We recently connected with Lisa Gennosa and have shared our conversation below.

Lisa, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Was there a moment in your career that meaningfully altered your trajectory? If so, we’d love to hear the backstory.

I started my career in medicine with the expectation of treating individuals with chronic illness and encouraging lifestyle changes to improve their overall health. I wanted to work with multi-generational families because health complications or trends, whether healthy or unhealthy, tend to be readily seen within larger family dynamics. However, my life had a dramatic shift that ultimately changed the course of how I practiced medicine and where I put my emphasis.

I would have to say December 5, 2017, was the defining moment that completely changed the trajectory of my life. My son was brutally mishandled by law enforcement and medical professionals on that day. These same professions were ones that I held in such high honor, but now saw in a very different light and this catapulted me into new arenas of addiction and mental health awareness, crisis intervention training, writing a book and taking on many educational speaking engagements to this day. None of this was on my radar. I never considered myself a writer or a speaker or an activist of sorts, but that’s how these things happen, I guess, and I’m grateful they have.

You see, when I finally accepted that my son had substance use disorder, I dove headfirst into trying to solve the addiction puzzle, first for him and our family and then for my patients and many other families. To kick things off, I wrote a book to give families and loved ones a resource guide and a source of connection. It was a cathartic purge initially, but it ultimately proved to help many others with their own struggles. I, of course, still practice family medicine today as a certified physician assistant, but I now take ownership of helping families with their own struggles of mental health or substance use disorder. I speak out and support the decriminalization of SUD and mental health, I work with the National Association of Physician Assistants to help improve health awareness for our profession and I speak to audiences and students to help them better understand the complexity of addiction and its wide-reaching effects. I have also continued to advocate for better substance use disorder education for all medical students and for empathy and de-escalation training for currently employed medical and law enforcement professionals.

Who knew I would take on this fight? It might seem unusual, but I am grateful we went through the trials that we did. I have been able to learn so much and to share and educate others as a result. Most importantly, I have learned that there isn’t one of us that will make it through this life unscathed, but it is what you do as a result of your hurt and pain that determines your happiness.

Lisa, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am most proud of the initiatives derived from our families experience. I have been able to assist with efforts to decriminalize substance use disorder and mental health, and I have been able to expand SUD awareness in medical and law enforcement training.

I most want people to know about my book, Incurable Hope- A Memoir and Survival Guide for Coping with a Loved One’s Addiction, for the sole purpose of sharing the information with others that may need it. I wish I would have had someone hand me my book many years ago when I was stuggling alone and didn’t know where to turn.

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

Other than training, the ability to listen to understand, and to lead with empathy and compassion are features in the medical field that can’t be taught and are the most helpful for succeeding as a medical professional. Every individuals’ concern is rooted in something much more complex than meets the eye. It takes time, empathy and listening skills to get at the true cause of illness. Treating hypertension, for example, can either be done with pill or with a comprehensive approach that first looks at the cause of that hypertension and addressing that head on. It can be so much more important to explain WHY someone has a particular illness, than HOW it can be treated. Understanding why gives people the power to make the necessary changes for their health. This certainly applies to mental health and substance use disorders as it is well understood that there are many underlying features that are rooted in these conditions. You can’t effectively treat a condition until the underlying cause is determined.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I believe that participation in multiple initiatives helped build my reputation in medicine and as an author and public speaker.

Getting involved with various boards like United Way, NCAPA, and CORE- The Coordinated Opiate Recovery Effort along with volunteering for the SHARP program (The Sheriff’s Heroin Addiction Recovery Program) for incarcerated individuals in reccovery had a huge imapct on both educating myself and then others.

Personally, I don’t take social media to seriously, which is probably not exactly wise, but I’d rather see things develop organically and hope the honesty in that will help to continue to build my reputation.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.lisagennosa.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lisagennosa/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LisaGennosaAuthor
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-gennosa/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3q26o4ixC0
• Other: Youtube channel is one podcast I was on, but uses my book as the thumbnail.