Mothers On The Frontline

  Note: This interview was recorded in 2018. Transcription: [music] Welcome to the Mothers on the Frontline Podcast. Mothers on the Frontline is a nonprofit organization, founded and run by mothers of children with mental illness to promote caregiver healing and children’s mental health justice through storytelling. Our vision is a world in which mental […]

This episode of the Conversations Between Friends series was recorded June 29, 2020.

In this episode we discuss the policy frameworks and philosophical assumptions underneath current punitive systems including policing and schools. (We will continue this discussion next week and look at some promising new frameworks that are currently emerging that could move us beyond a paradigm of coercion and compliance.) Terminology: IEP - Individualized Education Plan - the document that determines the accommodations and supports for a particular student in special education. Ontology - theory of being, framework of what entities exist or how to categorize what exists.

In this episode we discuss: what it means to be an allythe difference between performative and authentic allyshiphow allyship differs from friendship and being a coalition partnerstigma jumping vs intersectional activism and advocacy Terms: Allyship - An active, consistent, and arduous practice of unlearning and re-evaluating, in which a person in a position of privilege and power seeks to operate in solidarity with a marginalized group and works to ensure equality, opportunity and inclusion for everyone. (Thank you to Sonya, Sophie, Gigi and Lilah - students in Dionne Bensonsmith's "Introduction to Feminism, Gender, and Sexuality" Class in the Fall 2019 at Scripps College - for this definition.) Intersectionality - A framework for understanding the interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender as they apply to a given individual or group, creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage. (This term was coined by Kimberlé Crenshaw

In this episode we have a conversation about defunding the police: what it means, what it doesn’t mean, and how the phrase raises different emotions in people depending on their personal experiences with the police and racism.How decades of consistent and pervasive defunding of community programming, healthcare, and education has harmed communities. We focus on the effects for children with disabilities.School Resource officers and police brutality in the schools that specifically targets black and brown children and children with disabilities.How policy runs on narratives, not statistics. We discuss and challenge narratives about “bad neighborhoods” and “bad children” that are steeped in anti-black racism, anti-indigeneity, and ableism and have fueled bad policy for decades. For more information about this topic: Defunding the police: Democracy NOW!:  “Defund the Police: Linda Sarsour & Mychal Denzel Smith on What Meaningful Change Would Look Like” USA Today “What does 'defund the police'

In this episode, the founders of Mothers on the Frontline discuss grief, racial privilege, policing, and the performativity of emotion. Families and communities are grieving right now. We are grieving the deaths of over 100,000 Americans to Covid-19, which has disproportionately affected Black and Brown communities. We are grieving ongoing and countless losses of African-American Women, Men, and non-binary folk, children to elders, to institutional racism, particularly by the very structures that should be protecting them, including the police. Many parents are grieving the loss of the veneer of safety they once felt for themselves and their black and brown children in the community and in their very homes. Many white allies see the collective grief in the Black community and the pain in the eyes of their Black friends. They want to be helpful, but often fail to recognize their own emotional privilege. We examine how the centering and privileging of white emotion can result in dysfunctional empathy, as

Kate is a mother from Iowa whose children have autism, anxiety, ADHD, sensory processing disorder and prosopagnosia. In this episode, she discusses what it was like when her son was first diagnosed, adjusting each year to new teachers, and what it is like to go through the ups and downs of parenting children who are 'differently wired'.

A mother speaks about raising a 9 year old with ADHD, Oppositional Defiant Disorder and Anxiety.

In this episode, a foster and adoptive parent shares her experience of caring for  her biological, adoptive and foster children.

