Episode 41: Man Up Monday Podcast Episode #41- Brad Hoefs- Fresh Hope Ministries

One out of every five children, teens, and adults in America has a diagnosable mental illness in any given year. And the lives of those who love them are also affected by their mental health challenge. This means that a mental health challenge touches approximately 50% of the American population.And while the doctor, therapist, and medicine are necessary, they are not enough.  Suicide rates continue to rise.  The medical (the doctor, therapist, and medicine) aspects of mental health recovery can lead to a type of “learned helplessness.” When someone’s life is interrupted by mental illness, it can be tough to see a practical way forward with day-to-day life, and a good future seems out of reach.  Feelings of hopelessness begin to settle in.  This hopelessness can lead to suicidal thinking and even death by suicide. WA serious gap exists between someone receiving medical treatment for mental illness and them learning how to live well in spite of it.  This gap is critical. So we become the bridge, the guide from the point of diagnosis to living well.   Research shows that finding a way to live a hope-filled life can be best caught, not taught, by peers who have “been there” and are now living well.  Research also shows that the best antidote for hopelessness is a hope that is rooted in faith.We provide those who are hopeless a safe place to process their pain and experience faith-filled hope modeled, shared, and given in support groups, classes, coaching, and resources that are led and written by peers who are living well in spite of their mental health challenge. This serves as a bridge between someone’s diagnosis and living well in spite of their diagnosis.  Our approach is based on seven mental health recovery principles and 25 years of clinical research on hope. And it works.Because of Fresh Hope, thousands of people are living active, faith- and hope-filled lives.  They are enjoying their relationships, their families, their work, and are feeling more hopeful than ever before.  They are living well in spite of their mental health challenge. They are thriving!