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Real Lives, Real Change: Mental Health Program

The Late Rosalynn Carter Honored for Long Life of Service

Thousands of admirers from all walks of life honored former U.S. First Lady Rosalynn Smith Carter, who died at home in Plains, Georgia, on Nov. 19, 2023, at age 96. Learn more »

Guide Helps Election Officials Handle Intense Job Stress

Being an election official is hard. Not only is there a never-ending stream of deadlines, but there also is a constant crush of complaints and criticism that sometimes escalates to stalking or death threats. Learn more »

Journalist, Teen Explore Mental Health Issues

Micah Fink will never forget the day his teenager, Sydney, asked him, “Dad, is it normal for so many kids to be thinking about killing themselves?” Though he found the question alarming, he didn’t know quite how to respond. He shied away from an in-depth discussion, hoping these thoughts were temporary. Later, he realized that his response shut down what could have been an important conversation. Eventually, he decided to broach the topic further. Learn more »

Project Boosts Media Coverage of Mental Health

The Carter Center and The Center for Public Integrity have partnered with newsrooms across the country to bolster news coverage on mental health access and parity. In the Q&A that follows, program manager Nora Fleming explains the Mental Health Parity Collaborative and its impact so far. Learn more »

Blog | Thank You, Mrs. Carter, for Sharing Your Story

By Eve Byrd, Director, Mental Health Program

It is human nature to want to be understood and accepted, so when people like Rosalynn Carter and her family share their experiences with dementia, they provide a comforting connection to the more than 55 million people worldwide who have dementia diagnoses. Learn more »

Radio Reporter Amplifies Mental Health Issues

Many schoolchildren in Georgia don’t have the mental health resources they need. Fortunately, they have Ellen Eldridge to let the world know about the problem. Learn more »

Peer-to-Peer Counseling Aids Women in Myanmar

By Masa Janjusevic, Carter Center country representative, Myanmar

Myanmar is home to the world’s longest continuing civil war, spanning seven decades. The inevitable toll on mental health cannot be ignored, and recent events such as COVID-19 and economic decline have only intensified the unmet need for services. Learn more »

Blog | Carter Center Health and Peace Programs Team Up to Support Election Workers

By Eve Byrd, Director, Mental Health Program

From the vantage point of a richly resourced and powerful country or society, it’s easy to believe that colonialism is a thing of the past. Unfortunately, that is not the case. The sad fact is that the effects of a colonial mind-set are alive and well in some corners of the global health community. Learn more »

Building Resilience: Carter Center Trains Myanmar Women to Serve as Mental Health Peer Counselors

In Myanmar, the overwhelming combination of political conflict, COVID-19, and economic decline has resulted in an unprecedented mental health crisis. So when Eh Wah,* a social worker who deals with vulnerable youth in Yangon, learned that The Carter Center was piloting a peer-to-peer mental health services support program, she jumped at the opportunity to participate. Learn more »

Blog | Include Youth in Seeking Mental Health Solutions

By Adalis Rojas, youth advocate and former Carter Center Mental Health Program intern

As many depend on the younger generations to advocate for youth mental health awareness, it’s important to know what you can do now to support. Learn more »

Blog | With New Law, 2022 is the Year for Mental Health in Georgia

By Eve H. Byrd, Director, Carter Center Mental Health Program

During the 2022 state legislative session, the Georgia General Assembly voted unanimously to pass the Mental Health Parity Act, ensuring that the state will enforce parity in insurance coverage for behavioral health care for the first time. Learn more »

Journalist’s Interest in Mental Health Takes Flight

The travel industry was one of the hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. Business and leisure travel stopped abruptly and have yet to fully recover. While many of us wondered last year when we might take our next airplane trip to visit far-flung family and friends, those who work in the airline industry feared for their jobs and health. Learn more »

Blog | Journalists Help Bring Discussion of Mental Health into Mainstream

By Dr. Kashef Ijaz, vice president, health programs, and Eve H. Byrd, director, mental health program

