PERSON OF INTEREST

Minding Your Mental Health

Local resources to find help in a sometimes difficult season

BY LAVINIA CRESWA

FALL AND WINTER BRING

shorter days with less sunlight, and for about 10 million Americans, the onset of Seasonal Affective Disorder. Symptoms include fatigue, changes in appetite and persistent feelings of sadness. Considering the compounding effects of other chronic forms of depression, and the upcoming holiday season, which brings stress for so many, mental health care takes significant importance at the end of the year.

There is no shame in seeking mental health care services, but finding the right therapist can be challenging. Psychology Today (psychologytoday.com) has one of the most comprehensive search engines for finding a therapist, psychiatrist, treatment center or support group in the 405. Each licensed professional provides a short bio, a list of treatment specialties and an indication of whether they offer virtual sessions and accept certain insurance plans. Many therapists also have sliding payment scales — worth bearing in mind given that an estimated third of therapy sessions are canceled due to out-of-pocket and secondary costs, according to a survey by Verywell Mind.

Teletherapy services such as BetterHelp (betterhelp.com) can also connect you to online sessions on your smartphone, computer or tablet. There are search options for individual therapy, couples counseling and assistance for teenagers. BetterHelp requires a membership that can cost between $60-90 a week depending on availability and location. Coupon codes are available to offset some of the initial costs.

Local resources, such as Hope Community Services and Red Rock Behavioral Health Services, are available at locations throughout Oklahoma. In addition to individual and group therapy, Hope Community Services (hopecsi.org) provides programs for substance abuse and housing assistance. Red Rock (red-rock.com) has a range of therapies for adults and children and mental health services, especially for Medicaid patients. The center offers in-person and online services, as well as its own crisis hotline: 405-987-ROCK (7625).

In July, Oklahoma launched its new statewide mental health hotline, the phone number 988. This direct, three-digit lifeline, similar to 911, is meant for anyone experiencing or witnessing a mental health crisis. Through call or text, users will be connected to a trained health professional to discuss the situation. About 80% of calls can reach a resolution, according to the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. In other cases, the state call center is able to send out a mobile crisis team that includes a mental health professional and trained peer support. This intervention is faceto-face support and could include transportation and assistance with checking in at either an urgent care or crisis center. The lifeline has a relationship with every certified community mental health, community behavioral health and comprehensive community addiction recovery center in Oklahoma.

The goal of 988 is to connect and support callers in the least restrictive or invasive manner, only involving law enforcement if absolutely necessary. In addition to crisis calls, 988 is a resource for all Oklahomans to find local mental health and substance abuse treatment services along with online additional assistance. This single point of contact allows easier access to services to help reduce crisis situations.

Rejuvenating Through Jazz

Pianist and retired police officer Justin Echols shares the power of music

BY KRISTEN GRACE

IN 2004, VETERAN AND

Oklahoma City police officer Justin Echols endured a catastrophic, head-on car accident that changed his life. He suffered severe brain and spinal injuries, and he thought he would be required to resign from the police force and be unable to provide for his children and aging mother. “It was a time of fear,” Echols recalled. While recovering, he found listening to jazz music therapeutic. The sounds of Nat King Cole, Ray Charles and Louis Armstrong soothed him when he awoke at night and could not fall back asleep.

Echols sang in church choir as a child but never had regular access to a piano. When his mother moved in with him after the accident, she brought one, and he was immediately drawn to it. “I had an ear for it, instantly,” he said. “Because of growing up in church choir, I had an intuitive ear for harmony. I started tinkering with melodies.”

While recovering the same year, Echols had the opportunity to sing “America the Beautiful” with a big band orchestra for the Oklahoma City Police Department. “I recognized the other songs they were playing,” he said. “I asked them to play ‘When I Fall in Love,’ and singing for the first time with an orchestra gave me chills.” Shortly after, he acquired Harry Connick Jr.’s new release at the time, the CD/DVD set Other Hours. After watching it, Echols decided that if he couldn’t be a police officer again, he wanted to be a jazz pianist.

“I called the director of the orchestra that I had sung with and asked her to give me piano lessons,” Echols said. “Within a year, I was playing Bach and Beethoven.” When Echols was inducted into the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame in 2012, just six years after he started playing piano, he was both working as an instructor for the police academy and flying into New York on many weekends to meet with jazz trumpeter Wynton Marsalis and then-Juilliard professor Antonio Ciacca. He received South OKC Chamber’s Native Son Award in 2019 and the Oklahoma Hall of Fame Legacy

“I want my life to be as impactful as my music...I’m thinking about what I can do to have a positive impact on culture. I want to play songs that change people’s lives.”

Award in 2021. He retired from his position as police officer in May.

While recognizing the honor of these awards and feeling great excitement about his upcoming national tour with Kristin Chenoweth, Echols nodded and said, “I’ve still got the larger part of my career left.” He acknowledges that after the acclaim early in his career, he’s lost much of his youthful excitement about the limelight. He is now focused on what he wants his personal legacy to be. “I want my life to be as impactful as my music.”

He continued, “I love playing the national anthem in a packed bar, by me, a Black man, a former veteran and police officer. It’s a way of inviting all Americans into that moment. A cowboy may be sitting next to me, holding my hand and singing ‘America the Beautiful.’ That moment is true to my story. I’m compelled to believe that there is still something that I’m supposed to do.”

His musical path forward could be to continue touring on large international stages, or to open a bar and lounge of his own closer to home. Either way, Echols wants to use the power of music for good. “I’m thinking about what I can do to have a positive impact on culture,” he said. “I want to play songs that change people’s lives.”

You can listen to Echols perform at Junior’s on Wednesdays at 7 p.m. and Red Piano Lounge at The Skirvin on Fridays. He’s also available to contact for upscale private events at justinecholsjazz@yahoo.com.

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