Today’s story is one of genetic predisposition, environmental triggers, and finally a psychiatric flame thrower. Whitney’s uncle had a particularly severe form of bipolar disorder and she too began to develop mood instability and depression as an adolescent. When we think of environmental triggers for mania, we tend to think of sleep deprivation, substances, and the postpartum period. And through her 20s and 30s, Whitney began to have more serious bouts of hypomania during times of sleep deprivation or in her postpartum periods. But it took an increasingly severe weed habit to bring her to the horrors of mania with psychosis.

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Bringing Therapy into Med Management-- An intensive workshop for psych NPs and PAs, June 3-6 2026 in Ft Collins

https://www.craigheacockmd.com/bringing-therapy-into-med-management/

"I Love You, I Hate You, Are You My Mom?" An intensive experiential workshop exploring transference and countertransference with Dr. H and Dr. Hillary McBride, June 18-20 2026 in Vancouver/Chilliwack BC

https://www.craigheacockmd.com/i-love-you-i-hate-you-are-you-my-mom/

Explore every episode through themes, domains, formats, and speakers.
The BFTA CODEX is a listener-built and curated field guide to the podcast.
https://bfta-codex.org

BFTA episode recommendations/Podcast page

https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/

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The US has a major suicide problem, around 50,000 people every year, and 60% of these suicides are gun suicides. The number one risk factor for completed suicide is not depression or anxiety or addiction….it’s access to means, and it turns out that it’s actually not that easy to impulsively kill yourself, unless you have ready access to a gun.

We are finally starting to talk about ways to keep guns out of the hands of potentially suicidal people, and a concrete step in that direction is something called Donna’s Law— a program where people can voluntarily be put on a no-sell list during times of psychological crisis or instability. Donna’s Law is named after Donna Nathan, who impulsively bought a handgun in 2018 in New Orleans and shot herself during a period of psychiatric crisis. There were no barriers in place, no waiting period or no-sell list...Donna found easy access to means and paid the ultimate price.

We first hear the voice of Katrina Brees, Donna’s daughter. Katrina tells us more about who Donna was, how she lived and how she died. After we hear from Katrina, Dr. H leads a discussion with two prominent Colorado voices for both Donna’s law in particular and suicide prevention in general— Dr. Dave Iverson is a Denver-based psychiatrist, a board member of Colorado Ceasefire, and lifelong advocate for society’s most vulnerable folks, including those on the streets or in the justice system… also Ginny Mack joins the conversation, she is a Ft Collins-based psychiatric nurse practitioner, a Navy Veteran, and a longtime advocate for suicide prevention efforts on the state and local level.

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Donna's Law for Suicide Prevention

https://www.donnaslaw.com/

Donna's Law for Colorado

https://www.donnaslawforco.com/

Colorado listeners who would like to get involved in the awareness campaign for Donna's Law, please email:

donnaslawforco@gmail.com

Golden Gate suicide study

https://www.goldengate.org/assets/1/6/suicide-deterrent-seiden-study.pdf

Bringing Therapy into Med Management-- An intensive workshop for psych NPs and PAs, June 3-6 2026 in Ft Collins

https://www.craigheacockmd.com/bringing-therapy-into-med-management/

"I Love You, I Hate You, Are You My Mom?" An intensive experiential workshop exploring transference and countertransference with Dr. H and Dr. Hillary McBride, June 18-20 2026 in Vancouver/Chilliwack BC

https://www.craigheacockmd.com/i-love-you-i-hate-you-are-you-my-mom/

Explore every episode through themes, domains, formats, and speakers.
The BFTA CODEX is a listener-built and curated field guide to the podcast.
https://bfta-codex.org

BFTA episode recommendations/Podcast page

https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/

Support the show

Today’s story explores how we love, how we grieve, and how we eventually find some sort of equilibrium thereafter. This episode is a heartbreaking, yet beautiful story by Colorado-based somatic therapist Darci Meyers about her journey through multiple losses, grief, and ongoing recovery.

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https://www.buzzsprout.com/396871/support

Darci Meyers

http://www.darcimeyers.com/

Bringing Therapy into Med Management-- An intensive workshop for psych NPs and PAs, June 3-6 2026 in Ft Collins

https://www.craigheacockmd.com/bringing-therapy-into-med-management/

"I Love You, I Hate You, Are You My Mom?" An intensive experiential workshop exploring transference and countertransference with Dr. H and Dr. Hillary McBride, June 18-20 2026 in Vancouver/Chilliwack BC

https://www.craigheacockmd.com/i-love-you-i-hate-you-are-you-my-mom/

Explore every episode through themes, domains, formats, and speakers.
The BFTA CODEX is a listener-built and curated field guide to the podcast.
https://bfta-codex.org

BFTA episode recommendations/Podcast page

https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/

Support the show