Empathy and Expertise:
Dr. Aris Mosley’s Dedication to Brain Health
Brain health issues are rarely a quick fix, which is why programs like the First Episode Center are so incredible. Tailored care is what helps members succeed. The First Episode team can partner with their members and their families for long-term care and see progress on a daily basis.
As medical director of the Valleywise Health First Episode Center, Dr. Aris Mosley is passionate about brain health and helping patients and their families navigate complicated waters.
“Psychosis is different for everyone,” said Dr. Mosley. “Several patients could have the same diagnosis, but each will have different symptoms. It could be voices, paranoia, delusions, or other symptoms of psychosis. The way I try to explain it to my members and their families is that what a person is experiencing at that moment is 100% real to them. It is the way that they are experiencing the world around them. There is nothing that anyone can say or do to change what they are experiencing because that is what their brain is telling them”.
Dr. Mosley didn’t originally intend to become a psychiatrist. “I planned to go into cardiology, but towards the end of medical school, I did my psych rotation through Valleywise,” she said. “I intended to get in and get out. I didn’t want to have anything to do with psych. But, on my last day, when I turned in my keys after my rotation, I had tears in my eyes. I thought that it was a fluke to have loved it so much. My stepfather reminded me that it was the happiest that I had been during the whole of medical school.”
For almost six years, Dr. Mosley has dedicated her life to the young adults at the First Episode Center. Experiencing psychosis at a young age is frightening and can induce feelings of helplessness for both the patient and their family. That’s why early intervention is essential for long-term success when it comes to brain health issues. Research shows that early intervention leads to fewer hospitalizations, acute mental health crises, and engagements with the correctional system.
“We try to stop the episode of psychosis as quickly as possible,” said Dr. Mosley. “My goal is to get these young people back to the life they want to live. The First Episode Center team is there to walk this journey with them. It is our job to help them through this.”
“Improvement and growth don’t have to be grand. It can be as simple as ‘I was afraid to leave the house because my voices have been telling me if I go outside someone is going to kill me,’ to ‘I came into my appointment in person’.” That is a win and those are the things we celebrate,” Dr. Mosley said.
“Behavioral health impacts the entire community, which is why additional funding is so important,” she added. Mental health is not a you-or-me issue—it’s an everyone issue. It touches each and every one of us in some way, shape, or form. Is it going to affect me? A family member? A neighbor? A friend?”
“It doesn’t have to be schizophrenia; it can be anxiety or depression,” she said. “It’s all overwhelming, and it’s all hard. But thankfully, these issues can be addressed. We just need more funding. I get chills thinking about the impact we can make in the Valley of the Sun with increased support. What a difference we will make in the lives of these individuals and their loved ones.”
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