Featuring: 12th Annual Mariel Wellness Conference The agenda is in Eastern Time

Sunday 7 PM Seasonal Ingredient Cooking Demo 8 PM Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre Presents: The Flip Side: In Therapy

Monday 7 PM Keynote Address: Creating Mental Harmony In Times of Uncertainty

Tuesday 7 PM Update on the Medical Treatment of Psychiatric Disorders 8 PM Spirituality and Mental Wellness

Wednesday 7 PM The Intersection of the Criminal Justice System and Individuals with Mental Health Treatment Needs 8 PM Ask the Doctor Thursday 7 PM A Good Night’s Sleep for a Better Day’s Wake 8 PM Loving Someone with Mental Illness

Harvest of Hope at Home will be presented on ACCELEVENTS online event platform. For the best viewing experience, use the Google Chrome web-browser. Sunday 10/4 7 & 8PM

7 PM Seasonal Ingredient Cooking Demo Meet Christina Covello This breakout session will be a live cooking demo with Christina Covello. Christina has deep love for quality The workshop will highlight one ingredients and local food traditions. seasonal ingredient in two different With a Master’s in gastronomy, she dishes. We welcome all different levels has spent the last three years living of experience to join along. The recipes abroad in Italy, England, and Ireland, will be understandable and user expanding her love for food and the friendly for all (including children)! craft of cooking. Before the If participants would like to cook along pandemic brought her back- with Christina, the recipes, grocery and home, she taught at the world equipment lists will be made available renowned Ballymaloe Cooking before the class. Come and enjoy an School in Ireland. She has been able interactive cooking demo, and take to build her appreciation for advantage of the opportunity to ask responsibly sourced ingredients, your burning culinary questions. focusing on the importance of Guaranteed to be nourishing in more sustainable and local products. ways than one! She now teaches at the Farm Cooking School in Princeton.

8 PM The Flip Side: In Therapy

In Therapy is a 30-minute comedy show created especially for NAMI Mercer featuring members of the Flip Side, Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre’s improvisation (improv) team, including Dave Maulbeck, Laura Ekstrand, David Lee White, and Emily Williams. They will use their imaginations to create spontaneous, unscripted mini-plays. Meet Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre

Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre is a professional company from Summit, NJ. Its mainstage features contemporary plays with a focus on life-affirming stories. The cast also performs improv comedy, cabarets, sketch comedy, and new play readings and hosts education programs for all ages. During the pandemic, the ensemble has been keeping storytelling alive through virtual entertainment for the public. MONDAY 10/5 7PM

Creating Mental Harmony In Times of Uncertainty

Keynote funded in part by Mercer County

According to the UN, the looming mental health crisis we find ourselves facing has been born of the isolation, fear, uncertainty and economic turmoil wrought by the pandemic.

Our focus on mental wellness must be at the forefront of our health, business and government discussions.

Mariel Hemingway will explain how she focuses her energy on fighting stigma and achieving psychological wellbeing through a combination of technology and a holistic approach to living.

“Let’s try to come to a place of compassion about mental illness, in all its forms, and help each other find healing.” —Mariel Hemingway

Meet Mariel Hemingway

Mariel Hemingway is multi-talented––she is an actress, author, producer, public speaker, and health advocate. With seven suicides in her family, including those of her world-renowned grandfather Ernest and her supermodel sister Margaux, Mariel has dedicated the last ten years to sharing her own story with the goal of helping others to live more balanced and meaningful lives. As a member of the celebrated Hemingway family, Mariel grew up in the limelight. At the young age of 13, she became famous in her own right when she made her movie debut in Lipstick. Four years later, her work in 's Manhattan earned her an Oscar nomination. Since then, she has made 30 films and numerous television appearances. In 2014, Mariel, in collaboration with Oprah Winfrey, co-produced the Emmy-nominated Running from Crazy, an evocative documentary about the Hemingway family. Mariel also is a successful author, whose books promote both mental and physical health. Her 2009 cookbook, Mariel’s Kitchen, offers creative gluten and sugar-free recipes and was one of the first to encourage this type of diet. In 2013, Mariel co-wrote the book Running with Nature with her partner Bobby Williams in which they share their insights about the benefits of simple living and compassion. Her memoir Out Came the Sun and “diary” Invisible Girl were released in May 2015, in commemoration of National Mental Health Awareness Month. Mariel is a frequent keynote speaker at conferences, conventions, and on academic panels. Owing to her expertise in health and wellness, she has been profiled by many well-known media outlets including USA Today, The LA Times, The Chicago Tribune, The Times of London, Vanity Fair, The New York Times, and the Today and Dr. Oz shows. TUESDAY 10/6 7PM

Update on the Medical Treatment of Psychiatric Disorders

Dr. McElroy will discuss new developments in the pharmacotherapy (drug treatment) of serious mental disorders. She also will cover the implications of recent data showing that most mental disorders are genetically related to one another and co-occur. Specific treatment advances will include lumateperone for schizophrenia; lumateperone and amisulpride for bipolar depression, esketamine for treatment-resistant unipolar depression, and the combination of sertraline and brexpiprazole for PTSD. Dr. McElroy also will talk about treating psychotropic medication-induced weight gain.

