by Rona | Jan 18, 2023 | KPFA, Podcasts, Radio Shows
Join me and my guest Dr. Michael A. Tompkins to discuss the current mental health crisis that teens and adults are facing, and ways to build resilience and experience greater well being.
KPFA.org—94.1FM 1/23/23
During these last few years stressors such as isolation, fear of infection, poor sleep, grief, change in routine, and financial worries have all been factors in increased anxiety and depression. Before the pandemic there were many people who weren’t being treated for their mental health challenges, and now even larger numbers of people across the country remain unable to get the care they need for both pre-existing and newly developed mental health concerns.
If you are experiencing depression and anxiety you are certainly not alone!
Research from Boston University School of Public Health revealed that the elevated rate of depression (in 2021) climbed to 32.8% affecting 1 in every 3 American adults.
Guest:
Michael A. Tompkins, PhD, ABPP is a licensed psychologist and board certified in Behavioral and Cognitive Psychology by the American Board of Professional Psychology. He is the co-director of the San Francisco Bay Area Center for Cognitive Therapy and a faculty member for theBeck Institute for Cognitive Behavior Therapy.He is the author of numerous articles and chapters on cognitive-behavior therapy and related topics, as well as 15 books, including his best-selling book for teens, My Anxious Mind: A Teen’s Guide to Managing Anxiety and Panic (Magination Press, 2010), which is included in the Reading Well for Young People initiative sponsored by the Wellcome Trust, London, United Kingdom. His newest books for teens are, The Anxiety and Depression Workbook for Teens: Simple CBT Skills to Help You to Deal with Anxiety, Worry, and Sadness (New Harbinger Publications, and Stress Less: A Teen’s Guide to Live a Calm Chill Life. (Magination Press, 2023).
Need Support Now? If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988
by Rona | Nov 19, 2022 | KPFA, Podcasts, Radio Shows
Listen now to About Health (11/21) with my guest Rue Mapp on KPFA.org— 94.1FM
“A growing body of research points to the beneficial effects that exposure to the natural world has on health, reducing stress, and promoting healing. Now, policymakers, employers, and healthcare providers are increasingly considering the human need for nature in how they plan and operate.” —Jim Robbins, published at the
Candidly documenting her personal experiences, while shifting and pioneering a new visual representation of Black people in the outdoors, Rue Mapp transformed her kitchen table blog into a national nature business, and movement. Today, she’s the founder and CEO of where Black people and nature meet: Outdoor Afro. For more than a decade, the not-for-profit organization has continued to celebrate and inspire Black connections and leadership in nature across the United States. Although Rue’s work in the outdoor industry may have started in her hometown of Oakland, California, her story and the creation of Outdoor Afro has since grown to inspire international headlines. Her just published book, Nature Swagger, Stories and Visions of Black Joy in the Outdoors, is a universal roadmap to discover delights, joy, and possibilities of transformation, for anyone through nature. Today, Rue is also a co-creator of a hike collection with outdoor retailer REI Co-op, through her for-profit business Outdoor Afro, Inc.
by Rona | Nov 1, 2022 | KPFA, Podcasts, Radio Shows
Globally, maternal mortality has decreased, but in the U.S. it continues to rise! Maternal health outcomes have become more disparate with black women being three times as likely to die from pregnancy-related causes as white women. Most pregnancy-related deaths are preventable, so what are the causes? What work is being done to end preventable mortality and racial disparities?
12/19/22 KPFA.org—94.1FM
Listen Now
Guest: 
Amanda P. Williams, MD, MPH, FACOG is a board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist and strategic physician leader focused on eliminating health disparities and leveraging virtual care. She currently oversees clinical innovations for the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative at Stanford University. Additionally, she advises digital women’s health endeavors such as RiskLD, Nike Fitness Club- motherhood program, and nascent startups via High Alpha Innovation. She is clinically based at the Kaiser Permanente Oakland Medical Center where until Summer 2022 she served as Director of Maternity Services. She also led the maternity continuum for the Chiefs of OBGYN across 15 medical centers and 44,000 annual births in Northern California. Dr. Williams’ research topics have included: expansion of abortion access, contraception continuation, peripartum depression, and minimally invasive hysterectomies.
Dr. Williams is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Harvard University where she majored in American Medical History and Biochemistry. She completed her medical degree at Emory University School of Medicine where she also received a master’s degree in public health, focusing on health policy and management. She completed her graduate medical training in Obstetrics and Gynecology at The University of California, San Francisco. She has served on multiple state and national committees, including currently the California Pregnancy-Associated Mortality Review. After hours, Dr. Williams can be found hiking in the redwoods, taking cardio-hip hop dance class, mentoring women of color in the medical pipeline, or attending her teenage boys’ endless sports activities.
by Rona | Oct 10, 2022 | KPFA, Podcasts, Radio Shows
October is Learning Disabilities (LD) Awareness Month.
