Lost Patients

Lost Patients takes you into new spaces most people have likely never experienced before — the inside of someone's psychosis, mental health court rooms, and the past and present streets of Seattle, says Esmy.

Jimenez, collaborating journalist of Lost Patients, Apple Podcasts' Spotlight show for August 2024. Jimenez, joined by Will James and Sydney Brownstone, have created a deeply immersive six-part docuseries that explores the challenges of treating severe mental illness through the lens of one city's past, present, and future. Together, they have crafted a listening experience that mirrors the labyrinthine journey of individuals and families grappling with this crisis.

"Lost Patients put us in contact with some of the most profound people we've ever met: people who have experienced psychosis," says James. "They have been to some of the farthest reaches of human experience, often with terrifying or devastating results, and nonetheless wanted to share what it was like with others to help them understand. These conversations have changed my perspective on mental illness — and, in some ways, on being alive."

Brownstone agrees, "I hope considering someone in psychosis as being stuck in a dream — rather than simply unpredictable and volatile for no reason — opens up a new pathway to empathy for listeners."

"Our goal was to help listeners see all the various shades of gray in these big national conversations about homelessness, addiction, and mental health," Jimenez explains. For James, "This podcast is for the countless people who witness people in mental health crisis — either on the sidewalks, busses, and subways of U.S. cities or in sensational TV coverage — and are working through their own feelings of confusion, fear, anger, and hopelessness."

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Recent Reviews

arukind

Really worthwhile listen

Excellent podcast and reporting, great analysis of this issue. I recommend.
Rachel 688

Bravo!

As someone with mental illness, I applaud the insight and enlightenment in this podcast. Well done! Thank you! 💚
ashley collins 1277

🌅

🕊️ 👤🌄
TampaPierce

A sensitive, honest, and thought provoking piece

This is such a work of art. I absolutely loved it. The episode “disease without knowledge” completely wrecked me. As someone with a sister who suffers from severe bipolar, the father who dealt with his son’s mental illness with such grace completely shifted my worldview. So much to think about.
Amy Abdel

Much-Needed Mental Health Reporting

I can’t recommend this podcast enough.
Jennie Wynn

Exceptional Reporting

An incredibly sensitive, in-depth portrait of people with serious mental illness, the people who love them, and how we as a society have failed them-for centuries. Engrossing. Tragic as well as hopeful.
MJRev$

Enlightening

This was both sad and enlightening. It explains why we see so much sadness on the streets. Also highlights society’s callousness toward the homeless and mentally ill; this attitude cannot continue. As usual we learn that the Dems have tried to help and the Republican presidents promptly undid what JFK and Carter tried to fix. Great pod. I have shared with many.
EC transplant

Exceptional and well worth the listen!

Very informative and thought provoking!
Shanny cl

Episode about psychosis

It’s an interesting podcast, but saying that psychosis causes brain damage is incorrect. It’s much more nuanced than that. Perhaps get an expert psychiatric professional to review prior to release.
Mushy_Toast

Great reporting & moving storytelling

I haven’t been moved to tears by a podcast very many times but this one really got me. There’s great journalism here but it’s also so humanely presented & empathetic.
Socialwork69

Mental Health LCSW

I’ve been a mental health provider (LCSW) for almost 30 years. This is one of the most thoughtful and researched podcasts, I have ever listened. I was there when deinstitutionalization of SMI patients occurred in Oklahoma. I worked at the Tulsa County Jail as the first Jail Diversion Case Manager in the entire state back in 1999. It was a collaborative effort with law enforcement and the judicial system. With my beginnings, the state of Oklahoma has Drug Courts and Veterans Courts throughout the state now. I am very judicious when it comes to Involuntary Commitment because I worked as an Intensive Case Manager with a caseload of 20 to 25 patients who suffered and struggled with Schizophrenia. I knew when they were decompensating but unless they were a danger to self or others my hands were tied even though they had a long documented history of decompensation. Now, I work for the Department of Defense where suicide seems like an everyday occurrence because of moral injuries from war and trauma of being in hostile, war-torn countries. It will never end in my lifetime.
Leftist feminist

Our broken system

As an ED nurse this series was very relevant to my practice as a nurse. We need to do better for our community with mental health issues, it’s possible. Thank you for a eye opening perspective on mental health and the issues associated with the current solution to care for this community.
tmslcsw

Great Listen!