Meet Dr. Susan McElroy

Dr. McElroy, a professor of psychiatry and neuroscience at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, currently serves as the chief research officer of the Lindner Center of HOPE. In this capacity, she oversees multiple ongoing studies in mood, anxiety, eating and impulse control disorders, genetics, and psychopharmacology. Dr. McElroy is internationally known, having authored more than 500 scientific papers in leading medical journals. The recipient of numerous awards, Dr. McElroy was recognized among the Best Mental Health Experts by Good Housekeeping Magazine; Best Doctors in America; Top Doctors in Cincinnati; and as one of America’s Top Psychiatrists by the Consumer Research Council. She also has received multiple teaching awards from various institutions. TUESDAY 10/6 8PM

Spirituality and Mental Wellness

Loving someone who suffers from a mental health condition brings us to complicated emotional challenges, where we try to balance action and acceptance, hope and grief. Spirituality is one way to understand this quest for ultimate things: the struggle for meaning and for the living out of our values in our lives. Spiritual practices are ways we support this quest and can be a grounding-place for the work of loving self and others.

Meet Dr. Sonia Waters Sonia Waters is an Episcopal priest and a professor of pastoral theology at Princeton Theological Seminary. She holds a PhD from the Seminary, an MDiv from General Theological Seminary in New York City, and a BA from Wheaton College in Illinois. Her current research and teaching focuses on addictions, and her book Addiction and Pastoral Care (2019) offers helpful tools for ministers, counselors, and chaplains. With an undergraduate minor in gender studies, she also has a long interest in women’s issues and served as a case manager at a domestic violence shelter in California. WEDNESDAY 10/7 7PM

The Intersection of the Criminal Justice System and Individuals with Mental Health Treatment Needs

This workshop is intended for those with an interest in the complex issues surrounding the substantial increase in the number of individuals with significant mental health treatment needs who have had interactions with the criminal justice system. Legislation such as the Community Mental Health Act of 1963 and initiatives including the "War on Drugs" and the movement to "get tough on crime" have had significant impact on these individuals. The workshop will provide a review of the history of social policies/criminal justice practices regarding people affected by mental illness as well as current trends and initiatives.

Meet Dr. Joel Friedman

Dr. Joel Friedman is a licensed psychologist with more than 30 years of experience. He currently serves as the clinical director of the Center for Family Guidance. After earning his doctoral degree from the California School of Professional Psychology, Dr. Friedman worked in a variety of settings including schools, hospitals, outpatient mental health treatment facilities, federal and state correctional facilities, and county jails. Dr. Friedman is a founding member of the task force that brought the Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) to New Jersey. The NJ CIT program has provided training to hundreds of individuals who work in law enforcement in recognizing the signs and symptoms of mental health problems and in implementing de-escalation techniques. Dr. Friedman teaches a course titled "Treatment of the Offender" at Rowan University. WEDNESDAY 10/7 8PM

Ask the Doctor

Brainstorm with Dr. Komrad on approaches for convincing someone to seek professional medical help. With more than 30 years of experience as a psychiatrist, he will answer your questions about psychiatric problems and treatment options.

Meet Dr. Mark Komrad

Mark Komrad is a psychiatrist in private practice and on the clinical and teaching staff of the Johns Hopkins and Sheppard Pratt Hospitals in Baltimore. His uses both psychopharmacology and psychotherapy, a combination treatment that has become increasingly rare in today’s mental healthcare environment. In 2012, he published You Need Help – A Step by Step Plan to Convince a Loved One to Get Counseling. A graduate of Yale and Duke University Medical School, he is a “Distinguished Fellow” of the American Psychiatric Association and a NAMI National “Exemplary Psychiatrist.” Dr. Komrad is the former host of a nationally syndicated radio show and has appeared widely on TV and radio. In addition, Dr. Komrad was the consultant for a major Hollywood film and a dramatic TV series to ensure accurate portrayals of psychiatrists and people affected by mental illness. In addition to clinical psychiatry, Dr. Komrad is a medical ethicist. He served on the Ethics Committee of the American Psychiatric Association for six years and was twice honored with the Carol Davis Ethics Award. THURSDAY 10/8 7PM

A Good Night’s Sleep for a Better Day’s Wake

What happens in our brains and bodies during sleep, and what does it mean to “sleep well”? Recent research suggests that sleep quality is about much more than sleep quantity. This breakout session will provide a fundamental understanding of what happens when we sleep and will offer a sleep scientist’s definition of “a good night’s sleep.” We will discuss the impact of a good night’s sleep on physical and mental health. Finally, we will survey simple lifestyle changes that anyone can employ to get a better night’s sleep.

Meet Dr. Matthew Carter

Dr. Matt Carter is associate professor of biology at Williams College where he teaches courses in neuroscience and physiology. He received his undergraduate degree from Whitman College and his Ph.D. in neuroscience from Stanford University. With funding from the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation, Dr. Carter’s research lab at Williams studies how the brain regulates food intake and sleep. In addition to publishing his work in scientific journals, he is the author of Designing Science Presentations, a book on science communication, and two books on neuroscience research techniques. He received the Nelson Bushnell Award for Excellence in Teaching from Williams College, the Walter Gores Award for Excellence in Teaching from Stanford University, and the Young Investigator Award from the Sleep Research Society. THURSDAY 10/8 8PM

Loving Someone with Mental Illness

Diane Mintz will share insights from Meet Diane Mintz her 24-year marriage to a man with schizoaffective disorder while she Diane Mintz is an author, speaker, maintained long-term recovery from business owner with her addiction and a bipolar disorder. husband, and mother of two This presentation is especially grown children. She serves as relevant for friends and family chair of the NAMI Sacramento members of someone with a mental Board and works as a family illness but will also be informative member reviewer for behavior for those living with a mental illness health consultants. The author of and for clinicians interested in In Sickness and in Mental Health— long-term recovery. The presenter Living With and Loving Someone will share her own lived experiences with Mental Illness, Diane can be as well as the experiences of other reached through her website at NAMI In Our Own Voice presenters. www.dianemintzauthor.com There will be opportunity for discussion and questions.

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