Tony Mantor: Why Not Me ?

Send us Fan Mail Danielle Terrell shares her journey as the US Healthcare Development Director at the International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards (IBCCES) and her passion for improving healthcare accessibility for autistic individuals around the world. • IBCCES provides specialized training and certification for healthcare providers, helping hospitals, dental offices, a...

Send us Fan Mail Maria shares her journey advocating for mental healthcare, from working in a medical facility helping patients navigate services to struggling with the complex systems while trying to help her brother with severe mental illness. Her powerful story reveals critical gaps in our mental health and legal systems that prevent timely intervention for those most in need. • Experience as a...

Send us Fan Mail Melody Guy shares her extraordinary journey as an autistic singer-songwriter who has traveled over two million miles despite the challenges of sensory issues and PTSD. She reveals how music became both her shelter and her bridge to connecting with others when words failed. • Diagnosed with autism as an adult around the same time as her son • Survived childhood sexual abuse startin...

Send us Fan Mail Leanna May Franklin shares her journey as a mental health advocate after her son experienced a psychotic break at age 19, revealing the challenges of navigating care even with resources and professional expertise. • Experienced a life-changing moment when her son had a psychotic breakdown during a family gathering • Recognized signs that she initially thought were typical teenage...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text "Why Not Me?" podcast expands its mission to embrace both autism and mental health worldwide, creating a platform for raw, authentic storytelling that inspires and connects. Host Tony Mantor welcomes listeners to join a global movement fostering awareness, acceptance, and understanding through powerful personal narratives. • Broadcasting from Nashville, Te...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Cindy Murphy shares the heartbreaking story of her son Tristan, who struggled with schizophrenia and died by suicide while incarcerated after being handed a chainsaw during a prison work detail. Through her grief, Cindy has become a powerful advocate for mental health reform in the criminal justice system, working to pass the Tristan Murphy Act in Florida. • Tristan...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Ann Corcoran, Executive Director of the National Shattering Silence Coalition, discusses the broken systems that fail those with serious mental illness and their families through discriminatory practices and neglect. She shares powerful stories of families desperately seeking help for loved ones in psychosis, highlighting how outdated laws and policies create barrie...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Laura Craciun shares her son's harrowing journey with serious mental illness and the systemic failures that criminalize mental health conditions instead of treating them. Her story highlights the urgent need for better policies to support individuals with psychosis and their families. • Laura's son was misdiagnosed with ADHD before eventually being diagnos...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Lynn Nanos, a mobile psychiatric emergency social worker with 15+ years experience, shares insights on evaluating and helping people with serious mental illness in crisis situations. Her work bridges the gap between law enforcement and mental healthcare, providing crucial interventions for individuals experiencing psychosis and other mental health emergencies. • Con...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Geri Clark, Resource and Advocacy Manager at Treatment Advocacy Center, shares her devastating journey of losing her son to severe mental illness while navigating a broken treatment system that wouldn't help until it was too late. She reveals critical gaps in our mental health system and explains how legal barriers, misunderstood medical conditions, and insuffi...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Sheriff Donna Buckley shares her journey from attorney to becoming the first female sheriff in Barnstable County's 333-year history, along with her innovative approach to transforming incarceration through mental health support, comprehensive case management, and post-release services. • Buckley's background as legal counsel representing public employees,...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Jason McKenzie shares his heart-wrenching journey through grief after losing his wife to suicide and his daughter to trauma-induced mental health struggles. His story reveals how childhood trauma ripples through generations and how he found healing through sobriety, purposeful grief work, and helping others. • Lost his police officer wife to suicide after years batt...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Eric Diaz shares his journey of living with schizoaffective disorder and becoming an advocate for those with serious mental illness. Through finding the right medication, supportive communities, and creative outlets, Eric transformed from someone who couldn't leave his house to a published author helping others navigate similar challenges. • Diagnosed with schi...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Crystal Fox shares her heartbreaking journey as the mother of a son with schizophrenia and co-founder of Arizona Mad Moms, an organization supporting families of loved ones with degenerative brain illnesses causing psychosis. Through her dual perspective as both a parent and a psychiatric nurse with 30 years of experience, Crystal illuminates the critical gaps in ou...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Cohen Miles-Rath shares his powerful journey from psychosis and incarceration to becoming a mental health advocate and author. His story reveals how proper support systems and personal determination transformed a life-altering crisis into a mission of education and advocacy that's changing how we approach mental health treatment. • Surviving untreated schizoaff...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Sherry Witwer, board president for CIT Utah, shares her insights on improving crisis response systems for people experiencing mental health emergencies and creating alternatives to incarceration through specialized training and community partnerships. • CIT (Crisis Intervention Team) training provides law enforcement with tools to effectively respond to mental healt...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Darrell Herrmann, a retired US Army captain and former computer programmer, shares his remarkable journey of living with schizophrenia since 1984 and his mission to help others with severe mental illness live better lives. • Former US Army captain specializing in field artillery and nuclear weapons before developing schizophrenia • Earned a computer science degree a...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Pete Early shares his journey from Washington Post journalist to mental health advocate after his son developed bipolar disorder, revealing how a broken system forces families into crisis before providing help. • Diagnosis came during his son Kevin's college years with warning signs like "food doesn't taste good" and confusion about reality • Psy...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text A mother shares her 18-year journey supporting a son with schizophrenia through mental health system failures, incarceration, and experimental brain surgery. • Colleen Scott's son started showing signs of schizophrenia at age 17, withdrawing socially and exhibiting erratic behavior • A prosecutor advised having her son arrested "to get him in the system&qu...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text A mother and clinical social worker shares her heartbreaking journey navigating the legal system after her high-achieving son developed serious mental illness, revealing how our justice system criminalizes rather than treats mental health conditions. • Licensed independent clinical social worker with 40+ years experience working with vulnerable populations • Her aca...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Justin Volpe shares his journey from being diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder and incarcerated to becoming a certified recovery peer specialist who has trained over 3,500 police officers in crisis intervention. His story demonstrates how individuals with lived experience can transform systems and save lives by bridging gaps between law enforcement, courts, and...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Jessica Ferguson shares the deeply personal story of her brother's struggle with serious mental illness and how systemic failures led to his incarceration after being accused of a triple homicide when he should have been in psychiatric care. • Her brother had been stable with his mental illness for a decade before showing concerning behavior changes in early 20...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Dr. Jhilam Biswas, a board-certified adult and forensic psychiatrist, discusses how mental health issues intersect with the criminal justice system and the urgent need for reform. She shares insights from her research and clinical experience working with incarcerated individuals with mental illness, explaining why mental health care in America's prisons is a hu...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Eric Smith shares his remarkable journey from child piano prodigy to mental health advocate after battling psychosis and addiction. His story reveals how finding the right medication after a decade of failed treatments transformed his life from hospitalization and FBI involvement to becoming a Texas Judicial Commissioner on Mental Health. • Displayed extraordinary m...

Send us Fan Mail Send us a text Seth Kahan shares his journey from personal tragedy to leading a national movement against mental health stigma after his mother developed schizophrenia when he was 10 years old. His experience pioneering frameworks for grand challenges led him to launch Stop Stigma Together, a collaborative initiative uniting major mental health organizations to eliminate stigma ar...