Recognizing, Understanding, Labeling, Expressing, and Regulating

By Tre Gabriel  Flawless Intern This summer,  Team Flawless was represented at the RULER Institute for a training called, “Creating Emotionally Intelligent Schools.” This highly interactive training provided administrators, teachers, and staff for grades pre-K through 12 with an introduction to  skills to develop their own emotional skills as well as tools to implement the…

My Flawless Internship

By Georgie Blenkey, Flawless Intern As a young person in this day and age, we’re constantly being told by our peers, teachers, and parents how important internships are for our resumes. At the same time, it can be tough to find an internship that is fulfilling and enriching. This may be true, but after interning…

Tre’s Intern Experience at Flawless

By Tre Gabriel Flawless Intern Entering college at the ripe old age of 17, I had no problem admitting that I didn’t know stuff.  I didn’t know what to major in, didn’t know where my classes would be, didn’t know my way around intimidating New York City. But none of these things worried me too…

(Re)Thinking Kids: Problem-Solving Skills for Challenging Behaviors

By Tre Gabriel Flawless Intern There are more than 15 million kids with social, emotional, and behavioral challenges in North America alone. Most are misunderstood and being ineffectively disciplined. I learned this recently, when I attended a Tier 1 training for “Think:Kids in Collaborative Problem Solving,” led by Think:Kids Director & Founder, Dr. Stuart Ablon…

Dueling Diagnoses: Intertwined Conditions

  At Mental Health America’s annual conference in Washington D.C., the theme was “dueling diagnoses”— the experience of having multiple medical conditions, typically affecting all aspects of health. Many of the speakers at the conference shared what it’s like to live with a physical illness along with mental health issues. Depression and anxiety are two…

“After Rikers”…And How it Can Be Avoided

When a group of leaders comes together to talk about mental health, it is likely that the phrase “policy changes” is going to be batted around. In this country, we have so far to go before the complicated, interlaced, systemic problems related to mental health policy are solved, and many leaders in the field have…

Project L.I.F.T. is Lifting Teens in a Flawless Way

By Tre Gabriel Flawless Intern “When sparks are flying the kids are changing” – Bob Zaccheo founder of Project Lift The Flawless team recently visited Project L.I.F.T. (Life Initiatives for Teens), a Florida-based non-profit movement, dedicated to improving the lives of at-risk teens and their families through substance use treatment, mental health counseling, mentoring, and…

Creativity for Healing

By Georgie Blenkey Flawless Intern  This blog will be talking about topics that may be triggering, so take care while reading or feel free to take a break. We recently had the opportunity to attend Mental Health America’s annual conference in D.C. The topic was “Dueling Diagnoses,” so a lot of information was shared on…

Progress in Action: When Theory Becomes Personal

By Maureen Mahoney Flawless Intern In June, I attended the Mental Health America Conference with the Flawless team. It was three days filled with inspiration, hope, truth, resilience, education, and a strong sense of unity. By the end of the conference, I was already experiencing a profound connection between what I was learning and my…