DBSA and Dave's Spark announce music contest winners

The Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA) and Dave's Spark are pleased to announce the winners of The Facing Us 2008 Music Contest. Online public voting determined the top three songs from a group of 16 finalists of musicians from across the country. The contest winners are:

• First Place – "Nevermind" by Ray Henry Ulrich of Edwardsville, IL.

• Second Place – "Break Your Heart" by S. Miria Jo of Santa Monica, CA.

• Third Place – "Lifetime" by Ben Mitchell Arthur of Montgomery, AL.

"The response to the contest was incredible," says Peter Ashenden, president and chief executive officer of the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance. "We received hundreds of songs from musicians all over the country. The winning songs represent three incredibly talented artists who use their creativity to better cope with depression or bipolar disorder."

The winning songs, interviews with the musicians and additional musical selections from the contest are now available on the new Dave's Spark Creativity Center on www.FacingUs.org.

Contest finalists' songs are also featured on a compilation digital CD produced by DBSA.

Dave's Spark is a fund that honors the memory of David Kaplan, a musician, mentor, father of three and Chicago business entrepreneur who lived with bipolar disorder. The fund was established to provide support for families and individuals also confronted with this illness.The competition, part of a larger effort to raise awareness of depression and bipolar disorder, celebrated the ways in which people use creative expression not only to cope, but thrive, while living with these illnesses.

All of the music submitted was original work, written and performed by the artist or artists. Though songs did not have to be about depression, bipolar disorder or mental illness, all of the musicians self-identified as having, or having had, a personal experience with a mood disorder.

In addition to the contest, DBSA and Dave's Spark collaborated to launch the Dave's Spark Creativity Center on the Facing Us website, www.FacingUs.org , a unique and innovative website for those living with depression or bipolar disorder. The newly launched Creativity Center features creative avenues for coping with depression or bipolar disorder.

In the Center, you can:

 Hear from musicians, authors, researchers, artists and other experts as they talk about the creative process in the Creativity Center podcasts.

 Participate in workshops like "Sparking Creativity in Healing: Expressing Yourself on Paper," a 50-minute video on how journaling, blogging and/or creative writing can help ease emotional trauma and depressive symptoms.

 Take an online course on creativity as a recovery tool. (Coming in 2009)

 Tune in to Facing Us Radio and listen to the finalists in DBSA's Facing Us 2008 Music Contest. Registered members can create a playlist of their favorites, and listen to them while they visit other rooms in the Clubhouse.

 Be inspired in the Art Gallery, featuring art created by peers that have found strength and purpose through their drawing, painting and photography.

 Create a personal playlist, or buy a digital album, of songs from the '08 Music Contest finalists. The CD features love songs, personal stories and musings that run the gamut of musical styles—rock, bluegrass, instrumental, folk, experimental, country, alternative, hip hop, contemporary piano.

FacingUs.org was launched by DBSA in December 2007 to provide inspiration and support for individuals living with a mood disorder—or anyone seeking help in creating a life of health and well-being. The interactive site allows individuals to create their own personal wellness tools to aid them on their road to recovery. Visitors can create customized personal journals, a wellness plan and wellness books that can be printed with artistic covers, as well as find inspiration and encouragement from an extensive library of personal video stories and informative audio/videocasts.

FacingUs.org is designed to be a "clubhouse," an online community and safe haven for those seeking wellness.

The Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA) is the nation's leading patient-directed organization focusing on depression and bipolar disorder. The organization, which has more than 1,000 support groups nationwide, fosters an understanding about the impact and management of these life-threatening illnesses by providing up-to-date, scientifically based tools and information.

Assisted by a 65-member scientific advisory board comprised of the leading researchers and clinicians in the field of mood disorders, DBSA supports research to promote more timely diagnosis, develop more effective and tolerable treatments and discover a cure. Nearly 5 million people receive information and assistance each year.

To find out more about the Facing Us Clubhouse, visit www.FacingUs.org.

To learn more about DBSA, visit www.DBSAlliance.org or call toll-free (800) 826-3632.