Max E. Guttman is the owner of Recovery Now, L.LC, a private mental health practice in New York City. Through his work as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, therapist, and disability rights advocate, Max fights for those without a voice in various New York City care systems. He received a ‘2020 Bearcats of the Last Decade 10 Under 10’ award from the Binghamton University Alumni Association.
‘I knew my illness was so complex that I’d need a professional understanding of its treatment to gain any real momentum in recovery,’ Guttman says. ‘After undergraduate school and the onset of my illness, I evaluated different graduate programs that could serve as a career and mechanism to guide and direct my self-care. After experiencing the helping hand of my social worker and therapist right after my ‘break,’ I chose social work education because of its robust skill set and foundation of knowledge I needed to heal and help others.’
‘In a world of increasing tragedy, we should help people learn from our lived experiences. My experience brings humility, authenticity, and candidness to my practice. People genuinely appreciate candidness when it comes to their health and Recovery. Humility provides space for mistakes and appraisal of progress. I thank my lived experience for contributing to a more egalitarian therapeutic experience for my clients.’
Delusions put the crazy in madness and mental health disorders. This means, simply, when we think he or she is “out there” and “nuts” it’s delusional systems that we are referring to within a persons larger set of symptoms. Delusions carve out the imaginary and marries it with […]
“You’re retiring?! Who is going to help me now?” Clients ask this to their case managers, therapists and mental health workers every day. The question boils down to one of the oldest axioms: survival. Patients want to know how they will survive after their workers retire or move […]
One of the most canonical features or symptoms of mental illness is the hallucination. There are many known presentations of hallucinations. Some of them are one voice or noise. It can seem like it is exterior to our body or it can sound internal. Some voices talk with […]
Paranoia creeps into our mental outlook, almost undetectable
Public Transportation in New York State, in particular busing, is a county wide initiative. New York State Department of Transportation services a multitude of individuals, according each respective municipality delineating the State by county lines of demarcation. The United States Federal Government puts public busing policymaking in Albany’s […]
We are in control our lives.
Unquestionably, the spectrum between negligence and overprotection carries with it serious implications in clinical & peer professional practice in mental health. Even in our personal lives, we have friends and family we care for and we wonder where the line is drawn when it comes to caregiving or […]
There is no question that in the mental health system peers and clinicians are divided on the issue of diagnosis. As a peer and a clinician I will suggest a bi-party solution to this age old divisive question in modern day mental health treatment. At the root of […]
“A house divided cannot stand” Abraham Lincoln They are familiar words that defined a period in this nations history that defined the future and course of world history. These words seem to be long but forgotten today in the peer movement. We expect people to learn from our […]
Clinicians, you’ve heard this before… & hopefully, you know the rules. Depending on your program, the office of mental health prescribes rules for the practice of treatment. The rules encompass the way we document, carry out treatment, and even bleed into the philosophy of care and implementing of […]
Absolving themselves of listening to how their behavior impacted their victim because of their illness.
During my first inpatient psychiatric experience as an adolescent I discovered that snack time was a crucial part of the day. Not only did snack time break up a monotonous schedule but it created an experience for patients in a hospital setting to enjoy, even savor the moment […]
If you are a student or the parent of a student transitioning to high school that is feeling stressed or anxious, this article is intended to help you feel a bit more relaxed. All students feel their anxiety levels wax and wane as the school year progresses. For […]
For most of us served by its auspices, we just call it the system. There are many systems serving consumers with services and its people with “benefits” (e.g. social security, social services). Some of these systems are more distressed and outmoded then others, but no system is as […]
Introduction Life can be full of surprises, and we all face challenges every day. For individuals living with a mental health condition, the challenges may be more complex and require specialized strategies to overcome. Effective problem-solving skills can be a valuable asset in addressing the obstacles that may […]
Accepting you will never be “the old you, again” is something you need to come to grips with before you can continue on your path to recovery.
On behalf of Mental Health Affairs, I would like to wish you the very brightest and most cheerful holiday season
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Setbacks and challenges are a natural part of life
In life, there are times when we feel like everything is spiraling out of control. It’s normal to feel overwhelmed and uncertain during a crisis, whether it’s related to personal relationships, finances, or existential issues. In these moments, we all wish we had more control over our situations. […]
Self-management skills involve recognizing and understanding emotions
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Preparing all system supports with a realistic clinical picture might just preserve the feelings of those with a diagnosis trying to move forward in their recovery
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