Unapologetically Black Unicorns
125 episodes - English - Latest episode: 13 days ago - ★★★★★ - 24 ratingsHave you ever chatted with an Unapologetically Black Unicorn? Someone who symbolizes freedom, power, strength and is a true force of nature and thought, ‘WOW people need to hear this’? Now you can and learn how to be a U.B.U. too! Join the weekly conversation with host Keris Jän Myrick, an unapologetically black unicorn in their own right, and nationally recognized mental health advocate chatting with amazing U.B.U. folk who are advancing all things mental health, racial justice, and anything cool to enhance human existence.
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Episodes
Keris & her Dad
December 21, 2021 17:32 - 16 minutes - 37.1 MBThis is a special episode for the holiday season, Keris goes to their family home to sit down and have a brief conversation with her dad Howard A Myrick, PhD. They talk about where her father is living now and the politics of his current home state of Florida. Keris and her father have a conversation about critical race theory, they share stories about her mother and her dad shares his memories of the day Keris was born in a German hospital. If you or someone you know is in a mental or subs...
UBU Live: School Mental Health Broadcast
December 14, 2021 18:35 - 1 hour - 128 MBThe CA Alliance of Child and Family Services (CA Alliance) hosted a special broadcast on October 19, 2021 to put a spotlight on School Mental Health programming. This was a vital conversation with CA Alliance Members, special appearances by State Senator Connie Leyva, State Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva, and a student from Southwest High School Laura Avila. There is also a panel, facilitated by UBU Keris Myrick, with CA Alliance member agencies Jonathan Goldfinger (Didi Hirsch Mental Heal...
“Recovery Means Liberation” with Haner Hernández
December 07, 2021 18:07 - 37 minutes - 68.2 MBHaner Hernández (he/him) Ph.D., CPS, CADCII, LADCI has worked for 34 years in the health and human service field developing, implementing, and evaluating culturally and linguistically intelligent youth and adult health prevention, intervention, treatment, and recovery support programs and he is an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Haner shares when came over to the United States with his mother when he was 4 years old from Puerto Rico and what it means to him to be a person in long term recove...
#BlackMentalHealth
November 30, 2021 18:32 - 5 minutes - 13.1 MBThis is an introduction to a new series for Unapologetically Black Unicorns focusing on Black Mental Health. We’ll talk about lived experience as Black people with mental health conditions and family members supporting someone with a mental health condition. Keris will speak with psychiatrists and pharmacists among others all discussing Black Mental Health. #BlackMentalHealth will also provide resources and information about actions you can create for your Black mental health. This episode ...
“My Psychosis Saved Me” with Kat McIntosh
November 16, 2021 18:30 - 33 minutes - 76.5 MBKat McIntosh (They/Them) is the Manager of Global Peer Support at Mental Health America and they are an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Kat shares their personal journey with their mental health while living in the Caribbean Island of Tobago and why they wanted to become an advocate for themselves. They talk about the Global Mental Health Peer Network, some of the issues with universal health care, how to support people within organizations, being a voice for our own experience, and how thei...
”Cool or creepy?: Tech and Mental Health” with Dr. John Torous
November 09, 2021 18:48 - 32 minutes - 59.8 MBDr. John Torous (He/his), MD is a Psychiatrist, Director: digitalpsych.org at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, an expert in “mobile mental health technologies” and an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Dr. Torous shares the concept behind MindApps.org and the connection between technology and mental health. They talk his tech background, how to navigate the privacy settings through your apps, the oversight of the digital mental health space and he the need for digital literacy. If you or ...
“Representation and Intention Matters” with Pat Deegan
November 02, 2021 17:57 - 36 minutes - 83.9 MBPat Deegan (she/her) Ph.D. has a doctorate in clinical psychology, is the founder of Pat Deegan & Associates and she is an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Pat shares when she got her “Prognosis of Doom” and how she eventually turned it around. They talk about Certified Personal Medicine Coaches, medication empowerment and a column she co-edits entitled “Personal Accounts. She also speaks about the importance of representation and intention in her work to ensure people ‘see’ themselves in her...
Unapologetically Black Unicorns: Live and in Living Color
October 19, 2021 17:51 - 1 hour - 117 MBUBU was recorded live on September 21, 2021, during the Annual Conference for the New York Association of Psychiatric Rehabilitation Services (NYAPRS). In this workshop leading mental health leaders from diverse backgrounds featured on the Unapologetically Black Unicorns podcast join in a lively discussion about lived experiences, leadership, showing up as our authentic selves and addressing equity in behavioral health plus much more. The panelists include: Khatera Aslami Tamplen (she/her),...
