I want to thank all of you who tuned in to our show last night on families and addiction. A lot of time is spent discussing the addict and the addiction itself, but not enough time is spent on family and friends of the addict.

According to the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta, over 23 million Americans suffer from an addiction to drugs or alcohol. We all know addictions can destroy the life of the addict, but what about the family? How can the family cope and support the addict without being co-dependant and feeding the addiction? Our topic for the HealthyPlace Mental Health TV show airing live, this Tuesday, March 31st is "Families and Addiction."

The National Institute of Mental Health estimated that 26.2 percent of Americans suffered from a mental disorder in 2006. That is over one quarter of the adult population who needed help. Have you ever wondered if you might need help or suffer from depression or another mental illness ? Do you know where to find help? Our HealthyPlace TV Show, this coming Tuesday, March 24th is titled: "Reaching Out: How To Know If You Need Help and Where To Find It."

I wanted to thank all of you for watching our show last night on "Soldiers and the Hidden Battle, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder." The show had some really great information for anyone affected by PTSD .

Well over one million American troops have fought in Afghanistan and Iraq. While many troops have given the ultimate sacrifice, many more soldiers may be closet casualties of the war; suffering from nightmares, flashbacks, aggression, and alienation from loved ones. They may not even be able to hold down a job. (See description of PTSD )

Imagine being a cutter, self-injurer, for many years. Wanting to stop, even stopping off-and-on, but always returning to it. Our HealthyPlace TV Show, this coming Tuesday, March 10, is titled: "I am a self-injurer and I cannot stop." Our guest is Dana. You can read a bit more about her struggle with self-injury and see an intro video here.

Thanks to all of you who tuned into our first live broadcast Tuesday evening! The HealthyPlace Mental Health TV Show topic was "The Devastating Effects of Untreated Bipolar Disorder."

Most anyone who is living with bipolar disorder, or who has a family member with bipolar disorder, understands the personal impact this illness can have. In Dr. Harry Croft's post entitled "Bipolar Disorder: Diagnosis and Treatment," he addresses some of the more serious problems:

Welcome to HealthyPlace TV! My name is Josh and I'm the producer for the show. We intend to bring personal stories of what life is like living with a mental illness. Our goal is to let others facing similar challenges know they are not alone in their feelings and experiences. Each week, we'll be discussing different aspects of mental health. Our host will be talking with people about their experiences, how they're coping and what is and isn't working for them. Our co-host and HealthyPlace.com Medical Director, Dr. Harry Croft, will be providing insight and his expertise on the subject matter. In the second half of the show, we open it up to you, our viewers. During this segment, you can ask Dr. Croft your personal questions about anything you wish concerning mental health. And I can assure you, Dr. Croft will give you an easy-to-understand straight answer. Want to Participate or Be A Guest? At the first of each month, I'll be posting a list of the topics we'll be discussing. If you are interested in being a guest on the show, drop me an email (producer AT healthyplace.com) and put "I want to be a guest" in the subject line. Tell me which show topic you're interested in plus a bit about yourself and why you think your story would be a compelling one. We interview all our guests remotely, so of course, you must have a webcam.