Advocate Spotlight: Kristen Sheppard

Kristen Sheppard, a social worker and owner of Sheppard Behavioral Care & Consulting, LLC, has dedicated over 30 years to advocating for her clients. However, when she began advocating for her son to receive the mental health services he needed, her experience felt different.

During the 2024 legislative session, Kristen dropped everything to testify at a public hearing for SB 411, a recently signed bill that establishes a committee to assess and address insurance coverage gaps and parity compliance for mental health services for youth in New Hampshire. Although she has a fixed work schedule, she moves around meetings with clients and makes time to testify when an important hearing is scheduled. “Every now and then I’m like, no guys, I HAVE to go and do this! This will help you as much as it helps my own family,” Kristen recalls, noting that her clients have always been understanding.

At the public hearing for SB 411, Kristen shared with state legislators photos comparing a patient at a state asylum in 1946 with her 17-year-old son receiving emergency mental health services at a New Hampshire hospital in 2021. The reactions of the Committee members were memorable to Kristen: “It was like an ‘aha!’ moment I gave to the legislators. It's been 75 years and all that has improved is now there's a TV in the room.”

Kristen is most passionate about advocating for mental health care access and disability rights and services for individuals and their families. She frequently sends emails to state legislators and if she’s particularly passionate about an issue, then she tells them her story. “I don’t care how many times people have heard it. We’ve go to fix this stuff!” she says.

Her advice to fellow advocates is to stick with your passion and monitor legislation to know when to effectively share your story.

Interested in becoming an advocate? Click here to sign up!