E32: Mental Health Awareness w/ Rudy Caseres

In honor of Mental Health Awareness month I really wanted to shed light on the issues which is why this week's episode I sit down with local Mental Health Advocate Rudy Caseres. 

Rudy Caseres is an award-winning mental health advocate, public speaker, and event producer. He has traveled the country delivering keynote presentations, worked with organizations such as the American Association of Suicidology, This is My Brave, Mental Health America, and the National Alliance on Mental Illness, and has hosted various storytelling events at The Garden Church and the Warner Grand Theatre. He was named one of The Mighty’s Mental Health Heroes of 2017 and hosts a Facebook Live interview show for them every month. Rudy currently serves as a board member of the Coastal San Pedro Neighborhood Council and is their Homelessness Liaison. He is also currently a candidate for San Pedro Honorary Mayor and you can still contribute to his campaign. 

Together we discuss what so many have wrong about mental health. For example the fact that mental health is something that affects us all and that people aren't necessarily mentally ill and mentally well, there are many "in-betweens". It's a spectrum that everyone is on. Rudy would like to see less binary definitions in the mental health world, where we put people into two categories; well and not well. He shares some personal stories and experiences he's had struggling with suicidal thoughts as many have. One of things we talk most about is how we can reduce the stigma around mental health. He thinks that giving resources and funding to peer-to-peer groups and advocates are one of the most impacting things we can do as a community. Often large organizations approach mental health struggles from an outside perspective, whereas peer-to-peer methods really come from the stand point of  "we're in it together".

LINKS: 

Rudy's website

https://www.rudycaseres.com/rudy4mayor.html

https://www.rudycaseres.com/no-restraints

Rudy on Facebook 

Facebook.com/RudyCaseres

Rudy's Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/rudycaseres/

Rudy's Twitter

https://twitter.com/RudyCaseres

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