WBEZ 91.5 Chicago

Michael Williams and Richard Cahan discuss their new new book, Vivian Maier: Out of the Shadows.

For the past few weeks, Out of the Shadows explored the numerous obstacles that surround mental illness. In the series' last conversation, Eight Forty-Eight explored what could be done to break down those barriers.

Katie Osgood made her way down Lawrence Avenue; she was on her way to work. An ambulance passed and she wondered if it was one of her students. Hers is not a typical classroom: There are no desks, the kids wear scrubs and she’s careful about what supplies she uses."Count out my pencils, you know.

Some wards of the state end up in psychiatric hospitals like Chicago Lakeshore Hospital. Over the years, the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services has made great strides in finding homes for abandoned, neglected and traumatized kids.

Experts interviewed in WBEZ’s Out of the Shadows series said family intervention is a huge factor in obtaining and—more importantly—sticking with treatment.

Thirteen-year-old Joey likes to rescue toads and climb trees."The tallest tree I ever climbed actually bent over when I got to the top," said Joey excitedly. "That’s what’s really funny, I have the fear of heights, except that I’m not afraid, maybe because it’s just nature.