America’s Psychologist Renowned psycholo ist to speak at UMADAOP conference
Erasing stigma Dr. Gardere will be a featured speaker at this year’s UMADAOP State Conference, and he says he plans to focus on substance abuse, an issue that has hit Ohio hard during the current opioid epidemic. He says he wants to help break down the stigma surrounding substance abuse and help people understand the root causes of addiction. “What I’d really like to address is how we have to get past the idea that drug addiction is some sort of a personal weakness and see it more as it truly is, which is an illness,” Dr. Gardere says. Substance use is often a means of self medication to cope with pain or to stabilize a person’s mood, Dr. Gardere says, and can often lead to abuse because of a lack of quality treatment resources. He says decades of stigmatization have caused people to lose empathy and demonize substance abuse without fully understanding its often complex and nuanced causes.
No one above it Drug addiction among celebrities has long been a staple of gossip magazines and talk shows, and as someone intimately familiar with the concept, Dr. Gardere doesn’t feel it’s necessarily a bad thing. He says while the conversations can get o track, he appreciates the fact that discussing drug abuse in celebrities reinforces the idea that addiction can happen to anyone. But while celebrities can aord expensive treatment services, most other people aren’t so fortunate. So when it comes to positively impacting the lives of everyday people, Dr. Gardere says the issue comes down to a simple question: “Are there enough resources out there and are they truly making a dierence?”
“We are a society that’s into pointing ngers, blaming, and what I call ‘the defense mechanism of splitting,’ which is good versus bad,” Dr. Gardere says. “It becomes an easier way of processing what’s in front of us.” Staying healthy Dr. Gardere will also address wellness for employees in the social services industry. Wellness is a major theme of this year’s conference, with multiple sessions dedicated to the topic and daily yoga and tai chi lessons every morning. Dr. Gardere says wellness is particularly important for those working in social services because of the unique stresses the job can put on someone. He says nding ways to relieve that stress and maintain good mental and physical health is extremely important to avoid negative consequences. “It’s not an easy road and not an easy profession to be part of,” Dr. Gardere says. “ey need to take care of themselves because they can easily burn out.”
He may be a familiar face to reality TV fans and cable news junkies alike, but Dr. Je Gardere knows the only thing separating his clients from everyone else is just the TV screen, nothing more. “ere is no real dierence between the celebrities that are using drugs and those in the community,” Dr. Gardere says. “ey are both human beings.” Known as “America’s Psychologist,” Dr. Gardere is one of the country’s most sought-after experts on mental health. He has played a prominent role on reality shows like VH1’s “Love and Hip Hop: Atlanta” and is a frequent contributor on programs like “e Today Show” and “Good Morning America,” as well as cable networks such as Fox News and MSNBC.
“We have to get past the idea that drug addiction is some sort of a personal weakness.” - Dr. Je Gardere UMADAOP conference speaker
“Are there enough resources out there and are they truly making a difference?” - Dr. Je Gardere UMADAOP conference speaker
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