'Unconditional' documentary highlights mental health awareness for caregivers

IT IS SOMETHING THAT NO ONE

IT IS SOMETHING THAT NO ONE

REALLY WANTS TO THINK ABOUT,

FOR SO MANY OF US, IT'S

SOMETHING THAT BECOMES A

REALITY.

THAT PEOPLE LIKE, OUR PARENTS,

BEGIN TO AGE.

WHAT WILL WE DO WITH OUR LOVED

ONES OUR HEROES, THE FOLKS

WHO'VE BEEN WITH US FOR SO LONG

NEED US TO BECOME THEIR

CAREGIVERS?

JUST IN TIME FOR MENTAL HEALTH

AWARENESS MONTH, THAT TOPIC IS

NOW THE SUBJECT OF A FIRST OF

ITS KIND DOCUMENTARY BUT MY

FRIEND AND COLLEAGUE, RICHARD

LUI, WHICH JUST AIRED LAST

NIGHT ON MSNBC.

HERE'S THE FIRST LOOK AT THE

STORY, SEVEN YEARS IN THE

MAKING.

>> I'M RICHARD LOUIS, LIVE IN

NEW YORK CITY.

I'VE BEEN A JOURNALIST FOR 15

YEARS.

AND THEN MY DAD GOT DIAGNOSED

WITH ALZHEIMER'S.

>> BY SUN RICHARD.

>> GOOD TO SEE YOU TOO.

>> IT WAS A LONELY ROAD.

UNTIL I FOUND OTHERS.

THE ONCOLOGIST SAID IT LOOK

LIKE SOMEBODY HAD TAKEN CAKE --

AND DIFFERENT CANCER.

>> WE KNOW HE STRUGGLES WITH

BRAIN INJURY, HE CONSIDERS HIM

350% DISABLED.

>> THE REASON THAT I CAN CARRY

ON, IT'S BECAUSE OF FAMILY

COMMUNITY AND LOVE.

>> MSNBC ANCHOR AND MY BESTIE,

RICHARD LOUIS, JOINS US NOW.

RICHARD, WHEN I HEARD THAT YOU

ARE MAKING THIS DOCUMENTARY,

FIRST I SAID, I DID NOT KNOW

RICHARD LOUIS WAS AN

AWARD-WINNING FILMMAKER.

SECOND, I WAS SO TOUCHED BY

THIS.

WELL MY FATHER IS NO LONGER

WITH US AND MY MOTHER IS WELL

RIGHT NOW, SHE WAS A CAREGIVER

FOR MY GRANDMOTHER, HER MOTHER.

AND I WATCHED IT HAPPEN.

YOUR DOCUMENTARY IS JUST, I

THINK, SO TIMELY.

WHY DID THIS TAKE SEVEN YEARS

TO MAKE?

>> SIMONE, THANKS A LOT, YOU

KNOW, YOU SAW YOUR MOM REALLY

SAID, AS YOU SAID EARLIER, A

HERO.

DEPENDING ON WHAT TIME IN OUR

LIFE WE EXPERIENCE THAT, WE SEE

DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE.

SEVEN YEARS IS BECAUSE SEVERAL

REASONS, NUMBER ONE.

I THOUGHT MOST CAREGIVERS, AND

THOSE WHO WATCH CAREGIVERS AS

YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT, SIMONE,

IT LETS YOU TAKE TIME FOR TO

SOAK, IT DOESN'T HIT YOU

IMMEDIATELY.

YOU TALKED YOUR MOM ABOUT YOUR

JOURNEY, AS SHE WAS CARING FOR

HER PARENT, SHE WOULD PROBABLY

EXPRESS THE VERY SAME THING.

AS WE STARTED TO DIG IN FURTHER

AND FURTHER IN THE STORY, AND

IT'S REALLY STARTED WITH ME

TAKING CARE OF MY DEAD, AS YOU

SHOWED IN THE CLIP, I KNOW

THERE ARE SO MANY OTHER FOLKS

THAT WERE GOING THROUGH IT.

IT WAS 20 MILLION, AND THERE

WAS 50 MILLION, NOW, UP TO 100

MILLION PEOPLE IN AMERICA

TALKING ABOUT IT.

YET, WE DON'T TALK ABOUT.

WE FEEL LIKE WE'RE ALONE.

SO, SEVEN YEARS IS BECAUSE IT

WAS SORT OF SELF THERAPY.

ME GOING THROUGH TO.

AS WELL AS OTHER PEOPLE

TEACHING ME, SIMONE.

>> YOU KNOW, CAREGIVERS ARE

TAKEN CARE OF THEIR LOVED ONES,

OFTENTIMES, AGAIN, WE'RE

TALKING ABOUT A PARENT.

BUT THERE ARE SO MANY PEOPLE

WHO FALL IN THIS SANDWICH

GENERATION, WHO ARE ALSO TAKING

CARE OF A PARENT, OR ALSO

YOUNGER CHILDREN AT THE SAME

TIME.

THEY'RE STRUGGLING WITH THE

PAIN OF WATCHING THEIR LOVED

ONES DECLINED.

TALK ABOUT THE TOLL CAREGIVING

CAN TAKE ON ONE'S MENTAL

HEALTH.

WHAT DID YOU LEARN THROUGH YOUR

OWN EXPERIENCE.

>> YOU FEEL ALONE.

YOU FEEL LIKE YOU'RE THE ONLY

PERSON IN THE ROOM GOING

THROUGH IT.