In this episode, Diana shares her experience mothering a 17 year old daughter with anxiety and depression. Mentioned on this episode:NAMI: National Alliance on Mental Illness: https://www.nami.org/ Transcription[music in background] Voiceover: Welcome to the Just Ask Mom podcast where mothers share their experiences of raising children with mental illness. Just Ask Mom is a mother's on the frontline production. Today we will listen to Diana, an Iowa parent with a 17-year-old daughter with anxiety and depression. Tammy: Tell us a little bit about yourself before or outside of mothering. What are your passions? Who are you? What do you love? Diana: Well, I enjoy biking and taking long bike rides, not competitively or anything but just kind of peddling along. I enjoy yoga and take some time for that when I can, and I enjoy writing. Tammy: Wonderful. Do you like creative writing, journaling, what kind of stuff do you do? Diana: All of that. I used to write for the newspaper when I'm just column and just kind

Jill discusses caring for her son whose bipolar disorder surfaced during the teen years. She describes the lack of resources in rural Iowa, the criminalization of mental illness and how that affected her family. She explains how this journey as a mother makes you learn who you are as a person and how strong you can be. Transcription [music] Female Voice: Welcome to the Just Ask Mom podcast where mothers share their experiences of raising children with mental illness. Just Ask Mom is a Mothers On The Frontline production. Today we will listen to Jill, a mother from Iowa, share her story about raising a son with bipolar disorder. Tammy: Thank you for doing this. We really appreciate you being here. Jill: Absolutely. Tammy: Before we get into a lot of the content could you tell us a little bit about yourself before or outside of mothering, who are you? What are your passions? What are you interested in? Jill: It's a great question. Well, first of all, I think I've known since I was five years old, probably

In this episode, we listen to Miss Diva from the USA. She speaks about raising a son with schizoaffective disorder, bipolar, ADHD, PTSD, and Seizures in the African-American Community. Please be advised that this interview contains content about domestic abuse and may be upsetting for some audience members. Transcription Women’s Voice: Welcome to the "Just Ask Mom" podcast. Where mothers share their experiences of raising children with mental illnesses. Just Ask Mom is a Mothers on the Frontline production. Today we will listen to Ms. Diva from the USA. Please be advised that this interview contains some content about domestic abuse and may be upsetting for some audience members. This interview was recorded at the 2017 National Federation of Families for Children's Mental Health Conference in Orlando Florida. During this particular recording, you can hear noise in the background from another event in the hotel. Please don't let these noises distract you from Ms. Diva's story. Dionne: I'm sitting here with yo

In this episode, we listen to Melissa, a mother from rural Iowa, share her story about raising a son with severe depression. Please be advised that this interview discusses suicide and may be triggering for some of our audience. (See below for transcription.) Suicide Resources: The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255 The Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals. Trans Lifeline - Trans Lifeline is a national trans-led organization dedicated to improving the quality of trans lives by responding to the critical needs of our community with direct service, material support, advocacy, and education. Our vision is to fight the epidemic of trans suicide and improve overall life-outcomes of trans people by facilitating justice-oriented, collective community aid. The Trevor Project - The leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevent

In this episode, we  hear from John “Tank” Miller of Delaware. A Family Advocate and father of a 19 year old with mental health challenges, John discusses his mental health advocacy through social media and how he uses “Tank Mentality” to provide those with mental illness encouragement every day. Become part of the Tank Mentality Movement: Follow on Twitter @tankmentality  Follow on Facebook: tankmentality/ Transcription Female Voice: Welcome to Ask the Advocate. Where mental health advocates share their journey to advocacy, and what it has meant for their lives. Ask the Advocate is a Mothers On The Front Line production. Today, we will hear from John 'Tank' Miller of Delaware. A family advocate and father of a 19-year-old son with mental health challenges. John discusses his mental health advocacy through social media, and how he uses Tank mentality to provide those with mental illness encouragement every day. This interview was recorded at the 2017 National Federation of Families conference for children's

