How One State Is Trying to Destigmatize Mental Illness—Starting With No Handcuffs

Greg Sturgill had been working as a nurse in Central Appalachia for 15 years when he was diagnosed with bipolar II disorder in 2006.

Sturgill was treated and hospitalized more than once while doctors attempted to balance his medication against pre-existing heart problems. He was startled to learn that his father had also suffered from mental illness and even received electroshock therapy, but had hidden his condition from his children.