AS I WAS JUST EXPRESSING,

THERE'S 100 MILLION PEOPLE.

WE DON'T GET TRAINING.

WE DON'T GET PAID.

BUT WE FEEL ALONE.

THE MENTAL HEALTH TOLL IS

BECAUSE YOU FEEL LIKE IT'S YOUR

OWN BATTLE.

ONLY DO.

A LOT OF THAT IS FOR YOUNGER

CAREGIVERS TO.

DID YOU KNOW THAT THERE WERE 5

MILLION, 17 AND YOUNGER, FAMILY

CAREGIVERS AS WELL?

THERE ARE 25 MILLION MILLENNIAL

AND YOUNGER CAREGIVERS.

I BET YOU MOST OF THEM, IF NOT

ALL OF THEM, THE ONES I'VE BEEN

ABLE TO ME ALONG THE WAY, HAVE

SAID, SIMONE, THEY THOUGHT THEY

WERE THE ONLY ONE IN THE ROOM.

THE KEY IS TO DEFINITELY REACH

OUT, TO FIND THAHER SUPPORT

GROUP THAT CAN BE OUT THERE.

AGAIN, IT'S NOT ONLY MENTAL

HEALTH WRONG, IT'S OFTEN THE

WAY IT'S EQUATED, MENTAL HEALTH,

AS I WAS TOP OF THE 13 YEAR OLD,

SIMONE, SHE SAID, WHERE YOU

WOULD THINK ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH

AS A STRENGTH?

THAT MENTAL HEALTH ISN'T ONLY

WRONG, IT CAN BE STRONG.

THAT'S OUR CULTURAL GAP.

WE THINK MENTAL HEALTH EQUALS

MENTAL ILLNESS.

THAT'S NOT THE CASE.

>> I MEAN, I OFTEN SAY, RICHARD,

WE HAVE PROFESSIONALS FOR ALL

KINDS OF THINGS.

PROFESSIONAL PEOPLE WHO CUT OUR

HAIR, PROFESSIONAL DOES MY

NAILS EVERY TWO WEEKS.

WHEN WE HAVE POTENTIALS FOR A

MENTAL HEALTH?

>> EXACTLY.

YOU KNOW WE HAVE TO DO, NOT

ONLY CLOSE THAT CULTURAL GAPS

WE DON'T THINK LIKE, WE GET

PHYSICALLY UNHEALTHY, I'M A

LITTLE FLABBY RIGHT, I GO, GET

A COACH, GET A TRAINER.

WHY CAN WE DO THE SAME FOR A

BRAIN GETS A LITTLE FLABBY.

WHY IS IT A THERAPIST, IS SUCH

A NEGATIVE WORD.

THAT'S WHY FOLKS GOT A REACH

OUT TO THEIR LOCAL RESOURCE,

THERE'S PLENTY OF THEM OUT

THERE.

>> IT IS SO NECESSARY, I'VE

BEEN A USER OF MENTAL HEALTH

THERAPY MYSELF.

IT ABSOLUTELY WORKS.

I WOULD KNOW, IT SAVED MY LIFE.

RICHARD, THE FIRST LADY, DR.

JILL BIDEN, SHE ACTUALLY HELD A

SCREENING OF YOUR DOCUMENTARY

AT THE WHITE HOUSE.

HOW DID THAT COME ABOUT?

WHAT DO YOU THINK THAT CONGRESS

OR THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION CAN

DO IN TAKING ON THIS ISSUE.

WHAT DO YOU HOPE COMES OF YOUR

WORK?

AS >> YOU KNOW SO WELL, SIMONE,

BECAUSE YOU'RE PLUGGED IN ON

ALL OF THIS, THIS

ADMINISTRATION, THIS WHITE

HOUSE, HAS DONE THE MOST IT CAN

WITH ITS RECENT EXECUTIVE ORDER

ON CAREGIVERS, MORE THAN ANY

OTHER WHITE HOUSE HAS DONE.

ON TOP OF THAT, THIS IS A

BIPARTISAN ISSUE.

ELIZABETH --

FOUNDATION, ALONG WITH THE

FIRST LADY.

SENATOR ELIZABETH DOLE, IS

WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH JOE

BIDEN ON THESE VERY TOPICS

ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH FOR

MILITARY FAMILIES.

IN THE SPACE OF CAREGIVING.

THIS IS NOT A LEFT OR RIGHT

ISSUE.

IN FACT, THERE ARE SOME RIGHT

NOW RUNNING THROUGH CONGRESS,

THE CREDIT FOR CARING ACT,

THAT'S ON A FEDERAL LEVEL AT A

STATE LEVEL.

THERE'S ALL SORTS OF THINGS WE

CAN DO THROUGH GOVERNMENT AS

WELL AS IN CULTURE, AS I

MENTIONED EARLIER.

MY HOPE IS THAT CAREGIVING

ISN'T ALWAYS SEEN AS SOMETHING

DIFFICULT.

THAT, SIMONE, WE CAN SEE THE

JOY, AND THAT WE CAN LIVE THE

GOOD STUFF AND NOT WAIT FOR THE

TOUGH STUFF TO BE GONE.

BECAUSE CAREGIVING IS BOTH GOOD

AND TOUGH AT THE SAME TIME.

>> RICHARD LOUIS, YOU'RE NOT

GONNA MAKE ME CRY THE SUNDAY

AFTERNOON.

UNCONDITIONAL, ITS STREAMING

FOR FREE ON PBS, THROUGH JULY,