Journalists and the field of journalism are often criticized, in part because they have a habit of telling us truths we don’t want to know or discussing topics we don’t want to think about. But good journalists provide a public service by telling us things we need or ought to know and by making us think. What they write or say can affect the way society looks at an issue and educate people about available resources. Learn more »

Blog | 24 Fun Facts about First Lady Rosalynn Carter

By Susan Hunsinger, program associate, and Katie Conner, former senior program associate, mental health program

Rosalynn Carter is best known for her advocacy for mental health issues, caregiver issues, as co-founder of The Carter Center and founder of the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism. But there’s more to this "steel magnolia." Here are 24 facts about Rosalynn Carter. Learn more »

Blog | Journalism Fellow Invites Viewers Along on Family’s Alzheimer’s Journey

By Christie Ethridge Diez, 2020-2021 Rosalynn Carter Mental Health Journalism Fellow

Christie Ethridge Diez is a reporter and anchor for Atlanta TV station at 11alive (WXIA) and a 2020-2021 Rosalynn Carter Mental Health Journalism Fellow. In late March 2021, she shared her story of loss, grief, and strength on the Carter Center’s Instagram account after her father’s Alzheimer’s disease diagnosis. Her moving posts, minimally edited, are reproduced here. All photos are courtesy of Christie Ethridge Diez. Learn more »

Blog | Pandemic Proves Global Mental Health Can’t Be Ignored

By Dr. Kashef Ijaz, vice president, health programs

Global mental health has been called the “silent,” “parallel,” or “next” pandemic. Learn more »

Blog | Improving Access to Mental Health Care in Georgia: How Georgians Can Get Involved

By Helen Robinson, associate director, public policy

Many Georgians face barriers to accessing mental health care. While this is not a new problem, The Carter Center believes it is urgent that state leaders address the issue during the current public health crisis. Learn more »

Blog | The Carter Center, a Global Health Pioneer for 35 years, Steps into Saporta Report Lineup

The Carter Center is honored to join The Saporta Report’s Global Health Thought Leaders rotation. For readers who may not be familiar with our work, allow us to introduce ourselves. Learn more »

At U.S.-Mexico Border, Journalists Learn Mental Self-Care

Sometimes journalists set out to find one story and end up telling a different one. When Myriam Vidal Valero and Rodrigo Perez Ortega received a joint journalism fellowship from The Carter Center in mid-2019, their plan was to document the emotional trauma faced by migrant families separated by U.S. policy at the U.S.-Mexico border. Learn more »

With Fellowships, Journalists Provide Facts and Debunk Myths About Mental Illness

The Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism program was founded in 1996 by former First Lady Rosalynn Carter to give journalists the resources they need to report accurately and in depth on mental health to help dismantle the stigma that millions of people with mental illnesses face. Learn more »

Blog | Expert Q&A: What’s at Stake for Mental Health Policy in Georgia?

By Helen Robinson, associate director, public policy, Mental Health Program

Under the leadership of Rosalynn Carter, the Carter Center’s Mental Health Program is joining with partner organizations to bring attention to urgent public policy issues impacting mental health in Georgia and across the United States. The Carter Center’s Helen Robinson, associate director of public policy in the Mental Health Program, answers questions about how the program works to improve access to mental health care for all Georgians. Learn more »

Rosalynn Carter Mental Health Fellows Help Communities Coping with COVID-19

Carter Carter fellows have reported on managing coronavirus anxiety, the challenges of the mental health care system at this time, tips from mental health experts on staying mentally well, how the virus is impacting people experiencing homelessness and more. Learn more »

Mental Health and COVID-19

To aid individuals and communities during this time, the Carter Center Mental Health Program has compiled global, national, and local resources to promote mental health and wellness. Learn more »

Blog | Mental Health Gains Global Focus

By Eve Byrd, director, Carter Center Mental Health Program

Under the leadership and guidance of former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, The Carter Center Mental Health Program is joining with other organizations to bring attention and resources to mental health care, both in the United States and abroad. Program Director Eve Byrd explains. Learn more »