“If it Doesn’t Serve Us, We’ll Build our Own” with Brandon J. Johnson
October 05, 2021 17:48 - 34 minutes - 78.9 MBBrandon J. Johnson (he/him) is a Suicide Prevention Specialist, the host of The Black Mental Wellness Lounge and an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Brandon shares the inspiration for creating the YouTube page "The Black Mental Wellness Lounge" and how he’s trying to use it as a healing space. They talk about taking care of your metal wellness while trying to dismantle systemic issues, understanding the importance of resting for the cause and how the metrics for suicide in the Black community...
“The Greatest Form of Support is Being Heard” with Dr. Jonathan P. Edwards
September 28, 2021 17:24 - 33 minutes - 61 MBDr. Jonathan P. Edwards (he/him) has worked as a public health professional for more than 25 years, serves as adjunct faculty at Columbia School of Social Work, is an emerging researcher, plays a major role nationally in peer support workforce development and as a Board Member of National Association of Peer Supporters and he is an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Dr. Edwards shares his personal story including his upbringing and his recovery journey. They talk about Dr. Edwards working in bo...
“Recovery from a Brazilian perspective” with Ana Florence
September 14, 2021 17:48 - 32 minutes - 59.3 MBAna Florence, PhD (she/her) is a Clinical Psychologist, a postdoctoral associate at the Yale Program for Recovery and Community and an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. It’s the second week of recovery month and we hear Ana’s perspective on how psychology differs in Brazil compared to the United States and how the Psychiatric Reform Movement brought everyone together. They talk about the “Wisdom Project” and how Keris also got involved, how Brazilians have been hesitant with the term “recovery...
“The Black Box” with Dr. Arthur C. Evans
September 07, 2021 17:19 - 34 minutes - 79.4 MBWe kickoff off Recovery Month with Dr. Arthur C. Evans who is the CEO of the American Psychological Association and an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Keris asks Dr. Evans how he first got involved in psychology and how he eventually became a leader in the field. They talk about his mural projects on behavior health, the “Black Box” metaphor and the importance of taking risks. If you or someone you know is in a mental or substance use disorder crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Li...
“Afrofuturism is Sankofa” with Dr. LaWana Richmond
August 31, 2021 17:41 - 30 minutes - 69.7 MBDr. LaWana Richmond (Her/hers) is the Cofounder and Organizer of the Afrofuturism Lounge, the Creator of Afrofuturism Dream Tank, the Coauthor of the “Delayed But Not Denied” series and an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Keris and Dr. Richmond reminisce about the first time they met at WonderCon and the events they’ve attended together since then. They talk about Afrofuturism, the film Sankofa, why we should get rid of the word “normal” and the details behind the upcoming AfroCon event. For...
“Speak Up and Say Something” with Chloe Aquart
August 24, 2021 17:41 - 36 minutes - 66.9 MBChloe Aquart (her/hers/queen) is a former prosecutor who now works in criminal justice reform and she is an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Chloe talks about going from working as a prosecutor to working in community based anti-violence work and how that experience has helped her. They talk about what anti-violence work looks like on the ground, how we can support our credible messengers and having a conversation about trauma reactions. If you or someone you know is in a mental or substance...
“Be Visible as your Fully Authentic Self” with Dr. Jei Africa
August 17, 2021 17:35 - 36 minutes - 83.2 MBDr. Jei Africa (he/his/him) is the first openly transgender county behavioral health director in California and an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Dr. Africa shares his experience being raised in the Philippines and the disparities he saw when he came to the United States. They talk about bringing people together to create change, cultural humility and the importance of being visible. If you or someone you know is in a mental or substance use disorder crisis, call the National Suicide Prev...
“Journey of a Mental Health Beat Journalist” with Benedict Carey
August 10, 2021 17:47 - 33 minutes - 62 MBBenedict Carey (he/him) is an award-winning reporter who recently retired from The New York Times and he’s an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Benedict talks about a series he wrote called “Lives Restored” about mental health and mental health care and how he included Keris in one of his profiles. They talk about the importance of highlighting the experience of those impacted by the mental health system, how as a science writer he got involved writing about mental health and getting peers inv...
