Roots Up

10/02/2026

Thank you to Nev Jones, Sarah Porter, Lauren Fowler and the rest of the crew at University of Pittsburgh who had us out to do our first ever in person ***de training.

08/23/2026

When "support" for people who are suicidal is reserved only for people who aren't actually suicidal...

Because somehow our systems think that 'assess and control' is the only true su***de 'antidote'...

***deprevention

Image description: Large, bald bouncer wearing sunglasses and a t-shirt that says 'SECURITY' on it, with a gruff expression and arms folded. The bouncer stands next to a door with a sign posted on it that reads "Su***de Support Group 6pm (Sorry, no suicidal people allowed)"

08/22/2026

How often is the healthcare system willing to step back and look at the full context of our lives and experiences?



Image descriptions:

1: A doctor with a long pointy nose stands so close to a patient sitting on an exam room bed that their noses are touching. The doctor says, "I can see exactly what's wrong. You're bipolar!"

2: The patient says, "All you can see from where you're standing is my nose." The doctor replies, "It's a very bipolar nose!"

3. The patient puts their hands on the doctors shoulders and moves the doctor a bit further away. The doctor has a confused look on their face and a little question mark appears above the doctor's head. The patient says, "How about now?"

4. The doctor moves right back to the position where the doctor and patient's noses are touching. The doctor says "Still bipolar!" The patient looks frustrated.

08/21/2026

08/20/2026

The Future of "AOT", Understanding the New Evaluation of Kendra's Law, featuring Nev Jones

Thursday, August 27, 3-5:30pm EDT

tinyurl.com/AOT827 (link in bio)

For more than two decades, New York's Kendra's Law has been one of the most frequently cited examples in support of Involuntary Outpatient Commitment (IOC, also known as Assisted Outpatient Treatment, or AOT). Research from New York has been referenced nationally by proponents arguing that court-ordered outpatient treatment improves outcomes for people labeled with "serious mental illness."

A newly published evaluation of Kendra's Law represents one of the first major outcome studies of the law in more than a decade and addresses one of the field's longest-standing questions:

Are positive outcomes attributable to the court order itself, or to the intensive services and supports that typically accompany an order?

The study concludes that expanding voluntary supports and ensuring people know about and have access to them could produce similar outcomes "without the attendant harms" associated with forced treatment.

Join Roots Up for a conversation with Nev Jones —researcher, subject matter expert, and co-author of the study—as we explore the report's findings, discuss what they may mean for policy and practice, and provide ample time for audience questions.

Whether you're a clinician, policymaker, advocate, researcher, family member, or someone who has experienced force firsthand, this webinar offers an opportunity to better understand one of the most significant developments in IOC research in recent years.



NOTE: Due to unexpected scheduling conflicts, we have updated this event's date/presenter list.

08/20/2026

Once a psychiatric diagnosis is in someone's chart, healthcare workers too often have trouble seeing beyond that... with often dire consequences for people's health.



Image descriptions:

1. A patient sits on a simply bed in an exam room at a hospital. The healthcare worker evaluating the patient is staring down at a clipboard while seated in a chair next to the bed. The patient says, "I'm having severe stomach pains." The worker replies, "I see you have a schizophrenia diagnosis yet you don't take medication." The patient's face is noticeably green and they are holding their stomach.

2. The patient says, "That doesn't matter. My stomach hurts." The worker says, "When did you stop taking your medications?"

3. The patient raises their hands, palms to the ceiling in a frustrated shrug and says. "Aren't you going to examine me?" The worker says, "We could help you get back on your psychotropics with a short inpatient stay."

4. The patient's hands are now balled up in fists and they have an angry expression. They say, "Stop. Looking. At. My. File. I'm right here!" The worker says, "Hostility and mood swings are likely from the lack of treatment." The patients face continues to be green. The worker hasn't looked up once from the clipboard.

5. The patient's hands are now clasped in front of their chest and tears are running down their face. They say, "Please. Please help me. I think something is really wrong." The worker says, "I am trying to help you, but first, you need to help yourself."

6. The patient falls back on the bed, passed out. Their legs and right hand are draped over the side of the bed. The worker looks up for the first time, drops the clip board and says, "What happened?!" with a shocked look on their face.

08/17/2026

Self-Injury: My Why

When I was a teenager, I spent 2 1/2 years in residential programs (psych hospital, "troubled teen" program, etc.) I had no control over any aspect of my life and was stripped of all autonomy, including decisions about my body. I was isolated from my community and lived in constant uncertainty of when I would ever be able to go home. I felt very depressed but also afraid that if I told people how depressed I was, I would be stuck at the place longer. I self-harmed because I felt like it was the only outlet I had to deal with my pain. Looking back, I think subconsciously that it also helped me have a sense of control over some aspect of my life and body after my autonomy was taken away. I want to be clear that self-harm was not the reason I was placed in these residential programs initially. Rather, the conditions of these circumstances put me in a position where I felt like self-harm was the best option. I now live my life as an independent adult and have not self-harmed in years.
-Anonymous

This post is a part of Roots Up's 'Project Why' project on self-injury. You can learn more about the project at rootsup.info/project-why.

If you would like to submit your why, you can do that here: tinyurl.com/WhySI26



Image description: Black text on a white background with the faint image of a sunflower filling the lower left corner.

08/17/2026

But what happens to someone when all the dignity is gone?



Image descriptions:
1. Simply drawing of a person on a institutional bed with a thin mattress and metal frame holding a guitar and talking to someone else sitting on a chair. Behind them, a sign reads "Dignity Hills Hospital, Dignity Sold Separately"

2. A nurse walks in and says "It's not safe to have other patients in your room."

3. Same person now sits on their bed with their guitar and an empty chair next to them.

4. A nurse walks in and says This chair isn't safe. It's too easy to pick up and throw."

5. The person now sits on their bed with their guitar. The chair gone.

6. A nurse walks in and says "That bed isn't safe. It's a ligature risk."

7. The same person now sits on a mattress on the floor with their guitar, looking upset.

8. A nurse walks in and says, "You could do unsafe things with those guitar strings." The person looks up at the nurse with a surprised expression.

9. The person now sits on the mattress with arms crossed, looking angry.

10. A social worker holding a clipboard walks in and says "Now this is what safe looks like!"

08/15/2026

GLOBAL FILM PREMIERE: Disposable Humanity

Friday, September 4, 4-7pm EDT

Get your free ticket through Roots Up by 8/23 at 5pm Eastern

tinyurl.com/9426DH

Most people in the United States have heard of the N**i Holocaust during which millions of Jewish people were murdered. However, only a small fraction of them have heard about Aktion T4.

Aktion T4 was a N**i program of systematic mass murder targeting people with psychiatric, neurological, intellectual, and other disabilities. Beginning in 1939, people living in hospitals and institutions were selected for death by medical professionals and killed through gassing, lethal drugs, and starvation. The program became a precursor to methods later used in the Holocaust.

Although the start of T4 preceded the N**i concentration camps, many people responsible for these murders were never held accountable and the losses still have not been fully recognized. This film is a critical step in that direction.

08/11/2026

3-Hour overview: The Hearing Voices Approach

August 14, 1-4pm Eastern OR September 3, 3-pm Eastern

Learn about the HVN approach, the history of the movement, how it aligns with a harm reduction approach and key values and strategies.

tinyurl.com/HVNoview



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