The State of Bipolar Advocacy with Anja Burcak, Julia Stabler, and Logan Noone

Join me and three of my favorite mental health advocates Julia Stabler, Logan Noone, and Anja Burcak as I host an interactive discussion on the state of bipolar advocacy including what has been achieved, what still needs to change, and our goals for the future.

Bios:
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, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, and has hosted various storytelling events in the Los Angeles area. He was named one of The Mighty’s Mental Health Heroes of 2017, NAMI California 2017 Outstanding Peer of the Year, and Feed & Be Fed’s Cultivator of the Year 2019. He also hosts the Open Excellence Podcast where he educates people on new innovations, current hot topics, and promising reaseach in mental health care and can be subscribed to on all major podcast platforms.

Logan Noone is a fourth year medical student at Pacific Northwest University in Yakima, WA. He is currently in the process of applying to psychiatry residency. He was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2011 while working in the insurance industry. He went back to school to pursue medicine, and became a mental health advocate. He hosts the podcast, Talk Mental Health with Logan Noone, and most recently released a children’s book, We ALL have Something.

Anja Burcak is a writer and social media manager (The Support Network) with a passion for mental health advocacy. Her essays and articles have been featured on her personal mental health blog The Calculating Mind and sites such as The Mighty, BP Magazine, and Yahoo. Being diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder during college has given her insight into the struggles many college students face while battling mental health conditions. She currently is involved in victim advocacy and suicide research. Anja aims to educate others and start more open, honest conversations around mental health.

Julia Stabler (Julia Lives Bipolar) : Six years ago when she was 25 years old, Julia suffered a bipolar psychotic break. She spent a night in an ER psychiatric unit (partly in solitary confinement), a week at a nearby psych ward, and then a month in an aftercare outpatient program before moving home to live in her parent’s basement. She had arrived at rock bottom. This event changed the course of her life. In the weeks, months, and years to come she had to find a way to accept that she had bipolar disorder, figure out how to best treat it, heal the trauma inflicted by her illness, and rebuild a life she wanted to live. Six years ago she wasn’t sure she could do that, but she stands here today to say that "I did. You can too!"

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