Mental health and recovery: Stacie Leap, Jeff Shair, Frank Dietrick and Sterling Johnson

Stacie Leap, Jeff Shair, Frank Dietrick and Sterling Johnson from Mental Health Partnerships came to speak to our class to share their personal experiences in recovery and add insight on some of the common problems that arise when media covers addiction and mental health.

I really enjoyed hearing the perspective of people with co-occurring disorders. Mental health and addiction are often thought of separately, but they are intrinsically tied. For one, addiction is a mental health issue. But, on top of that, it is often the case that a person struggling with mental health issues will choose to self-medicate. Not all substance abuse disorders have a co-occurring mental health issue, and it is not always a contributing factor leading to addiction, but there is enough of a connection between the two that should make us question why we continue to treat them so separately. There are too many people in jails and prisons with untreated mental health issues, and the media continues to highlight sensational addiction stories using stigmatizing language. Our guests today gave me hope that this is beginning to change.

They each had a fascinating and remarkable journey, and I wish we had more time afterward to ask them questions. One of the things I am curious about in covering addiction is knowing when disorders or previous addictions are relevant. I understand that people love a comeback story. I do too. But, if someone does something remarkable after having overcome a period of struggle with addiction or mental illness, should that information matter. I have read numerous news stories that would be stories on their own without mentioning their past. If my mental illness or addiction was brought up in every story that was reported about me I would worry that that would become my defining feature. There needs to be more positive news reporting on these issues to balance out all the negative stories, but sometimes I wonder when it matters, how much focus it deserves, and whether or not it would end up stereotyping or stigmatizing them regardless of how careful I am.

Matthew McCann

Matt is a senior journalism major at Temple. He transferred from New Jersey’s Sussex County Community College where he wrote for the school newspaper. At Temple, he has taken on the role of community beat reporter for the Temple News. During the summer of 2017, he studied abroad and reported in South Africa with an amazing team of Temple students. Matt has an interest in covering addiction and is excited to learn how a more proactive, solutions-based style of reporting can be implemented to help and inform in a meaningful way. Contact Matt at [email protected].