Blog | After Decades of War, National and Personal Healing Begins

By Andrés Bermúdez Liévano, 2017-18 Rosalynn Carter Mental Health Journalism Fellow

My country suffered through 50 years of violent internal conflict before The Carter Center and others helped the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia conclude a historic peace agreement in 2016. While the parties to the talks continue to create and shape a new political reality, people who lived through the conflict are seeking ways to deal with what they have seen and endured. Learn more »

Blog | UAE Journalist Reflects on Eye-Opening Year

By Iman Ben Chaibah, recipient of a 2017–2018 Rosalynn Carter Mental Health Journalism Fellowship

In September, I completed my Rosalynn Carter Fellowship in Mental Health Journalism. The fellowships were started by former First Lady Rosalynn Carter about 20 years ago to provide journalists with resources and opportunities to accurately and holistically report on mental health in their countries and their regions. Learn more »

New School of Thought Helps Liberians Blossom

In the middle of bustling W.V.S. Tubman High School in Monrovia, Liberia, you’ll find a tranquil two-room oasis: the mental health clinic. Behind its metal door, which blocks out much of the cacophony from the open-air halls, students talk to mental health clinician Leah D.T. Sorboh about problems major and minor. Some of the teens’ complaints echo those of their counterparts around the world – they talk about breakups and mean teachers and difficult tests. Learn more »

Passion for People Fuels Mental Health Director

Eve Byrd remembers a conversation she had with a nursing student in Liberia several years ago. A faculty member for a Carter Center program to credential nurses for mental health disorders, Byrd and her student nurse had just finished seeing a patient and were discussing the case. Learn more »

Blog | Carter Fellows Get Social, Build Engaged Communities

To extend the reach of their stories and maintain relevance in a world of spinning news cycles, journalists today often have mandates to create social media accounts and share a weekly quota of posts on them. But for Jaclyn Cosgrove, a 2015-16 recipient of the Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism, social media means more than just posting her story. Learn more »

Blog | Carter Center Podcast: Jimmy Carter Gets Candid About China

In Feburary 2018, President Carter got candid about China in a guest lecture at Emory University. President Carter discussed factors that led to his decision to normalize U.S. relations with China in 1979. He also talks about a dinner conversation with President Deng Xiaoping that likely led to a surge of Christianity in China, now one of the world's leading producers of Bibles. Learn more »

Journalist Examines Refugees’ Trauma

Healing from trauma sometimes goes beyond individual therapy, journalist Emily Underwood reports. Underwood is helping readers understand that when an entire community experiences trauma, a kind of communal healing needs to take place as well. Learn more »

Blog | Carter Center Conveys Note of Pride in South Africa Program

By Rebecca Palpant Shimkets, associate director, Carter Center Mental Health Program

Seeing South Africa’s mental health journalism program blossom fills me, along with Rosalynn Carter and everyone here at the Carter Center’s Mental Health Program, with the kind of pride one feels when a family member receives a university degree. We are thrilled to have helped the program take its first steps. Learn more »

Blog | Clinicians Attend to Young Minds in Liberia

Liberia’s 2014-2015 Ebola crisis, following a 14-year civil war, left devastated families in its wake. Thousands of children and adolescents were orphaned, confined in isolation units, or stranded at home watching loved ones suffer and die, triggering a special set of post-traumatic mental health challenges. Learn more »

Fellowship Takes Reporting to a New Level

Newspaper reporter Jaclyn Cosgrove wanted to dig deeper into serious mental health issues, but the tools at hand weren’t adequate for the job. That changed dramatically when she received a Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism. Learn more »

Blog | Words Matter: Talking About Mental Health Webcast Archive

One simple way we can help people dealing with mental illness is by choosing our words with care. How we speak and write about mental illness can help either reinforce or break down stereotypes. The Carter Center has long worked to reduce stigma by providing fellowships to journalists covering mental health. Learn more »

