializing at poetry readings to meet other people who liked to write. In my notebooks and on the word processer I […]

Perhaps we all go through periods of time when we are asked to redefine ourselves. As the summer is underway, I find myself challenged to find new ways to commit to my work supporting people who experience psychosis. If you are receiving this email or post, you are likely familiar with my blogs and efforts […]

With Upcoming Program Closures Announced, How Confident Should I Feel? A few years ago, a co-worker said, “We could come into work tomorrow and the job might not be there for us! That’s why I always try to put family first!” My job of fifteen year was there for me before I got married and […]

I’ve never thought much about it, but maybe the fact that I attract few friends and develop mostly adversaries is a disadvantage in my life as a writer. Historically, I have used this kind of rejection and disinterest to increase my focus on the craft. At a certain point, I stopped trying to get others […]

The Hearing Voices Network training that I attended in the end of January turned out to be a time for self-reflection and personal growth. I experienced a mixture of validation and a profound sense of alienation. One of the trainers, Marty, sensed this in me and asked me to reach out after the training was […]