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Addressing our community’s behavioral health: it takes a village

Letter to the editor published by East County Californian & The Alpine Sun, December 19, 2019
Randy Lenac

The holidays are the time of year we see decorations and hear music that should bring us joy. Yet, the stress of the holi­days can be even more powerful, especially for our district resi­dents who live with some type of mental health or substance abuse issue in their families.

According to the American Hospital Association, behavior­al health disorders affect nearly one in five Americans. Behav­ioral health is a broad, catchall term to describe wellness or ab­sence of wellness in a person’s mental health or a substance use behavior. The main types of behavioral health disorders in­clude mood (such as depression or bipolar disorder), anxiety, personality, psychotic (such as schizophrenia), eating, trauma-related (such as post-traumatic stress), and substance abuse.

East Region residents should remember that these disorders are often treatable with some combination of talk therapy and/or medication, but, diagno­sis and treatment are not always that simple. Read more…

About Randy Lenac

Randy Lenac has served the community as a Grossmont Healthcare District board member since 2014. Since 2011, he has served on the board of the Grossmont Hospital Corpora­tion (GHC). Lenac also served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1975 to 2002, retiring as a lieutenant colonel. Today, he is a cattle rancher in Campo.

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