Journalists Gain Insight into Underreported Health Problem: Mental Illnesses

Last fall, 18 journalists met at The Carter Center to discuss an underreported health problem: mental illnesses. The meeting was part of the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism, which aim to enhance public understanding of mental health issues and reduce stigma and discrimination against people with mental illnesses through balanced and accurate reporting. Three fellows share their experience. Learn more »

Blog | ‘MIND/GAME’ Documentary Details Star Athlete's Struggle with Mental Illness

Success in sports is said to be 90 percent mental. Even for a physically gifted athlete like Chamique Holdsclaw, that number may be low. Learn more »

Blog | ‘Buried Above Ground’ Sparks Dialogue, Empowers Audiences

By Ben Selkow, 2010-11 Rosalynn Carter Mental Health Journalism Fellow and documentary filmmaker

In summarizing his post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) experience, war veteran and former U.S. Army Captain Luis Carlos Montalván says, “A disproportionate amount of time is spent thinking about the past than your average person. Learn more »

Blog | Mental Health in Liberia: Stand Up and Act!

By Matthew Nyanplu, journalist from Monrovia, Liberia

In the last few years, there has been an awakening in the consciousness of Liberian communities that people living with mental illness are a valuable part of society and represent an important resource for social transformation and community cohesion. Learn more »

Blog | Integrated Care Key to Better Outcomes

By Dr. John Bartlett, senior project adviser, Mental Health Program

In 1993, my 92-year-old mother suffered a severe heart attack. After two months in the hospital, she returned home a changed woman. On the day of her heart attack, she had been dancing around in her famous red pantsuit with her grandchildren, but back at home following her hospital stay, she would sit on the sofa, motionless, not talking  very much, and eating less. Learn more »

Center Mobilizes for Liberia's Ebola Fight

As the Ebola epidemic escalated in Liberia last fall, the nation's ministries and international public health agencies asked The Carter Center to help mobilize communities to identify cases of the disease and prevent its spread. Learn more »

Blog | Healing Liberia: A Mental Health Crisis

By Katherine Kam, 2012-2013 recipient of a Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism

Civil wars, a country in ruins, a traumatized population of four million people, and only one psychiatrist for the entire West African country of Liberia. When the country’s Ministry of Health invited The Carter Center to help build mental health services in the conflict’s aftermath, questions abounded. Learn more »

Colombia Alters Landscape of Mental Health Journalism

The successful expansion of Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism in Colombia has led to increased reporting on topics of depression, PTSD, anxiety, and post-conflict trauma. Watch the video below to learn more about how journalism fellows in Colombia are breaking down barriers and transforming public perception of mental illness. Learn more »

Blog | Progress, Trends, and Challenges in Mental Health: Q&A with Dr. Thom Bornemann

Dr. Thomas H. Bornemann, director of the Carter Center’s Mental Health Program, answers questions on the importance of the 30th Annual Rosalynn Carter Symposium on Mental Health Policy, progress made over the past three decades, and challenges that lie ahead. Learn more »

Reporter Tackles Parity, Affordable Care Act for Fellowship

Seattle Times columnist Jonathan Martin began his Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism in September 2013 and planned to cover the Affordable Care Act. He was one of six U.S. and four international journalists selected for the annual program. Learn more »

Blog | Living with Schizophrenia

By Amy Standen, 2013-2014 recipient, Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism

On Oct. 10, through a partnership between The Carter Center and PsychCentral.com, dozens of bloggers will participate in the fourth annual blog party, publishing their thoughts about mental health in observance of World Mental Health Day. Learn more »

Blog | President Carter Discusses How Technology Helps Wage Peace, Fight Disease

Watch former U.S. President Jimmy Carter’s video message from the Social Good Summit in New York City on Sept. 21, 2014. Learn more »

Blog | Working to Improve the Mental Health Care System in Liberia

By Benedict Dossen, administrator, Liberia Mental Health Program.

