The holidays can intensify the ache of suicide loss — the empty chair, the unanswered questions, and the pull of the “canyon of why.” In this reflection, Dr. Sally Spencer-Thomas shares her family’s story of losing her brother Carson and offers gentle guidance for survivors moving through grief, guilt, and remembrance during this tender season.
Veterans carry remarkable strengths into civilian life — resilience, mission focus, and a deep commitment to taking care of their own. As we move beyond Veterans Day, this piece explores how those qualities make veterans powerful leaders in workplace mental health and suicide prevention, and why their service uniquely prepares them to champion wellbeing long after the uniform comes off.
We are heartbroken to share the passing of Dr. Charlie Cartwright — a true champion of care, connection, and courage. Charlie lived his message deeply, reminding us that “connections save lives.” His warmth, wisdom, and humanity shaped our field and touched countless lives. Though we’ve lost a dear friend, his legacy of compassion continues in the work he inspired.
When I talk with people who have lived through suicidal despair, I’m struck again and again by something that doesn’t fit neatly into a clinical checklist.
The holidays can intensify the ache of suicide loss — the empty chair, the unanswered questions, and the pull of the “canyon of why.” In this reflection, Dr. Sally Spencer-Thomas shares her family’s story of losing her brother Carson and offers gentle guidance for survivors moving through grief, guilt, and remembrance during this tender season.
Veterans carry remarkable strengths into civilian life — resilience, mission focus, and a deep commitment to taking care of their own. As we move beyond Veterans Day, this piece explores how those qualities make veterans powerful leaders in workplace mental health and suicide prevention, and why their service uniquely prepares them to champion wellbeing long after the uniform comes off.
We are heartbroken to share the passing of Dr. Charlie Cartwright — a true champion of care, connection, and courage. Charlie lived his message deeply, reminding us that “connections save lives.” His warmth, wisdom, and humanity shaped our field and touched countless lives. Though we’ve lost a dear friend, his legacy of compassion continues in the work he inspired.
Grief after suicide feels like carrying a weight that never truly goes away — but over time, we grow stronger beneath it. In this reflection for International Survivors of Suicide Loss Day, Dr. Sally Spencer-Thomas shares her journey after losing her brother Carson, exploring how connection, compassion, and storytelling help transform unbearable pain into shared strength.
Confession: I did not know who Robbie Williams was.
Meanwhile, the rest of the world: “You mean THE Robbie Williams??” Yes. That one. Pop megastar. International heartthrob. Somehow missed that memo.
(Sorry, Robbie. I must've been living under a rock -- or probably just buried in my graduate school studies in the ‘90s).
I stumbled upon the MOCO Museum while in London last month and left emotionally tangled in a sweater of mental health truth-telling and neon honesty.
If you’ve ever felt completely worn down from caring too much, you’re not alone. Compassion fatigue and soul exhaustion are very real, especially for those of us in helping professions. It’s not just physical or mental tiredness—it’s the deep depletion of our spirit, making it hard to feel joy, purpose, or even hope.
The opioid crisis has become an unavoidable workplace issue — one that impacts safety, productivity, and employee wellbeing across every industry. Despite a decline in overdose deaths in 2024, more than 100,000 Americans still lose their lives each year, with opioids remaining a leading cause. In this article, Dr. Sally Spencer-Thomas and Cal Beyer of SAFE Project outline how employers can take action through education, prevention, and preparedness — from stocking naloxone to promoting safe medication disposal — to create safer, recovery-ready workplaces and save lives.
Supporting employees in recovery isn’t just about compassion, it’s also a practical business strategy that supports workplace safety.
Federal data show that 70% of all adults with an alcohol or illicit drug use disorder are employed, making the workplace an important setting to address substance use disorders. These nearly 14 million workers are about a tenth of the entire adult workforce, of which about 2 million receive treatment annually for an SUD.
Meanwhile, the Bureau of Labor Statistics found that in 2022, the number of unintentional overdose-related deaths on the job in the U.S. rose by more than 13% over 2021, from 464 to 525 deaths.
The McKinsey Health Institute’s 2023 survey of more than 30,000 employees across 30 countries found that employees who believed their holistic health was supported by their workplace reported increased innovation at work, and improved job performance.
The generally accepted dimensions of holistic health include physical, mental, social, and spiritual well-being. To get an idea of how you might address these all at once, consider the ergonomics of your workplace health and safety program. It is a systematized way of avoiding stress to the worker’s body, and can range from the type of office furniture you purchase, to support for repetitive motions, to how storage is designed, to even more complex considerations for skilled industrial labor. A holistic approach to worker safety seeks ways to systematize stress management not just for the body, but the whole person.
Denver, April 30, 2025 – The growing challenges of workplace injuries, absenteeism, and employee burnout are no longer just about physical ergonomics. “Emotional Ergonomics: How the Intersection of Industrial Ergonomics, Pain, and Mental Health Shapes Worker Well-Being” is a new white paper that explores how industrial ergonomics, chronic pain, and mental health are inextricably linked—and why organizations can no longer afford to treat them separately.
For Those Left Behind
You might feel relief… and guilt. Maybe even resentment, confusion, or fear about what’s next.
What’s also common but rarely talked about: Workplace Survivor Syndrome. It's when guilt, anxiety, and hyper-competition kick in after layoffs—often leading people to go into “self-protection” mode.
Here’s how to take care of yourself—and your integrity—through the aftermath.
You probably offer your employees some form of health benefits. But is your benefits package robust enough to fully support your employees’ range of total health needs if they are to be fully present at work and resilient?
One often overlooked area of employee support is for parents of children with mental health concerns. A survey published earlier this year by Lyra Health found that over half of the more than 1,900 U.S. workers surveyed support a child with a mental health concern. Yet, the survey also found that “worker confidence in their employer-provided resources for their kids’ mental health is lagging behind companies’ investments in this area.”
Losing a client to suicide can be devastating personally to a therapist, but professionally, there also can be many unforeseen consequences. The emotional toll is often compounded by systemic issues within the mental health field that can transform a tragic event into a potentially career-ending one.
