Interviews & Speaking
Reported pieces, conversations, and events featuring me.
Mopco Improv Theatre Celebrates 30 Years of Laughter with Local Roots
Schenectady’s popular improv theater marks its 30th anniversary with more community-building comedy. In the early ’80s, Michael Burns was “doing the whole young New York actor thing.” The comedy scene there was cutthroat and crowded by aspiring “Saturday Night Live” players, he said, and he had grown weary of the constant competition. Then came a…
Clinicians Lobby for a New Way to Assess Suicide Risk
Clinicians often rely on patients to disclose thoughts of self-harm, but some are lobbying for a new diagnosis to better assess the risk. In his nearly 40-year career as a psychiatrist, Dr. Igor Galynker has lost three patients to suicide while they were under his care. None of them had told him that they intended…
What Is Possible When You Get to the Root? The Peer-Run Wildflower Alliance Redefines Mental Health Care
Her phone pinged and a grey bubble rose to the surface: “Are you ready to come back?” The answer was supposed to be yes. She should return and recover. All she had to do was find the right cocktail, her doctor had said, the right mix of medications to manage the voices and the visions…
Real People Real Stories
At Ancram Center for the Arts in the Hudson Valley, I was honored to share my experience learning how other people’s perspectives can change the course of someone’s life as part of Real People Real Stories (RPRS) fall 2023 season. RPRS is a storytelling event similar to The Moth where stories are told, not read.…
Ketamine Can Be Transformative for People with Suicidal Thoughts—If They Can Access It
Every day, Marisa Russello was overwhelmed by suicidal thoughts. Even one negative thought might cause her to spiral. A writer working on her book manuscript, she’d be unable to change a word without questioning the entire project’s value altogether. Her depression made it hard to fall and stay asleep. She developed insomnia and took to…
The Sanctuary for Independent Media: Alternatives to Suicide
In this interview, Bosh and Sina speak with Marisa Russello, a writer and mental health advocate who works at the Empowerment Exchange in Troy. We discuss her job where she supports people improving their mental health and wellness, one of the groups she facilitates called Alternatives to Suicide, and her suggestions for talking to people…
AFSP: Out of the Darkness Walk
I’ve participated in the Out of the Darkness Walk every year since moving to upstate New York in 2018. I’m just one of the 14.3 million American adults who has suicidal thoughts. In 2022, I was honored to be the guest speaker for Columbia-Greene’s walk. I’ll be a participant again this year, and you can find my fundraising…
Stability Leader Profile
Marisa had quite a start to her first job out of college. After teaching middle school for a week, she began having delusions and paranoia, not recognizing and becoming suspicious of those around her. She later found out she was experiencing an episode of manic psychosis and received a diagnosis of bipolar I with psychotic…
The Former Teachers’ Club Podcast: Episode 22 Teachers Should Take Their Personal Days (from a mental health advocate)
During this episode Leah and Robin chat with Marisa Russello! Marisa is a former teacher who now works as a peer recovery specialist at a local not-for-profit where she supports individuals improving their mental health and wellness. Marisa is a writer and is working on finishing her first book! Her book, which is a memoir,…
This Is What a Manic Episode Feels Like
Bipolar disorder is a mental health condition that causes unusual mood swings, ranging from extreme highs (known as manic episodes) to extreme lows (called depressive episodes). There are three types of bipolar disorder, bipolar I is marked by full manic episodes while bipolar II is defined by a pattern of depressive and hypomanic—revved up energy,…
Of Mice and Mental Health (opens in new tab)
Dissecting the tangled web of mental health with a supportive group of cartoon mice.