Liberia is a West African country nearly the size of Mississippi with a population of 3.8 million. But unlike many other countries, Liberia only has one practicing psychiatrist. The need for mental health services becomes even more pressing in the context of the nation’s recovery from a brutal civil war spanning from the early 1990s through 2003. Learn more »

Blog | The Affordable Care Act and You | Q&A with Dr. John Bartlett

Carter Center expert Dr. John Bartlett, a senior project adviser to the Mental Health Program and organizer of this year’s 29th Annual Rosalynn Carter Symposium on Mental Health Policy, answers your questions submitted via email. Learn more »

Blog | Join Our Conversation on World Mental Health Day, Oct. 10, 2013

On World Mental Health Day, Oct. 10, we here at The Carter Center will pause to reflect upon the many advances in the field of mental health, including improvements in diagnosing and treating mental illnesses, as well as advancing parity for mental health in our health care system. Learn more »

Blog | Local Georgia Police Chief Travels with Carter Center Mental Health Program in Liberia

Moultrie, Ga., Police Chief Frank N. Lang Sr. recently traveled with the Carter Center’s Mental Health Program to Liberia where he helped train local law enforcement officers on how to support people experiencing a mental health crisis. Learn more »

Breaking New Ground in Mental Health Journalism in Colombia

From their headquarters at Bogotá's Caracol television news, health reporters Paula Bedoya and Fernanda Hernández have covered the flu, prenatal care, eyesight, and cancer. But mental health is one medical topic these two journalists rarely, if ever, tackle. Learn more »

Blog | National Council Advocacy Leadership Awards Recognize Strongest Advocates for Improved Mental Health and Addictions Care

The National Council for Behavioral Health has recognized The Carter Center and three other organizations with the 2013 Advocacy Leadership Awards for their contributions to the field of mental health. Learn more »

Blog | Inside Mind/Game: The Unquiet Journey of Chamique Holdsclaw

By Rick Goldsmith, 2013-2014 Rosalynn Carter Fellow for Mental Health Journalism

I was drawn to WNBA star Chamique Holdsclaw’s story from the day I read a piece on her in the New York Times in early 2012. She’d been the best of the best at her sport, took a great fall, but emerged in apparent recovery as an advocate who was remarkably candid about her own story. Learn more »

Blog | Carter Center Exclusive: CDC Director Tom Frieden Discusses Importance of Mental Health Surveillance

By Dr. Tom Frieden, director, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

It was an honor to share the stage with former First Lady Rosalynn Carter at the 18th annual Rosalynn Carter Georgia Mental Health Forum in May. We celebrated the publication of the MMWR Weekly Report Supplement: “Mental Health Surveillance Among Children in the United States — 2005-2011,” the first-ever summary of federal activities tracking children’s mental disorders in the U.S. Learn more »

Blog | The Carter Center Hosts Launch of American Journal of Public Health’s First Theme Issue on Stigma

On April 18, 2013, former U.S. First Lady and Carter Center Co-Founder Rosalynn Carter and former Congressman Tony Coelho joined experts from the federal government and other mental health officials to discuss new research published in the American Journal of Public Health’s first theme issue on stigma against people with mental illness at The Carter Center in Atlanta. <p>The theme …</p> Learn more »

Blog | Fighting Stigma Against People with Mental Illness | Q&A with Rebecca Palpant Shimkets

Rebecca Palpant Shimkets, assistant director in the Carter Center’s Mental Health Program, describes the stigma facing people with mental illnesses and how the Carter Center’s activities aim to help. Learn more »

Blog | Young Adults, Mental Health, and Social Media

By Tina Rezvani, assistant program coordinator, Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism

Recently, the Carter Center Mental Health Program hosted the panel discussion “Beyond Stigma: Bringing the Conversation about Mental Illness Forward,” on the stigma of mental illness among young adults. One topic that proved especially important was the role social media plays in young people’s lives and, consequently, their mental health. Learn more »

