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Trade Secret Revealed

by Ken Potts I'm going to let you in on a professional secret. There is an effective, efficient, and inexpensive treatment for mild depression or anxiety. Feeling down in the dumps now and then, or feeling a bit uptight, is fairly normal. There are just bound to be times when... read more →

Exiting the Fast Lane

The cause of youth stress in Naperville was the focus of the recently released 2018 State of the Kids report. The report was based on the results of an October 2017 survey of seventh- and 10th-grade students in Naperville School District 203 and Indian Prairie School District 204. Seven of 10... read more →

Dying of Despair

" Hope cannot be delivered by a medical prescription. Yet we know it is essential for mental health. Hope allows us to live today, here, now, even as it orients us toward the future." Dying of Despair by Aaron Kheiraty appeared in the August 2017 issue of  First Things and does... read more →

Crisis Text Line

If you or someone you know is experiencing depression, anxiety, eating disorders, bullying, suicidal thoughts or any other painful emotion, please text REACH to 741741 to connect with a trained counselor 24 hours a day seven days a week. Help is just a text away! The crisis Text Line serves... read more →

LET’S FORGET (New Year)

by Ken Potts I don't know all the anthropological, sociological, or practical reasons for dividing days into months and months into years.  But beginning (or is it ending) each year with a holiday is a good idea. Actually, December 31, and January 1, are really not a whole lot different from... read more →

November is National Caregivers Month!

By Monica Guilhot Chartrand A caregiver is a family member or paid helper who regularly looks after a child or a sick, elderly, or disabled person.  Family caregivers refer to family of origin, extended family, domestic partners, friends, or other individuals that support another person. Family provides 80% of the... read more →

8 Keys to Building Resilient Children

Resilience or the ability to adapt well to adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats or even significant sources of stress, can help children manage tension and feelings of anxiety and uncertainty. As parents, teachers and caregivers, we all want to raise resilient kids and help to develop their strength so they can... read more →

Depression is Different Than Sadness

October is National Depression Awareness Month. One of the more common misconceptions about depression is that depressed people are simply very, very sad. Consequently, people suffering from depression are often told to “cheer up” or “try to think positively” as if that will make their symptoms disappear. The truth is... read more →

World Suicide Prevention Day – September 10

At any given time, 1 in 17 adults and 1 in 6 youth are considering suicide.  Most persons with thoughts of suicide go unrecognized—even though most all are, directly or indirectly, requesting help.  Learn how to TALK: Suicide TALK - Tell Ask Listen Keep Safe Tell people you trust your... read more →

The Stigma

SamaraCare wants the importance of mental health, access to mental health and the pursuit of mental health to be pervasive.  Brandon Marshall's open and honest dialogue goes a long way towards putting the stigma far behind us.  Click here to read Brandon's thoughts on "The Stigma"        ... read more →

Worried About Worry?

Everyone regularly experiences anxiety, from minor concerns such as getting the grocery shopping done on time to major stress such as the health or safety of a loved one. It is not surprising, then, that anxiety disorders are the most common mental health disorders in the United States. However, the... read more →

Myths About Therapy

by Ken Potts  I had a chance the other night to watch one of my all time favorite flicks ‑ "Ordinary People."   I especially appreciate the character portrayed by actor Judd Hirsch. As a psychotherapist, Hirsch is caring, empathic, encouraging, and supportive.  His character epitomizes to me what psychotherapy is supposed... read more →
Human Race

Raising Awareness

SamaraCare wants the importance of mental health, access to mental health and the pursuit of mental health to be pervasive. It’s time to talk about mental health openly and honestly, and put the stigma of mental health far behind us.  The following was written by SamaraCare board member Amanda Spear... read more →

HEALING TAKES TIME

by Reverend Dr. Ken Potts Healing takes time. And often healing emotional and spiritual wounds takes more time than healing those which involve other parts of who we are. I pulled one of my all time favorite movies - “Good Will Hunting,” out of our DVD library over the weekend.... read more →

May is Mental Health Month: What You Need to Know

SamaraCare helps people achieve their greatest potential by being compassionate and spirit-led counselors, consultants and advocates.  We know mental health is a difficult subject for some, but it doesn’t have to be! When dealing with mental health, like physical health, one needs intervention when systems are not operating correctly. Normalizing... read more →

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