Joe Pritchard

Joe Pritchard’s  mental health  career spans forty years, the first twenty with troubled kids, and the past  twenty  as a  crisis  counselor  /  psychiatric assessment specialist.  As  touched as he was  in  the  late  70’s  toiling  with  severely  autistic-like  children,  his mental health encounters over the past twenty years have enriched his life and his purpose.  His captivating mental health story blog  – midnightbirdcage.com  – shares a side of mental health rarely seen.

Joe’s   mental health companion  over the past twenty years just happens to be Donna, his wife of more years than  either  can  fathom (since 1991).  The mutt riding their favorite  ferry  is  Haley.  The three of them live for the beach and long to return…

Joe  and  Donna were privileged  to  have worked side-by-side for fifteen years. “If told that I’d work with my wife, much less 15 years… It was  the  perfect  blend  of nursing and counseling working together. Donna’s keen nursing skills and medical  knowledge,  combined  with her genuine compassion for suffering souls, taught me to see patients  in  a  new  light,  especially  the  elderly.”

As Joe pursues his passion for writing,  he plans to tell Donna’s story one day. “What she has endured and accomplished… a story of courage and grit.”

An afternoon nap turned delusional. An Emergency Room visit turned involuntary psychiatric admission.  Redemption on two home fronts. Lessons learned. An inspirational story of Faith, Hope… And the Greatest of These.

“Outstanding… the stepfather groups are insightful, entertaining, and downright hilarious… a masterful job of discussing the complicated issues of the blended family in a common sense, down-to-earth fashion.”

The Late Nat Winston, MD, Psychiatrist / Former Commissioner of Mental Health, State of Tennessee