Nicolae Ciorogan: Finding Common Ground on Mental Health

Looking back, Nicolae Ciorogan, 38, might tell you that his life has been a journey to learn about many different kinds of people — as a child growing up in Transylvania, Romania, a documentary filmmaker in the Peruvian Andes, and as a television photojournalist in Boston. Learn more »

Blog | Carter Center Receives Ronald McDonald House Charities Grant for Mental Health Work in Liberia

Ronald McDonald House Charities® (RMHC®) has awarded The Carter Center $200,000 to support the Mental Health Program in Liberia. The funding will be used to train mental health care providers and to build supportive community environments that will benefit individuals suffering from mental illnesses and their families. Learn more »

Brandon Kohrt: Working to Improve Mental Healthcare in Liberia One Story at a Time

A keyboard, an Internet connection, and a comfy coffee shop chair is one way to do research. But it's not the way for Dr. Brandon Kohrt, consultant to the Carter Center's Mental Health Liberia Project, who needs a good off-road vehicle and a compassionate ear to gather information about the beliefs, feelings, and experiences Liberians have surrounding mental illnesses. Learn more »

Blog | Cause for Concern: Shattering the Stigma of Depression and Breast Cancer

By Rebecca Palpant Shimkets, assistant director, Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism

The voices of millions will join together this month for breast cancer awareness in walks and runs while pink ribbons are proudly displayed on cars, pins, and airplanes. The walls of secrecy and shame that surrounded breast cancer patients and survivors until recently are toppling with increased public understanding and advances in treatments. Learn more »

Blog | Carter Center and PsychCentral.com to Host World Mental Health Day Blog Party Oct. 10

On Oct. 10, through a partnership between The Carter Center and PsychCentral.com, dozens of bloggers will participate in a blog party, publishing their thoughts about mental health in observance of World Mental Health Day. “Mental illness affects all of us, but there are still many myths and misconceptions about these disorders,” said former First Lady Rosalynn Carter. Learn more »

Changing Headlines: Mental Health Journalism Fellowships Impact Romania

Only a few years ago, Chiscop was working as a deputy chief editor for the social issues section of Iasi Daily Newspaper, a major newspaper in a cultural and academic hub in eastern Romania. Learn more »

The Carter Center at 30: A Voice for Mental Health Care

Under the leadership of former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, the Carter Center's Mental Health Program has increased awareness about mental health issues, informed public policy, and reduced stigma and discrimination against those with mental illnesses. Learn more »

Meet Margaret Ballah: On the Frontlines of Mental Health Care in Liberia

If you ask Margaret Ballah to describe a typical day at work, she will tell you that there is no such thing. Every day Ballah rises at dawn, dons her crisp white uniform and shiny mental health clinician badge and walks several miles to Gbarzon Health Center in rural Grand Gedeh County, southeastern Liberia. Learn more »

Blog | Carter Center’s Mental Health Work in Liberia Highlighted by New Foundation: Focusing Philanthropy

The Carter Center’s work to improve access to mental health care in Liberia is highlighted as one of 14 nonprofit recipients of a new foundation, Focusing Philanthropy, which seeks to connect potential donors across the United States with charities demonstrating strong achievements and excellent fiscal management. Learn more »

Blog | Regional Town Hall Meetings Promote Vision for Revitalizing Georgia’s Mental Health Care System

By Paige Rohe, assistant director, Carter Center Communications Department

On a cold December afternoon in 2011, the picture of a smiling teenage girl illuminated the darkened Ivan Allen Pavilion at The Carter Center. Her name was Sarah Crider. More than five years ago, at the age of 14, Sarah died from a preventable complication during treatment at a state-run psychiatric hospital in Atlanta. Learn more »

Blog | Georgia Institute of Technology Professor "Computes for Good" with Carter Center's Mental Health Project in Liberia

By Paige Rohe, assistant director, news and information, of the Carter Center’s Office of Public Information.

