Scharman Grimmer serves as a member of the Young Women General Advisory Council for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She has served as stake and ward Primary president; ward Young Women president, Primary and Relief Society counselor, stake Young Women camp director, Sunday School teacher, Seminary teacher, and in Primary as a music leader, teacher, and Nursery leader.
Bryan Murray was born and raised in Long Beach, California, served in the Japan Sendai mission, and met his future wife, Kristine Clawson, while attending Brigham Young University when they went skiing together with their home evening group. Bryan attended medical school at the University of Kentucky then completed an internal medicine residency with the UCSF San Joaquin Valley Program. He worked with a small group practice in Payson, Utah, before moving the family to Anacortes, Washington, where he joined a small internal medicine group and helped start a hospitalist program at Island Hospital in Anacortes.
In this podcast episode, Julie and the other members of the Top of Mind team reflect on moments from previous episodes that challenged them to stay curious and stick with uncomfortable perspectives instead of dismissing them or putting up defenses. As we put podcast episodes together, we have these “Stick With It” moments all the time – and we hope you do, too, because they’ve led us to new empathy, deeper relationships, and clarity about our own views. One of our producers grapples with the grading system she grew up with. Another reconsiders her thinking on the impact of social media use on teen mental health. We'll also explore a complicated relationship with unions, find empathy in the medication for mental health debate, and reassess the language we use when talking about homelessness.
In this episode we’ll talk about Mosiah chapters four through six. These readings are the conclusion to King Benjamin’s final remarks to his people. They teach, among other things, about the power of persistence. We’ll discuss how the people received a remission of sins and wanted to continue to feel that way. We’ll review principles that teach about the value of continual striving. We’ll talk about how failure is a necessary and expected event in all personal change. We’ll also review how being aware of our thoughts, words, and actions is critical to long-term change.
In this episode we’ll talk about Mosiah chapters one through three. These readings are the first of the largest subsection of the Book of Mormon, which contains many summary comments by the prophet Mormon. We’ll study some principles taught by King Benjamin in his final address to his people. We’ll talk about how the Lord is mindful of us, so much so that He is usually putting things in place for our success well before we were ever born. We’ll also review how mortal challenges and liabilities are a part of life, and should be accepted instead of bemoaned.
In this episode we’ll talk about the books of Enos, Jarom, Omni, and the Words of Mormon. These are the concluding writings of the small plates of Nephi. We’ll focus mostly on the story of Enos and his transformation from sinner to saint. We’ll talk about how all change needs to start with becoming acquainted with spiritual truths, followed by a desire to improve, and concluding with making efforts to change. We’ll also review how as we better understand and believe the truths taught by the Holy Ghost, we are likely to experience greater happiness and peace.
In this episode we’ll talk about Jacob chapters 5 through 7. These are the final writings of Jacob in the Book of Mormon. We’ll talk about the struggle that his life was, and how he learned to overcome difficulty despite ongoing challenges. We’ll review his transformation from someone who doubted in his own abilities to someone who was truly confident. We’ll also talk about how the process of personal change is necessarily going to be slow and difficult. It is through that difficulty that we eventually develop strength and greater faith.
In this episode we’ll talk about Jacob chapters 1 through 4. We’ll review how Jacob appears to have been a somewhat anxious person, referring to himself as anxious many times in his writings. We’ll discuss some of the possible reasons for that. We’ll review four principles in Jacob’s teachings that we can use to better manage anxiety. They include being accountable for our choices, doing difficult things even though they make us anxious, accepting the fact that we are weak and not dwelling too much on that, and following inspired and righteous counsel.
Overall mental health among Americans - young and old - took a nose-dive during the pandemic. But the trend among teens has been worrisome for at least a decade now. Starting around 2012, suicide overtook homicide as a leading cause of death among 15-19 year-olds. In the most recent big survey of high schoolers the CDC does every few years, a quarter of students said they'd seriously considered suicide. Nearly half reported feeling persistently sad or hopeless. One thing is clear: Teen mental health in America is getting worse. What can we do about it? Let's look at three areas for possible intervention for teens in crisis. A lot of doctors and families recognize that medication is often an effective part of mental health treatment. But others worry that we're too quick to jump to prescription medications - particularly for teens. We'll tackle the role of sleep: two-thirds of American teens are chronically sleep-deprived. We'll look at the effects of social media, which seems like an obvious culprit - but outright banning it could actually make things worse for some teens.
In this episode we won’t talk about any specific readings from the Book of Mormon, but rather focus on an Easter message. We’ll talk about some of the events of Holy Week, including the stark contrast from the joy of Palm Sunday to the grief of Crucifixion Friday. We’ll review how, even though the ancient saints lingered in grief after the Savior’s death, the brilliant events of Resurrection Sunday rewarded their faith and healed their pain. We’ll talk about the applications for our lives, as we each experience grief and wait for resolution.