In this episode, we listen to  Andre Minett, a father of two, husband, and social worker. He discusses his experience advocating for foster children and his own experience as a father with a child with health condition. Transcription ATA 5 not edited [background music] Female Speaker: Welcome to “Ask The Advocate” where mental health advocates share their journey to advocacy and what it is meant for their lives. “Ask The Advocate” is a Mothers On The Front Line production. Today we will hear from Andre Mina, a father of two, husband, and social worker. This interview was recorded at the 2017 National Federation of Families for Children's Mental Health conference in Orlando Florida. During this particular recording, you can hear music and noise in the background from another event in the hotel. Please don't let this noises distract you from Andre's story. Tammy Nyden: So, I'm just going to ask you to introduce yourself. Tell us a little bit of who you are and then the kind of advocacy work that you do. And

In this episode, we listen to Cheryl who overcame and found the new Cheryl.  This mother of three shares her powerful story of overcoming trauma and serious illness to advocate for her children with special needs. Please be advised that this episode contains discussion of sexual abuse and a suicide attempt. Transcription Voiceover: Welcome to the Just Ask Mom Podcast where mothers share their experiences of raising children with mental illness. Just Ask Mom is a Mothers on the Frontline production. Today we will hear from Cheryl who overcame and found the new Cheryl. Please be advised that this interview contains some content that may be disturbing or upsetting to some of our listeners. Also, this recording was done at the 2017 National Federation of Families for Children's Mental Health Conference and there is background noise from another event taking place at the hotel. Please do not let the background noise distract you from Cheryl's story. Tammy: So hi, tell us a bit about yourself. Before outside of mo

In this episode, we listen to Suzette Southfox, a Southern California parent of a 19 year-old son with depression, anxiety and Autism Spectrum Disorder. She tells us about her over ten-year journey with children's mental health. She discusses the importance of honoring the strength of our children and others with depression who fight each day to get out of bed. Transcription Voice Over: Welcome to the Just Ask Mom podcast, where mother shared their experiences of raising children with mental illness. Just Ask Mom is a Mothers On The Frontline production. Today, we will listen to Suzette Southfox, a Southern California parent who lives with her 19-year-old son who has depression, anxiety, and autism spectrum disorder. She has been on the Children's Mental Health journey for over ten years now. This interview took place at the 2017 National Federation of Families for Children's Mental Health conference. Tammy: Just tell us a bit about yourself. Suzette : Sure. My name is Suzette. I am a tired mom. I work in t

In this episode, we listen to Shanta, a mother of three, clinician, advocate and proponent of self-care. She discusses raising a daughter who struggles mood disorder and suicidal ideation. Transcription [Music plays] Voice over: Welcome to “Ask the Advocate” where mental health advocates share their journey to advocacy and what it is meant for their lives. “Ask the Advocate” is a Mothers On The Frontline production. Today, we will listen to Shanta, a mother of three, clinician and advocate. This interview was recorded at the 2017 National Federation of Families for Children's Mental Health Conference in Orlando, Florida. During this particular recording, you can hear music and noise in the background from another event at the hotel. Please don't let these noises distract you from Shanta's story. Dionne: I want to say thank you very much-- Shanta Hayes: Thank you for having me. Dionne: -- for agreeing to the interview, especially, on the spot. Would you like to introduce yourself? Shanta: Hi. My name is S

In this episode, we listen to an advocate with MomBiz Boss and a mother of children who experience developmental and mental health challenges. She speaks about being a mother of color and the experiences of raising children with both visible and invisible disabilities. Advocacy organizations discussed in the Podcast: National Federation of Families for Children’s Mental Health - A national family-run organization linking more than 120 chapters and state organizations focused on the issues of children and youth with emotional, behavioral, or mental health needs and their families. It was conceived in Arlington, Virginia in February, 1989 by a group of 18 people determined to make a difference in the way the system works. https://www.ffcmh.org/ Younger Years and Beyond - A local chapter of National Federation of Families for Children’s Mental Health that focuses on mental health and behavioral health challenges for children starting at pre-school through beyond. https://www.facebook.com/theyoungeryearsandbeyon

Tiwanna Bailey, the founder and CEO of HYPED4U, a mentor and advocate for mental health and other disabilities speaks about her advocacy journey.