Carly
Carly Zucker is host of the Here We Go podcast.

Carly Zucker credits emergency mental health care at M Health Fairview Southdale Hospital EmPATH with saving her life

September 15, 2025 | By Staff Writer

In early 2023, Carly Zucker, now 40, was feeling off. Her friends and family noticed and asked what was going on, but she had a hard time describing it.

“I’m just scared,” she would say, but she couldn’t pinpoint what she was afraid of or why.

On Feb. 5, 2023, Carly’s three kids were with their dads. She was home alone and spiraling.

“I remember feeling like everybody's taken care of, and I've been the burden,” she said. “I’m the problem. Everybody's safe and where they need to be. If I was just not here, they would go on and everything would be fine. So I was ready to end my life.”

Instead, she called her sister and a few close friends who rushed to Carly’s house. Unsure what to do in this situation, they searched the internet until they found a number for a suicide hotline. Two responders came and sat with Carly and her friends. They told her about EmPATH – or Emergency Psychiatric Assessment, Treatment, and Healing—an innovative approach to mental health care available at M Health Fairview Southdale Hospital.

Carly said that after 37 years of trauma, which was later diagnosed as complex post-traumatic stress disorder, the suicidal ideation became more and more real, like it was her only option.

“I walked through those doors and felt relief,” she said. “It was scary, and I didn't know what to expect. But I also felt like I'm going to be taken care of. And I don't have to do this by myself anymore.”

If you are in a mental health crisis or having thoughts of suicide, go to your nearest emergency department or call your local crisis line:

Learning how to cope

“On paper, my life was wonderful,” Carly said. “My husband at the time played in the National Hockey League. I didn't have to worry about bills being paid. I understand the privilege that I had, but it did not take away from the fact that I was held back by depression and anxiety and that I lacked coping skills. I drank to deal with it.”

Carly is known for her appearances on TV and KFAN Radio and her work with Give16, a foundation that supports M Health Fairview Masonic Children’s Hospital. She said she worked so hard to give her family a picture-perfect life. She made sure birthday parties and vacations were great. But she didn’t know how to cope when things didn’t go as planned.

“I became a very angry person because I didn't know how to get sad,” she said. “And I didn't know how to deal with those emotions. If my kids’ lunches weren’t cut into cute little hearts, I felt like a failure as a mom. I was just beating myself up."

Carly turned to alcohol to numb unpleasant feelings in the evenings or when she wasn’t caring for her kids. That February day, when she got care at EmPATH, was the last day Carly had a drink.

EmPATH is a safe place for people to calm themselves from a mental health crisis. After a short evaluation at the emergency department, people are taken to the living room-inspired space with comfortable recliners, soothing music, and access to snacks and warm blankets. A multidisciplinary staff of mental health specialists, including psychiatrists, licensed therapists, and nurses helps people build the skills they will need to face future challenges. People are typically in EmPATH for 28 to 38 hours, which is meant to stabilize a crisis and make a plan for on-going treatment.

EmPATH opened in March 2021. Before the program started, the hospital admitted about 46 % of people who came to the emergency department with a mental health crisis. Now, with the specialized care that EmPATH offers, that number has dropped to 14%. In 2024, 3,723 patients were served at EmPATH.

Carly said the care team monitored her as she came off alcohol and she used the time to sleep.

“I got to rest because when you’re going through depression or anxiety, you’re so exhausted but sleep is hard,” she said. “I remember just sleeping and feeling like I was safe.”

She also met with a therapist and discussed what to do next. Carly knew she wanted to go to a treatment center where she could get help for her mental health and alcohol use that stemmed from childhood trauma. She was afraid if she went home first, she wouldn’t get the care she needed.

“They arranged it for me,” she said. “It was a beautiful thing because making a phone call for me felt difficult because my whole body was overtaken with these mental health issues.”

Carly said her experience at EmPATH was followed by 80 days of treatment at two different centers, which gave her the tools she needs to make difficult days more bearable.

“You don't walk out of treatment and you're good,” she said. “Life is life and life will life forever. It's still hard some days because when my depression hits and my anxiety hits, I want to stay in bed. I feel like I'm walking through mud to just take a shower.”

But she reminds herself that it’s a moment and not forever – and that healing isn’t linear. She can have a really good day or month but then have a difficult moment. Now, she has the coping skills to get through those difficult moments. She said for her, that’s getting outside for fresh air.

Inspiring others to care for their mental health

Now Carly is on a mission to speak out about her experience. In addition to teaching her children that it’s OK to have a bad day and it’s OK to ask for help, she is using her platform and her podcast, Here We Go, to help others.

“I want people to know that it's OK to get help because I never thought I'd walk through the doors of a treatment center,” she said. “But when I did, I felt like these are my people. This is where I feel like I fit in. I used to go into the wives' room (at the hockey arena) and didn’t feel like I belonged in the same way.”

She said that learning to cope with her depression and anxiety were life-changing for her. She encourages everyone to give themselves grace and learn the skills they need to get through difficult moments.

Mental health providers at EmPATH share tips for coping with anxiety and depression.

“I hope people don't feel so alone because I remember going through this and I felt so lonely and I felt like there's nobody else like me,” Carly said. “Nobody else has felt this. Nobody else has gone through this, but we are truly all in this together. And the difference is our coping.”

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