Tag archives: mental health

Prince Harry and his actress wife Meghan Markle are marking Mental Health Awareness month.  The Riven Rock twosome visited with a local youth group for an hour in ‘candid conversion’ with teenagers aged 14 to 18 from AHA! Santa Barbara about how mental well-being is affected by societal pressures and social media in the digital […]

May has long been recognized as National Mental Health Awareness Month, yet never before has the issue of mental health commanded the national conversation as urgently as it does today. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has made mental health his top priority, declaring it “the defining public health crisis of our time,” much like when Dr. […]

Local artists are the focus of “Mixed Up,” the new exhibit at the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art. The annual Tri-County Juried Exhibition was curated this year by Rae Dunn, popular Bay Area-based ceramic artist, designer, author, and illustrator most recognized for her line of household wares, who will also display a small exhibition of […]

You might need your own cloning technology, or at least a fast car, to make it to the two most intriguing author events this week, as they share a Saturday afternoon time slot on December 3. Montecito artist and general contractor William “Bill” Dalziel will read from his second children’s book, Charlie’s Dream, a sequel […]

With the holiday season on the way, stresses can run high and food can be both plentiful and comforting – often leading to emotional eating as a response. Emotional eating can induce a lot of shame and become a chronic experience if it goes unaddressed. While nearly everyone has experienced emotional eating at one point, […]

Across Santa Barbara County, as is true around the country, more children and adolescents are experiencing challenges to emotional well-being, including documented increases in anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation. Not surprisingly, the COVID pandemic increased the urgency to address our youth mental health crisis.  Fortunately, Family Service Agency (FSA) of Santa Barbara County, whose organizational […]

Over in the sunny cove of Santa Barbara City College, a small health revolution is brewing. At the helm is Student Program Advisor Becky Bean, ASW.  With a background in the nonprofit sector and social work, Bean was excited to collaborate with the Student Health Services team at SBCC and spearhead their new wellness program: […]

Every Brilliant Thing starts off as the story of a seven-year-old boy whose mother has been hospitalized with suicidal depression. In an effort to lift her spirits, he begins creating a list of the joys of life from his perspective, from ice cream, water fights, and badgers, to, as time goes by, Christopher Walken’s voice, […]

Coming up on Saturday, July 23 is Mental Wellness Center’s 3rd Annual Alma Rosa Winery Peace of Mind: 10,000 Steps in the Right Direction Walk. The live walk will take place at the scenic 628-acre estate of the Alma Rosa Winery and participants will have the opportunity to walk through the winery’s luscious pinot noir […]

If health is wealth, why isn’t everyone rushing to work out? Or making time every day to meditate? Addi Zerrenner, Personal Trainer at Physical Focus and Olympic qualifier, addresses common barriers to getting healthy and talks through techniques you can use to boost your physical and mental wealth.  Q. When it comes to getting fit, […]

The Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse (CADA) gave its 11th Annual Gratitude Luncheon, this time at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort. We were outside in the Rotunda under a tent. The occasion was to shed light on the Mentor Program, where an adult volunteers to mentor a young person, usually once a week, […]

Editor’s Note: Without our health, what are we? Through the pandemic, we have been challenged in countless profound ways. Many of us have faced the loss of loved ones, careers, or even just lifestyle. As discussed by Rebecca Capps below, mental health issues and chronic illnesses are on the rise in the US, and recent […]

The rampant increase in social media influencers on health and fitness since the pandemic added to the plethora of data on exercise, diets, supplements, herbs, CBD, teas, juicing, protein drinks, meditation, breathwork, and mental health. Suddenly everyone is an expert on getting outside, adding Vitamin C, Vitamin D, and zinc to our diets, and how […]

“What a difference a day makes, 24 little hours,” Dinah Washington sang in 1959. “What a difference a day made, and the difference is you.”  Washington, of course, was singing about romantic love. But for Santa Barbara’s Community Counseling and Education Center (CCEC), one day can make a huge difference in others’ lives too.  One […]

It’s just a coincidence that World Mental Health Day falls right in the middle of the circulation for this week’s edition of the Montecito Journal. The annual campaign was created by the World Health Organization with a stated objective of raising awareness of mental health issues and mobilizing efforts in support of mental health and […]

It was all Greek to many when Kostis Protopapas, general director of Opera Santa Barbara, celebrated his half-century with a delightful evening of music and song at the University Club. Kostis, who was born in Athens and moved to the U.S. in 1993 on an Onassis scholarship to study piano at The Boston Conservatory and […]

The hustle-bustle of normal life has given way to a slower pace. My appointment book is empty. Social interaction is masked and brief. Even reliable distractions have lost their luster. With so much time for introspection, unresolved issues and negative thoughts are adding to the stress load. Instead of soldiering on, I’m choosing to use […]

When COVID-19 first closed down in-person meetings, everyone hurried to figure out online opportunities. But New Beginnings Counseling Center (NBCC) had a leg up, having already nearly completed a partial pivot to Zoom before the pandemic opened the floodgates toward the platform.  It turns out the nonprofit had recognized a need to find a way […]

Founded in 1899, the Family Service Agency (FSA) has been a continual source of support in the community for over a century. Over the years they have helped individuals and families with counseling, mental health programs, and more concrete support of basic needs like access to transportation and schools. Of course the pandemic has brought […]

Homelessness, substance abuse, and mental illness have long been identified and discussed as issues affecting the local community, along with the stigmas that still surround them. While an individual can be affected by one of these issues, often times a combination, or even all of these factors, contribute to an individual’s condition. Sanctuary Centers seeks […]