CHANGING THE CULTURE OF MENTAL HEALTH

In 2013 I began working with the Obama Administration to address the mental health needs of Service members, Veterans and their families through First Lady Michelle Obama and Second Lady Dr. Jill Biden’s Joining Forces initiative. Separately, I brought together a small working group of trusted experts from the mental health, education and corporate sectors to create a national public health campaign about mental health – with a key focus on military families. The result of these two lines of effort led to the creation of The Campaign to Change Direction. 

The goal of the Campaign to Change Direction was bold - to change the culture of mental health so that all of those in need receive the care and support they deserve. The Campaign began with a few simple concepts to encourage everyone to pay attention to their emotional wellbeing – and it reminded us that our emotional wellbeing is just as important as our physical wellbeing.  Change Direction created tools including the Five Signs of Emotional Suffering and the Healthy Habits of Emotional Wellbeing – to ensure that  we  have a common language to identify when someone is suffering, and that we know the basic actions we can all take to stay healthy emotionally.