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Our Work: Community Engagement

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Stigma reduction strategies

The stigma we place upon ourselves and others has gone on far too long. Rogers Foundation supports the initiatives of Rogers Behavioral Health’s Community Learning and Engagement (CLE) team to provide hands-on training and coaching in our communities.

The stories we tell ourselves and each other

A self-story is shaped early in the process of a facing mental health challenge. When the focus is negative, the impact is self-limiting. Shaping and owning a narrative that focuses on resilience is empowering–and even more so when this story is shared with others. Yet self-disclosure comes with both costs and benefits. It is a process that must be done strategically to avoid doing more harm than good.

Up to Me is a small group program designed to positively impact these dynamics. It does so by:

Helping people consider the tone of their internal narrative and crafting a message that represents personal goals
Exploring the costs and benefits of disclosing personal narratives and learning strategies for disclosing relatively safely

With support from the Rogers Behavioral Health Foundation, The WISE Initiative for Stigma Elimination has trained hundreds of program leaders, and positively impacted thousands of people around the globe.

There are stigma reduction techniques we know that work, like Up to Me. We need to get them into more hands – in our homes, in our classrooms, in our businesses, in our communities.

“When my husband lost his battle with alcoholism and depression, my kids and I dealt with a lot of whispering and pointing. We talked about how their dad had a disease that overtook him. They have nothing to be ashamed of.

Then I attended a Foundation event featuring Trenni Kusnierek and her battle with depression. I wasn’t prepared for the impact of that presentation. It solidified to me how much Rogers is needed. I knew I wanted to help!”

Learn more about mental health and addiction challenges and the work of Rogers Behavioral Health Foundation on our YouTube channel.