As a clinical social worker who is employed on an ACT Team, this podcast is AMAZING and definitely a must listen!
FlashNaples

Important and Informative

This is a well-researched program that allows an audience outside of the medical or policy establishment to understand why we have so many problems in this country with delivering care and helping to stabilize and protect people with psychotic disorders. There are deeply empathetic stories from various families as well as matter-of-fact interviews with people within the medical, legal and law enforcement systems that demonstrate how conflicts can happen even between well-intentioned people. Definitely listen!
CDDuff

Thought-Provoking, Objectively Amazing Journalism

I finished each episode dumbfounded asking “wow, what do we do about this?” The mental health tragedy in our country is so real and yet, so overlooked. I appreciated the highly objective approach this series took to not point fingers but to make an argument that collectively, our inability to think outside of siloed systems will continue to fail if we don’t reset and think bigger. Thank you for making this series! I hope it helps fuel change.
Joan of DC

Thoughtful, Engaging, Worth the Time

Excellent, compassionate, thoughtful, and well researched podcast on why our mental health care doesn’t really amount to “care” at all. Sadly, real solutions to what drives the mental health and addiction crises in the U.S. will not get the airtime they deserve this presidential election year. Apparently, we’d rather fret about transgender bathrooms and whether Kamala Harris is really black. What can we do to change that?
Asiangurlthatsused2thebelt

...

ENGLISH OR SPANISH 🤓👺🤗☺️🫡😈💀☠️🤡
kait.e73

A must- listen podcast about a HUGE issue

I have a MSW and have bipolar 1 and have first hand knowledge of the failure of the mental health system for people who need involuntary care. It’s such a complicated issue that gets forgotten about in the chaos of politics and government. Thank you for your great work.
Tune inner

More of this please! Issue needs attention!

I was an LICSW for 30 years. This podcast describes the tragedy of the woefully inadequate U.S. mental heath system. Laws, services, competent staff and insurance coverage are all extremely deficient. Many of us left the field. We, patients and families often feel hopeless & helpless.
PsychRNPA

Thank you!

You’ve done a really good job here with this podcast. Would love to hear more about the challenges faced by the caregivers (doctors, nurses, psych techs) who deal with people in psychiatric crisis on a daily basis. These are understandably high burnout roles and the reasons for this are as complicated as the patients they care for. Iwas really inspired by the physician in episode 8 who said the best treatment is treatment from a practitioner who sticks with the patient over time, not necessarily the one with the most credentials who charges the most $$. Any meaningful solutions to our current mental healthcare crisis will take into account that each patient will likely need their own specific approach based on who they are, their experiences in life and not the various diagnostic labels they receive from medical professionals.
LJJCDC

Keep doing this

Thank you so much for all your hard work and insight into starting a crucial conversation and hopefully a positive change for all those who are struggling with severe mental health and the churning. I shared this entire podcast with several friends and family members.
kakerri

Thoughtful and comprehensive

My family has a history of schizophrenia. My aunt was lost to us when I was 13 years old. She is still alive to my knowledge but she was paranoid - especially about our family. There was lots of trauma, some drug use, and years of homelessness. As much as I have read over the years about this disease and psychosis, I learned so much in this and I feel like I was able to look through a window I have wanted to look through my whole life. Thank you so much for the incredible delicate and detailed work.
Jesse Mangan

Well produced series but never fully investigates the complexities it claims to have answers for

Well produced series but doesn’t dive deep enough into the complexities of these issues and at times seems to just regurgitate misleading talking points that can actually reinforce stigma.
Paleojenn

Praise for sensitive reporting

If you know someone suffering from drug addiction and they have been diagnosed or need to be diagnosed with a mental illness, this is an amazing resource. My brother died from his addiction in 2017. I’ve been a little bitter about it and angry with him for so long, even before his death. This podcast really helped me see my brother differently. Thank you for reporting on this and not forgetting about the lost patients.
Banderson89

Adam’s story

This podcast focuses on a broken system, the struggle many face, and my own brothers tragedy. I appreciate the journalists approach in helping get Adam’s story out there so that we as a country can see how broken the system is and maybe Adam’s story can save someone else’s brothers life.
Brett Dillahunt

Everyone connected to mental health work should listen

Lost Patients talks about the myriad complexities of mental health in a way I don’t think anyone else ever has. As someone who provides emergency assistance, it’s hard not to see from only my own work’s perspective. We get wrapped up in the mission of helping, and we cannot see the full picture. This podcast is critical at filling some of my own gaps. It’s intimate, it’s tragic, it’s illuminating, and most of all, it’s honest and authentic. I truly believe everyone who is connected to mental health in this country should be listening to this podcast.
brugrad

Enlightening

This podcast was engrossing. As an emergency nurse for 25 years I have seen and treated my fair share of acute psychiatric patients and this series gave a new compassionate perspective to this complex problem. I have shared this with fellow nurses and am considering making it a required listen for the young nurses transitioning their practice to the emergency setting.
Lozen16

Must listen!!!

