Event Details

In this presentation, three experts in mental health and counseling will discuss personal experiences with mental illness, addiction and self-stigma.

Lompoc Health Behavior Health Program Manager Michael Dixon, LCSW, will speak about his journey as a family member of someone suffering from serious mental illness while offering suggestions on how to use assertive communication and setting good boundaries. 

LFMT and Clinical Counselor Melanie Tucker will share on her journey of compound grief and addiction, offering insight from both personal and professional viewpoints with cultural sensitivity and awareness.

LVMC Emergency Department Patient Navigator Emily Dixon, a Peer Support Specialist, will discuss self-stigma and delays in receiving care due to shame about symptoms.

BIOS:

Melanie Tucker is a Licensed Marriage Family Therapist at Lompoc Health – Behavioral Health. She previously was a clinical counselor at Cottage Hospital/Cottage Residential Center. She has a background in spiritual care work as well as a mental health rehabilitation specialist.

Michael Dixon is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Lompoc Health Behavioral Health Program Manager. He previously worked in LVMC’s Case Management Department assisting with discharge planning, care coordination, therapeutic intervention, and staff education on mental health. Michael has extensive experience working with patients in crisis which he did as a crisis clinician at SB Behavioral Wellness.

Emily Dixon had a 20-year career in hospitality and was a peer support intern with Helping Hands in Lompoc. She is the LVMC Emergency Department Patient Navigator and emphasizes harm reduction and stigma/culture change. Emily is a Peer Recovery Specialist and is working on her master's degree to become a social worker. Emily is in recovery and uses her own personal history to guide individuals on their path to recovery.