Insights & Articles

Brattleboro Retreat Welcomes Christine Alvarez as New Vice President of Outpatient and Residential Services 

by Mary Wilson // May 8, 2025

The Balancing Act

by Dr. John M. Halloran // April 29, 2025

The Healing Power of Creative Arts in Mental Health

by Rory Tallon-Hicks // April 29, 2025

What you don’t know about alcohol

by Mary Wilson // April 29, 2025

Addiction is a no-fault wound

by Geoff Kane, MD // April 29, 2025

Brattleboro Retreat Names Steve Cummings as Chief Executive Officer

by Mary Wilson // November 1, 2024

The Brattleboro Retreat is pleased to announce that its Board of Trustees has voted to appoint Steve Cummings as Chief Executive Officer, following his tenure as Interim CEO since April 2024.

Building on Momentum: Steve Cummings named Interim CEO at Brattleboro Retreat

by Mary Wilson // June 21, 2024

The Brattleboro Retreat is pleased to announce that its Board of Trustees has voted to appoint Steve Cummings as Chief Executive Officer, following his tenure as Interim CEO since April 2024.

Navigating the complexities of eating disorders

by Mary Iellamo, M.Ed. // June 20, 2024

The term “eating disorder” conjures different images for different people. Perhaps one imagines the stereotypical middle-class adolescent girl restricting her food intake to change the way her body looks.

Ambiguous loss: Working through it despite no clear resolution

by Jilisa Snyder // June 20, 2024

I began my health care profession as a physical therapist working in acute rehabilitation. Daily, I bore witness to and interacted with those living in the midst of traumatic bodily injury.

Harmonious Healing

by Daniel Lang, MOT, OTR/L // January 3, 2024

Meet a music therapist at the Brattleboro Retreat.

Take a breath for mental health

by Timothy Kanczuga, MSN, RN, FNP-BC // December 4, 2023

Breathing is essential for life, but it is also a powerful tool for mental health.

How do you heal a 'soul wound?' Reflections on Indigenous People’s Day and mental health

by Nnamdi Pole // November 29, 2023

This week marked Indigenous People’s Day, a day that is meant to celebrate the approximately 7 million American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian survivors of ancestors who originally inhabited these lands before they were colonized by European settlers.

Our youth mental health crisis

by Karl Jeffries, MD // August 1, 2023

Vermont’s Department of Health recently released data from the 2021 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, and it is consistent with the alarm bells that have been going off for the past several years in communities across the state - our youth are increasingly experiencing mental health challenges. The numbers are indeed concerning. In the 30 days prior to the survey, 35% of students reported poor mental health most or all of the time.

Listen, really

by Geoff Kane, MD, MPH // June 22, 2023

What makes a good listener and how you can be a better one.

Helping children develop flexible thinking skills

by Megan Becker, LMFT // May 26, 2023

Structure and predictability play important roles in our lives, allowing us to anticipate, plan, and prepare for what’s coming. A big part of the way we help young children make sense of the world is by using routines, boundaries, and clear expectations. Knowing what to expect and when to expect it can bring comfort and help kids feel secure.

Anxiety: Too much, too little, or just enough

by William Knorr, MD // May 26, 2023

You are hiking a Green Mountain trail and are startled as you round a corner and your eyes widen, noting a large black fur ball ten feet ahead.

Beyond the ADHD diagnosis: Guidance for parents

by Teresa Butler, LCMHC // May 25, 2023

As a parent, your child finally received a confirmation that the ADHD diagnosis you have been seeking for some time is accurate and after the initial sense of relief, you wonder, now what?

A new year and the power of hope

by Karl Jeffries, MD // January 4, 2023

Many people use the changing of one calendar-year to the next as an opportunity to both reflect on the year we leave behind, as well as to contemplate what the coming 12-months have in store.

When winter brings more pain, self-kindness is good medicine

by Sarah Kocz, MA, LCMHC, LADC, R-DMT, RYT // December 21, 2022

As the weather turns cold and darkness comes earlier in the afternoon, many folks begin to lament the onset of winter, as it often brings with it increased pain. If you are anticipating challenges with pain this winter, it is worth paying attention to how you relate to yourself when you are in pain. How you talk to yourself and treat yourself can serve to amplify pain or turn down the volume. When winter weather brings more pain, self-kindness and self-compassion are literally good medicine.

Rutland Regional Medical Center and Brattleboro Retreat Partner on Pilot Telepsychiatry Network Project

by Press Release // December 19, 2022

RUTLAND and BRATTLEBORO, VT - Children experiencing an acute mental health crisis will have faster access to initial treatment thanks to a pilot project pairing emergency room doctors at Rutland Regional Medical Center with psychiatric specialists at the Brattleboro Retreat. Called the Vermont Emergency Telepsychiatry Network, the project is funded and managed by The Vermont Program for Quality in Health Care and is expected to be fully operational early next year.