PSU Shenango Looks to ‘Stamp Out Stigma’

SHARON, Pa. — The seventh annual Stamp Out Stigma event at Penn State Shenango features a keynote on grief and loss by Susan Tarasevich, program coordinator at UPMC’s Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic.

“Real Talk: Good Grief in the COVID Era” will be held virtually on Oct. 14 and will focus on the importance of caring for one’s mental health, according to a campus release. The event streams live via Zoom at 12:15 p.m. and is open to the community.

“So many of us have experienced losses this year: loss of employment, loss of connections, loss of ‘normal,’” said Tony Paglia, personal counselor at the Shenango campus. “Grief and loss does not just occur when someone close to us dies; we can experience it in the midst of any kind of change, and, this year, COVID-19 has required us to change and adapt so many aspects of our lives.”

Tarasevich, a clinical team training director in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, will talk about common responses to the experience of loss, the brain science behind grief, how to know when it’s time to seek help in processing one’s grief and how best to support others in their journeys with grief.

Stamp Out Stigma was founded in 2014 by Jack Luchette, a Penn State Shenango human development and family studies alumnus, to highlight resources, awareness and personal stories about mental health to our community.

“The event has been embraced as an opportunity to discuss sensitive and important mental health topics like depression, trauma, addiction and suicide,” Paglia said. “We hope that this program will give individuals an opportunity to consider how change can lead to grief, and also that resources are available to help individuals process grief of all kinds.”

The program is free and registration is not required. Individuals can access the event via Zoom webinar ID 940 7197 7674, and passcode 511831.

Source: Penn State News

Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.