Medical social worker here…in Portland. This should be a must listen!! Especially for those who hold gross derogatory beliefs about those experiencing homelessness. Solid reporting. Well done!! 👏👏👏
Dandesan

Insightful

This podcast, while sad it is so insightful. Thank you for helping us understand the background of how we got here, so that we can be more compassionate to our fellow unhoused neighbors and residents of the Seattle area. This is not a simple situation and every story is so individual, yet there is the common denominator of mental illness. I loved the last episode and the last part - we need to rethink how do we want our society to be. I will be making packs to keep in my car for when I see a person in need.
Lilly Duron

Thank you for making this

Lou in the last episode was my favorite ♥️ Thinking a lot about my cousin who gets better before she gets worse, only to start again. Will share this podcast with my family. It’s a difficult listen but also so helpful to hear from others who have some of the same struggles. And the historical backstory is so interesting !
MrsBiggs

Excellent

great storytelling. riveting. im gobbling up the episodes!
Jenn Machin

Must listen

I have shared this with my entire family. For people who have loved ones who suffer with mental illness you can feel very alone and that no one is listening to your concerns or that there is no place to find answers or help. This podcast covers vast ground of our country’s patchwork of social services for the severely mentally ill, how we got here, and where we might go next. I found it invaluable for helping me think through options and possibilities for my loved ones (and avoid pitfalls!).
guyseattle

Great podcast

Lost Patients delves into the true state of our broken mental health system.
K_Lalo

Wow wow wow!

Exceptionally well done. I am struck by the need for anti-ableist voices across systems - government, health care, education, and social services.
not a stalker2

Enlightening and destigmatizing

Great reporting. Every city has a patch work of services and it's own unique churn, and I want to know more about the experience of people in my town now.
awinterhalter

Nuance & Empathy

So impressed and grateful for this meaningful research and reporting. Listening to Lost Patients has given me new language and insights to better understand psychosis and the challenges of care systems for severe mental health conditions.
Floor-Flogeras

Powerful and Important

If you're like me or just about anybody who has witnessed the disturbing rise of publicly displayed mental illness and attendant rampant homelessness in our country, and wonder why...I highly recommend this series. Just finished listening to the final episode. It is so well done - an amazingly empathetic yet dispassionate exploration of why and how it all works and dysfunctions. In the few weeks since the first episode dropped I find myself looking at these people so differently and without the knee-jerk hostility I had cynically adopted. Deep gratitude to the journalists who did the work to tell this story, and to the people who deal with this every day.
Konyeboy

Insight

This is a truly fabulous series delivered by a host who has a voice that is so easy to listen to, and the reflects the deep contemplation about this issue that you experience each episode. As with people who are neurodiverse, perhaps we need to start considering that there is not one brain type (‘normal’) that we need to support and allow for all different types in our community.
darlarm

Finally! This is finally getting out to the public!

I have been teaching this exact disservice to our mental health population for years in my psychology classes. Society, or more precisely politicians, did not look at the big picture of closing mental hospitals and (in Texas) state schools and the long term effects of displacement of this population. I could go on and on about how people with mental illness have been failed by the very ones who should be helping them. Thank you for publicizing this problem.
hg216

Great show!

Exceptional reporting and good storytelling.
TaraLovesPodcasts

Beautiful and enlightening

Amazing, heartbreaking, profound reporting in this series. Loved it.
mergirl8

Thank you for telling this story

I’ve been on a 4 year journey attempting to advocate for a friend of mine with complex mental health issues who is also homeless. It is an incredibly difficult and frustrating journey. Each state has their own processes and rules. So many hoops to jump through. It has become a second job for me trying to help him navigate, since he is so ill and cannot advocate for himself. Thank you for shedding light on this situation that is effecting so many. The systems are in dire need of reconstruction. I hope we can come together and find solutions soon to help these people heal and keep them safe.
cgbroncos

Incredibly Well Done

Well researched, compelling storytelling, very insightful listen
desperately single

Riveting podcast

…Of the mental health cris alongside many missteps. Narrator is straightforward and informative which is welcome.
iPop-a-lot

Impeccable

Important, informative and educational! Thank you!
Fab 45

A Phenomenal Series!

I work in crisis intervention in domestic violence/sexual assault advocacy & frequently see how psychiatric issues affect these vulnerable populations. It’s heartbreaking to find how little we can really help untreated mental health clients. I have seen some patients subjected to the trauma of multiple assaults over the years because of their vulnerability, which only compounds the complexity of their needs. This kind of thorough, investigative, compassionate reporting is what our society needs to bring to our attention these things we don’t want to see. This series is brilliantly done & I hope they continue to highlight these kinds of societal challenges.
stillnotanonymous

Riveting and heartbreaking

This excellent series is a deep dive into how the mental health system in America has become the tragedy that it is today. Thank you for your excellent reporting on this crisis that affects all of us, whether we know it (or want to acknowledge it) or not.
R2D2ABC

It all makes sense now

As a parent if kids with mental health issues I’ve always wondered why it was so difficult to navigate around treatment and why everything seems so disjointed. This puts it all into perspective. Everyone needs to listen to it.
AAlessandri13

Avid podcast listener

& this podcast had me lock finally. I’ve been waiting for a podcast to keep me going like older pods used to!
stinkydogbreath

Good job!

Nicely done. Very well paced and informative. I am not completely done yet and really hoping you’ll talk about the new research showing schizophrenia is an autoimmune disease attacking the brain.