A torrential rain began in Monrovia, Liberia, causing the power to flicker and the Internet to shut down, but Georgia Institute of Technology professor Dr. Ellen Zegura didn’t let the disruption stop the computer and software training session she was holding with Liberia’s first class of mental health clinicians. Learn more »

Blog | Liberia's First Mental Health Clinicians Deploy to Fight Disease, Build Hope

By Paige Rohe, media relations coordinator for The Carter Center.

Torrential rains in Monrovia, Liberia, Friday morning did not deter dozens of family members and friends from arriving at the Tubman National Institute of Medical Arts hours before graduation ceremonies for the nation’s first mental health clinicians began. No one wanted to miss their loved one become part of their nation’s history and hope for a better future. Learn more »

Blog | Michael Biesecker: Journalism Fellow Chronicles Abuse, Fraud in North Carolina

Reporter Michael Biesecker's coverage of mental health issues began with a high-speed car chase following a robbery. In the course of Biesecker's investigation, he found that although the driver was in a psychotic state two weeks before the crime, he had been turned away from the state's psychiatric hospital. Learn more »

Blog | Liberian Students Making History and Making a Difference in Mental Health

By Dr. Janice Cooper, Carter Center's project lead for mental health in Liberia

Dr. Janice Cooper, a native Liberian, is the Carter Center’s project lead for a new mental health initiative that, in partnership with the Liberia Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, is helping the nation build a sustainable mental health care system. This spring, Dr. Cooper began training Liberia’s first cadre of qualified, home-grown mental health clinicians. Learn more »

Blog | Reservist Vets Need Help at Home

By Dr. Bornemann, director of the Carter Center’s Mental Health Program

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have posed a unique set of psychological challenges to troops due to multiple tours of duty and a significantly greater prevalence of brain injury, among other factors. As a result, members of the military deployed in these wars have the highest rates of post-traumatic stress disorder on record. Learn more »

Blog | Soloist Fights Stigma of Mental Illness with Violin and Guitar

“The best way to overcome stigma is to learn that the man who sits in the next office suffers from depression or the neighbor you chat with on summer evenings is battling bipolar disorder. You know them; you’re not afraid of them…Together we can eliminate stigma and bring a better life. Learn more »

Blog | Journalism Fellows Explore Mental Health Issues, Fight Stigma

Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter launched a journalism fellowship program in 1996 to increase accurate reporting of mental health issues as a way to fight stigma and discrimination against people with mental illnesses—some of the most serious, unrecognized, and under-reported health problems in the United States and worldwide. Learn more »

Blog | Journey to Liberia: Carter Center Staffer Reflects on Country's Mental Health Needs, New Initiative

By Jane Bigham, assistant program coordinator for the Carter Center’s Mental Health Program

Many Liberians suffer from trauma, depression, and other mental health issues following more than a decade of civil conflict. With only one psychiatrist in the entire country, and just a handful of nurses with mental health training, treating those who suffer from mental illnesses has been almost impossible. Jane Bigham, assistant program coordinator for the Carter Center’s Mental Health Program, reflects on her journey and what a new Carter Center mental health initiative will mean for the people of Liberia. Learn more »

Journalism Fellow Kelly Kennedy Uncovers the Many Faces of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

A mortuary services soldier came home angry and suicidal, having processed the dead faces and body parts of numerous service members. A well-loved first sergeant killed himself in front of his men. A platoon that had just lost several soldiers refused to go back on patrol, fearful that their rage would lead to more death. Learn more »

Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter Launches Tour for "Within Our Reach: Ending the Mental Health Crisis"

"Within Our Reach: Ending the Mental Health Crisis," by Rosalynn Carter with Susan K. Golant and Kathryn E. Cade, published by Rodale Books. Learn more »

Congo Women Confide Painful Reality to Fellow

In a refugee camp in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, journalist Jimmie Briggs listens via translator to a young woman describe being raped by soldiers. Briggs, an unlikely confidant as both a man and an American, is so devastated by her account he cannot continue taking notes. He begins to weep and offers to end the interview. The woman, "Madeline," refuses. Learn more »