“Value The Connection to Community” with Dr. Jorge Partida del Toro
August 03, 2021 17:39 - 35 minutes - 64.2 MBDr. Jorge Partida del Toro (he/him) is a Curandero, a Psychologist with international experience working with child soldiers and building intentional communities and he’s an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Dr. Partida Del Toro gives the backstory for how he got into psychology and how his grandmother played a significant role. They talk about institutional and structural racism, mixing Curanderismo Healing and Western Psychology and valuing the connection to our communities. If you or someo...
“Recovery is a Journey, Not a Destination” with Dr. Curley Bonds
July 27, 2021 17:00 - 34 minutes - 63.5 MBDr. Curley Bonds (He/Him) is the Chief Medical Officer for the Los Angeles Country Department of Mental Health and an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Dr. Bonds shares his trajectory to becoming a psychiatrist and the stigma within the psychiatry profession. They talk about recovery, the impact of BeBe Moore Campbell and how we can help get more Black and Brown people in the health professions. If you or someone you know is in a mental or substance use disorder crisis, call the National Suic...
“Radical Reimagination” with Kelechi Ubozoh
July 20, 2021 17:02 - 35 minutes - 64.2 MBKelechi Ubozoh (she/her) is a mental health consultant, advocate, author and an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Kelechi shares how she is often called just to be a person of color for speaking engagements and why at times it feels like tokenism. They talk about meeting people where they are, the book Kelechi co-edited “We've Been Too Patient: Voices from Radical Mental Health” and where we are with Black and Brown voices leading the peer and lived experience movement. If you or someone yo...
“What’s More Important than Human Beings?” with Caren Howard
July 13, 2021 17:20 - 31 minutes - 56.8 MBCaren Howard (she/her) spent years working on Capitol Hill and is now currently the Director of Policy and Advocacy for Mental Health America as well as an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Caren shares how she got into policy work and her transition into mental health. They talk about homelessness issues, peer respite and what it takes to contribute to outside advocacy, inside advocacy, doing policy work and activism. If you or someone you know is in a mental or substance use disorder crisis...
“The Whole is Greater than the Sum of its Parts” with Dr. Annelle Primm
July 06, 2021 17:21 - 32 minutes - 60.2 MBDr. Annelle Primm (she/her) holds a medical degree from Howard University College of Medicine, she is a community psychiatrist, an author and an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Dr. Primm shares what influenced her to become a community psychiatrist and how she and Keris connected at NAMI Urban Los Angeles. They talk about the legacy of Bebe Moore Campbell, ways to increase our emotional fortitude during these troubling times for black and brown folks and some thoughts on how we can empower p...
“Don’t Agonize, Organize” with Khatera Aslami Tamplen
June 29, 2021 16:26 - 34 minutes - 63.8 MBKhatera Aslami Tamplen (she/her) is a California Mental Health and Peer Leader and an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Khatera shares her lived experience of fleeing the Afghan-Soviet War and her experience with the mental health system. They discuss how Khatera’s community shaped her, she explains her transition from a participant in WRAP (Wellness Recovery Action Plan) to an advanced facilitator plus she talks about the mentors who have influenced her throughout her life and career. If you...
“Get Radical With Yourself” with Rayshell Chambers
June 22, 2021 17:08 - 26 minutes - 49.3 MBRayshell Chambers (she/her) is a mental health advocate, the Co-founder & Co-Director of Painted Brain and an Unapologetically Black Unicorn. Rayshell talks about the impact of doing the “grunt work” in group homes and how she’s used her lived experience to make things better. They discuss Rayshell’s work on Psychiatric Advanced Directives, her self-care routines, the work she’s been doing implementing anti-racist and liberation practices in mental health services and the workplace, and her ...
“Radical Love” with Kristin Richardson Jordan
June 15, 2021 17:36 - 33 minutes - 76.1 MBKristin Richardson Jordan (she/her) is an activist, teacher, author and an Unapologetically Black Unicorn who is running for New York City Council District 9. Kristin talks about what made her jump from being an activist to running for City Council, being ranked #1 on Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s “Courage of Change” and her recent work in the community during the pandemic. They talk about finding housing for the homeless, police response to those in mental health crisis and Kristin’s survivor ...
Introduction
May 21, 2021 22:36 - 3 minutes - 6.26 MBKeris Jän Myrick is a nationally recognized mental health advocate and an unapologetic black unicorn. Keris explains what U.B.U. means and what the show is going to be about. Join the weekly conversation June 10th for the premiere of Unapologetically Black Unicorns.