Author

  • Risa Finkelstein Sugarman

    Risa has an MSW from Fordham University and attended The Jewish Theological Seminary’s List College and has a BA from Columbia University. She has spoken about her history with mental illness for the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving and was featured in Women's Health Magazine's May 2016 issue regarding mental health. Risa was also a panelist on AOL Build discussing the effects of stigma on those with mental illness. In 2017, Risa was also featured in an episode of Dr. Oz discussing her success with ECT (electroconvulsive therapy) and was a featured speaker at Jewish Family Services of Greater Hartford’s first annual event: Embracing Possibility for Mental Health Awareness and was awarded the 2018 Humanitarian Award at the second annual event. She has written for Huffington Post, Psych Central, Kveller, Keshet, The Mighty, Bring Change 2 Mind and was published in the 2nd and 3rd volumes of Stigma Fighters Anthology and on her own blog, risasreality.com. Risa lives in central CT with her husband and their 13 year old child.

Risa has an MSW from Fordham University and attended The Jewish Theological Seminary’s List College and has a BA from Columbia University. She has spoken about her history with mental illness for the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving and was featured in Women’s Health Magazine’s May 2016 issue regarding mental health. Risa was also a panelist on AOL Build discussing the effects of stigma on those with mental illness. In 2017, Risa was also featured in an episode of Dr. Oz discussing her success with ECT (electroconvulsive therapy) and was a featured speaker at Jewish Family Services of Greater Hartford’s first annual event: Embracing Possibility for Mental Health Awareness and was awarded the 2018 Humanitarian Award at the second annual event. She has written for Huffington Post, Psych Central, Kveller, Keshet, The Mighty, Bring Change 2 Mind and was published in the 2nd and 3rd volumes of Stigma Fighters Anthology and on her own blog, risasreality.com. Risa lives in central CT with her husband and their 13 year old child.

My Posts

What Does the Month of Iyar Have to Do with Healing?

Iyar and healing refer not just to a named ailment, but overall wellness and health both internally and externally.
What’s Water Got to Do With It?

What’s Water Got to Do With It?

How does the imagery of water and rain connect Shemini Atzreet and Simchat Torah? What can we learn from this?
Are There Only Ten Days of Repentance Each Year?

Are There Only Ten Days of Repentance Each Year?

Teshuvah in the 10 days of Repentance between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are sacred days, but what about the days before and beyond those?
Learning about Mental Illness from Ruth

Learning about Mental Illness from Ruth

Risa Sugarman teaches that comparing Ruth's strengths to owning our own positive attributes as primary instead of our mental illness.
The Four Questions and Living with Mental Illness

The Four Questions and Living with Mental Illness

We have the opportunity to help teens create long-lasting positive connections to the very traditions they are appropriately questioning.