Today's episode is brought to you by antifa wine moms. LOL. But seriously, today's guest and I met this year thanks to Instragram, but quickly realized that we were both doing a lot of similar work in our local community. When I heard about the work she's done to advocate for better policy around things like mental health, addiction recovery, and even mammogram coverage, I knew I needed to have her on the podcast! Chelsea Laliberté Barnes is a mom, social worker, psychotherapist, advocate, organizer, and change-maker at the forefront of the movement for compassion, justice, and equity for people and families impacted by substance use, overdose, and mental health. After losing her brother to an accidental polysubstance overdose in 2008, Chelsea channeled her grief into action — co-founding Live4Lali, a suburban Chicago-based organization delivering peer support, harm reduction outreach, advocacy, and education to thousands of people each year. In long-term recovery herself, Chelsea brings both lived experience and professional expertise to every space she enters. She is also the co-founder of the Lake County Opioid Initiative, the Illinois Harm Reduction & Recovery Coalition, and, most recently, Liberal Moms of the Northwest Suburbs, a grassroots community of progressive moms organizing for mutual support and advocacy. Chelsea holds a BA in Integrated Marketing Communications from Roosevelt University and a Master of Science in Social Administration (MSSA) with a Child & Family Mental Health specialization from Case Western Reserve University. She served as a Policy Fellow with the Illinois Consortium on Drug Policy, shaping evidence-based approaches to drug policy at the state level. A certified Overdose Education & Naloxone Distribution (OEND) trainer since 2013 and SMART Recovery Facilitator since 2016, she remains deeply committed to meeting people where they are — and helping systems do the same. When she is not caring for her 7-year-old and infant sons, reading, writing, or eating as much pasta as possible, Chelsea supports individuals and communities through her psychotherapy practice and provides nonprofit consulting and lobbying services through CLB Strategies. Follow her journey on Instagram at @mentalhealth.chels. On this episode we talk about: What led her to start a nonprofit and get involved with advocacy at such a young age.How "getting political" might actually help us solve some of our biggest health problems.Small ways we can advocate for ourselves, our neighbors, and a better world overall. Why we feel imposter syndrome as women and what to do about it. Why so many people (moms especially) had many of the same concerns as us around health and landed on MAHA as a solution instead.How to build a village. So many other good things! Follow Chelsea on Instagram Liberal Moms of the Northwest Suburbs Check out Chelsea's voter guide Work with me Download Resistance Training Follow & tag me on Instagram