It’s reported that one in five students learn differently because they have dyslexia, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, or other learning and attention issues.Some people, despite having an average or above average intelligence, have difficulty acquiring academic skills, such as reading, writing, listening, speaking and math. Often these difficulties are the result of a learning disability, also referred to as a learning difference by some.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) defines a learning disability as a condition when a child’s achievement is substantially below what one might expect for that child.
Join me to find out more about learning differences and the importance of advocating for someone who isn’t getting the services they need.
(10/17/22) Listen now to About Health on KPFA 94.1FM
Dr. Rebecca Hawley has worked in Education, Early Intervention, Special Education, and Family Support Services for 25 years within the Bay Area and at a National and International level. Dr. Hawley provides direct support, leadership, and programmatic oversight for non-profit, state, federal and private agencies. Her direct research and practice have primarily focused on issues of equitable and individualized access to education and services for students between the ages 2-21. She has a private practice in special education advocacy and support, and is a standing advocate for parents of students with special needs and mental health challenges. Dr. Hawley holds a Doctorate in Educational Leadership with a Focus on Child Development and Special Education, and a Special Education Law Certificate from Drexel University, where she currently holds an adjunct faculty position.
Learning resources provided by Dr. Hawley:
IDEA Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Current: https://sites.ed.gov/idea/
Children’s Books:
by Rona | Sep 2, 2022 | KPFA, Podcasts, Radio Shows
9/12/22 About Health, 94.1FM–KPFA.org
“When we look at the mental health of American girls today, one thing becomes clear: We as a society are failing pretty miserably….One out of four adolescent girls reports suffering from symptoms of major depression compared with fewer than one in ten boys.” —Donna Jackson Nakazawa, Girls on the Brink
The rates of depression, anxiety, and suicide among girls have skyrocketed over the last 15 years. The influences of social media, over sexualization of girls, environmental and societal stresses, school pressures, sexual harassment, gender inequalities, and other stressors have caused a crisis that needs to be understood and addressed.
My guest, Donna Jackson Nakazawa provides the science of why our girls are struggling and 15 antidotes for our consideration to support girls on their journey to live meaningful and independent lives.
Gue
st: Donna Jackson Nakazawa is an award-winning science journalist, author of seven books, and an internationally-recognized speaker whose work explores the intersection of neuroscience, immunology, and human emotion. Her latest book is, Girls on the Brink: Helping Our Daughters Thrive in an Era of Increased Anxiety, Depression, and Social Media. Donna’s other books include The Angel and the Assassin: The Tiny Brain Cell That Changed the Course of Medicine, Childhood Disrupted, and The Last Best Cure. Her writing has appeared in Wired, The Boston Globe, Stat, The Washington Post and Health Affairs. For her writing on health and science, she received the AESKU lifetime achievement award and the National Health Information Award. She has appeared on The Today Show and NPR and is a regular speaker at universities, including the Harvard Division of Science Library Series, Rutgers University, Johns Hopkins, Learning and the Brain, and the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona. Donna is also the creator and founder of the narrative writing-to-heal program, Your Healing Narrative, which uses a process called Neural Re-Narrating™ to help participants recognize and override their brain’s old thought patterns and internalized stories, and create a new, powerful, inner healing narrative that calms the body, brain, and nervous system. You can learn more here: https://donnajacksonnakazawa.com
You can find her on:
by Rona | Aug 8, 2022 | KPFA, Podcasts, Radio Shows
Tune in now to About Health on KPFA.org radio 94.1FM
(Monday August 15, 2022)
There are so many questions regarding digital media’s impact on a child’s development. How does it affect their mental and physical health? We know there are consequences of too much media exposure for children’s minds, physical health, and social wellbeing, but how much is too much? And what about the quality of the media children absorb starting at a young age? Most parents, grandparents, and providers struggle daily to make decisions about how to set limits on screen time, no matter what age a child is.
My guest:
Kris Perry, Exe
cutive Director of Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development, most recently served as Senior Advisor to Governor Gavin Newsom of California and Deputy Secretary of the California Health and Human Services Agency where she led the development of the California Master Plan for Early Learning and Care and the expansion of access to high-quality early childhood programs. She led systems change efforts at the local, state and national levels in her roles as executive director of First 5 San Mateo, First 5 California, and of the First Five Years Fund. Through it all, Perry has fought to protect children, improve and expand early learning programs, and increase investments in low-income children. Perry was instrumental in returning marriage equality to California after the landmark 2013 U.S. Supreme Court ruling Hollingsworth v. Perry, which she wrote about in her book, Love on Trial (Roaring Forties Press, 2017).