Blog | Mental Health Parity: A Q&A with Carter Center Mental Health Program Founder, Rosalynn Carter

In light of the recent passage of the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008, Mrs. Carter sat down to discuss what has changed since she began her advocacy work and what still can be done for people living with mental illnesses. Learn more »

Blog | Combating Stigma, Building Understanding: A Q&A with Carter Center Expert Rebecca Palpant

With help from the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism, journalists on four continents are working to reduce stigma and raise awareness about mental health and mental illnesses in their communities. Learn more »

Blog | Mental Illness Prevention: Interview with Thomas H. Bornemann, Ed.D., Director of the Carter Center Mental Health Program

In this interview, Dr. Thom Bornemann, director of the Carter Center Mental Health Program, discusses the importance of early screening and intervention, and the current challenges to mental health prevention efforts. Learn more »

In South Africa, a Journalist Finds Words for Unspeakable Tragedies

It was a recurring headline in South African newspapers: "Cop Murder-Suicide Claims Family." Dozens of sons, fathers, and husbands working in the South African Police Service had committed these crimes against their own families, but the stories of what motivated them were rarely told. Learn more »

Mental Health Fellow Breaks Down Stereotypes

Time and money to access voluminous public records are luxuries most reporters do not have to investigate negligence or malfeasance in the public sector. Learn more »

Journalism Fellowships Expand to Romania

Alex Ulmanu sometimes wonders if things could have been different. "I had a colleague in university who was a brilliant, brilliant person and who committed suicide in her very early 20s. We learned afterward that she was suffering from schizophrenia," Ulmanu said. Learn more »

Carter Center Mental Health Program Observes World Mental Health Day

Mental illnesses affect people of all ages in all countries and societies, from the boy soldier in Sierra Leone traumatized by years of bloody civil war to the aging farmer in Oklahoma suffering from depression. These illnesses have a profound impact on the quality of life for individuals and families and stunt economic growth in societies around the world. Learn more »

Emory Awards Honorary Doctorate to Longtime Carter Center Mental Health Supporter

ATLANTA....Beverly Benson Long, a mental health pioneer whose efforts were instrumental in establishing the Rosalynn Carter Endowed Chair for Mental Health at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University, was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree during Emory's 162nd commencement ceremony. Learn more »

Reporters Find Inspiration in Mental Health Stories

In South Africa, men view depression as a sign of weakness. So when veteran journalist Marion Scher wrote a story on the topic for the South African magazine Men's Health, she was thrilled that the men she interviewed allowed her to use their real names. "That's very, very unusu­al," Scher said. "They really bared their souls to me." Learn more »

Carter Center Calls for Better Mental Health Care for All Georgians

Five-foot-six-inches tall, Angela Ford's weight has varied from 90 pounds to her current 216. She struggles between anorexia and binge eating, and suffers from postpartum stress disorder and depression. She lives in Fulton County, Ga., which has no mental health services available to her. Even if it did, she couldn't afford it on disability checks anyway. Learn more »

Dr. Thom Bornemann: Director Sees Need to Integrate Mental Health Into Health Care System

Although the words "reduce stigma" do not appear in the name of any initiatives of the Mental Health Program Thom Bornemann directs, the concept is embodied in virtually everything the program does. Learn more »

Blog | Mental Health Symposium Spotlights New Programs To Support President's Report

Larry Fricks, a director in Georgia’s department of mental health, introduced an exciting new and successful concept in mental illness recovery at the Nineteenth Annual Rosalynn Carter Symposium on Mental Health Policy, Nov. 5-6, 2003. Learn more »

Georgia Forum Identifies Strategies To Improve Mental Health Services for Children

"The day things changed was when someone finally sat down with me and explained what was going on in my brain," said Danielle Smith. "That's when I realized something actually was wrong with me. I wasn't just crazy." Learn more »