Inside Psychiatric Hospitals, Community Mental Health Centers, and Jails

With the Clancy trial bringing renewed public scrutiny to mental health systems, we wanted to step back and look at what actually happens inside the systems therapists refer clients to every day. 

In this bonus episode, Morgen and Ashley talk about three settings: psychiatric hospitals, community mental health centers, and jails.

They break down what intake looks like, how the language we use casually can feel alienating to someone in crisis, how autonomy and power function in each setting, and why stabilization alone doesn't fix the circumstances that led to someone ending up there. 

They also share practical steps clinicians can take including: explaining jargon, acknowledging repetition, offering small choices, and staying curious about power dynamics to make these systems more humane for the people inside them.

Content warning: This episode includes discussion of suicide, mental health crises, and other potentially distressing topics. If you are experiencing a mental health crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. If you are in immediate danger, please call 911 or go to your nearest emergency room.

Host Bios:

Ashley Charbonneau, LCSW, LAC, ACS, is a therapist, evaluator, clinical supervisor, consultant, and educator. Her clinical expertise centers on working with individuals impacted by the legal system, grounded in a commitment to offender accountability, survivor healing, and restorative justice.

Ashley has developed multiple 45-hour training programs on clinical supervision and is the author of The Resilient Therapist (Bloomsbury, 2026) and Supporting Clients of Sexual Trauma: Establishing Safety, Processing Shame, and Fostering Healthy Intimacy (PESI, 2026). She provides training nationally on restorative justice, addiction, clinical supervision, working with individuals who have committed sexual offenses, professional boundaries in therapy, and mandatory reporting.

To contact Ashley directly, her website is: https://www.ensopllc.com/

Morgen Villegas, LCSW, LAC, ACS, is a therapist, writer, consultant, and an EMDR International Association Approved Consultant. Through her practice, Vida Idílica Therapy & Consulting, she specializes in helping women heal from trauma, attachment wounds, emotional neglect, and the lasting effects of overfunctioning and caregiving. Using a blend of Internal Family Systems (IFS) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), she helps clients reconnect with themselves and create lives that feel more authentic, spacious, and connected.

Morgen also provides consultation to EMDR therapists seeking greater confidence and nuance in working with complex trauma. Drawing from both professional expertise and lived experience, she is passionate about helping people move beyond "faking fine" and toward lasting healing. She is the author of Shadows to Light, a collection of stories and reflections on emotional neglect, motherhood, and breaking intergenerational cycles. Morgen lives in Colorado with her husband, two sons, rescue dog Raven, and an ever-growing stack of library books waiting to be read.

To contact Morgen directly, her website is: vida-idilica.com