If you were to compare making a change in the world to tossing a pebble into water, you would quickly see that alone, one single pebble makes a small splash with ripples that slowly fade. You would realize how difficult it is for one individual throwing pebble after pebble to ever make a big wave.…
“Perhaps it takes courage to raise children.” -John Steinbeck, East of Eden Advocates. Partners. Heroes. Brave. Fierce. Honest. Flawless. These are only some of the words that describe three courageous mothers inspiring us all with their mental health advocacy: Kristin Guest, Cinda Johnson, and Liza Long. These women are my compatriots in the stand against…
People often ask me what my dream is in my work at The Flawless Foundation and my answer is always the same: a world where the cause of mental health is celebrated and where every person living with these challenges is embraced by society. And what is also always the same is the vibrant hope…
“But isn’t everything here green?” asked Dorothy. “No more than in any other city,” replied Oz; “but when you wear green spectacles, why of course everything you see looks green to you.” — from ‘The Wizard of Oz’ by Frank L. Baum Dr. Oz has many wondering if he is the doctor he swore to…
The Hippocratic Oath (Greek ὅρκος horkos) is an oath historically taken by physicians. It is one of the most widely known of Greek medical texts. It requires a new physician to swear, upon a number of healing gods, to uphold specific ethical standards. Dear Dr. Oz, You may remember me as I previously reached out…
Star light, star bright, The first star I see tonight; I wish I may, I wish I might, Have the wish I wish tonight. Last week, I wrote a blog about the Germanwings crash called, “The sky was black, my breath was steady.” This piece was a call to action as the cause of mental…
In a time where so many of our news feeds are filled with sobering stories and disturbing media messages, it can be be easy to overlook the innovation, optimism and inspiration across the mental health landscape. A few weeks ago, I attended a NAMI-NYC dinner, hosted by Dr. Barney and Patricia Kenet, which was a…
It’s that time of year. Back to school — new beginnings, anxiety, stress and excitement all rolled into one. We have a few important lessons to think about this back to school season with our new landscape (post Newtown) of concern around the national discussion about security and safety in our schools. Recently we had…
Janine Francolini, Founder/Executive Director, the Flawless Foundation SOURCE: Reclaiming Futures Last week at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law, I attended the Criminalization of Mental Illness Symposium. National experts shared fourteen presentations in an effort to make sense of hundreds of statistics and research studies on such topics as recidivism, gun…
