Anxiety: A general term used to describe a feeling, thought, and physical state found in many disorders, characterized by a sense of unease, tension, racing thoughts, fear, increased heart rate, worrying, and perception of danger, often resulting in avoidance, difficulty concentrating, medical health issues, and obsessive thinking. For more comprehensive information on anxiety, please click here.
Individuating to Find Peace in my Relationship with My Parents
This mental health recovery story focuses on Aditi, who lives with bipolar disorder. Her journey has been one around finding ways to act for herself and not others. Read more to learn about her journey with mental health and healing.
The Importance of Drawing Boundaries, or, “I Leave at Nine”
This mental health recovery story focuses on Sheila, who lives with bipolar disorder. Her journey has been one around finding ways to advocate for her needs. Read more to learn about her journey with mental health and healing.
Unpacking Emotional Baggage and Helpful Coping Mechanisms
DEI professional Shaquiea Sykes gets tired carrying around all the emotional baggage of depression; in her essay, she talks about setting it down.
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Music & Anxiety Recovery: The Journey of Pianist Jonathan Biss
https://youtu.be/WVlw-nBVtHE by Music was a kind of salvation to me from early in life. Just like so many people who gravitate towards the arts, I didn't easily fit in, in many ways. Music was a place that I felt home. It...
Depression for a “Good Indian Boy”? Impossible
Depression in India is still stigmatized, particularly for a “good Indian boy”, for whom little else is more important than academic and professional achievement.
Tommy Horsey: Modeling Vulnerability
Tommy Horsey started the Instagram account @vulnerbul_ to encourage Black males to talk about their mental health.
Alcoholism and Mental Health: The Tipping Point
Sonia Kahlon used alcohol to cope with her stresses and professional life, but she recognized how it sought to destroy her mental health.
Nicole Nikolich: A Yarn Bomber’s Tale of Hope
Yarn Bomber Nicole Nikolich creates vibrant works of art for the street that are filled with humor and hope and help her battle anxiety and depression.
Managing Suicidality: How I Have Survived all my Hardest Days
This mental health recovery story focuses on Val, who has experienced suicidality and eventually was diagnosed with BPD and Bipolar. Read more to learn about her journey with psychosis and healing.
Crossing Borders to Confront my Bipolar Disorder
This mental health recovery story focuses on Jenny, who has experienced suicidality, when eventually hospitalized she was faced with a new diagnosis. Read more to learn about her journey with psychosis and healing.
Managing Autism & Solitude
Paul Jordan manages his autism and solitude in unique ways that may help others who are autistic, and/or those who care about them.
The Non-Linear Nature of Eating Disorder Recovery
Erin Jamieson became “good” at counting calories, throwing herself headlong into her eating disorder and then, thankfully, into her eating disorder recovery.
How Throwing Out the Script to My Sleep Routine Helped Cure My Insomnia
This mental health recovery story focuses on Lauren, who was overwhelmed by life and all its challenges fell into patterns of insomnia and anxiety. Read more to learn about her journey.
One of These Things is Not Like the Others: My Surprising OCD Diagnosis and How It’s Helped Me Heal
This mental health recovery story focuses on Jenny, who was overwhelmed by life and teaching the pandemic, began therapy and discovered she has been living with OCD. Read more to learn about her journey.
Bringing Both Feet in – Love & Mental Health
Kavita Sarmah lives with PTSD and believes that therapy and self-work was the key to help her be open to the prospect of love, marriage, and recovery.
James Church: Immortal Dark Manga and Mental Health
A film about IMMORTAL DARK, a Black supernatural martial arts manga that blends two of James Church’s lifetime passions—Japanese manga and mental health.
Suicidal Ideation, “The Darkness”, and Men’s Mental Health
Jamie Loyer experienced suicidal ideation, was hospitalized and medicated and he is now a peer specialist, helping people like him recover.
Anxiety, Depression, and Two Heavy Whiteboards
While studying astrophysics in Edinburgh, Violet Piper was besieged by depression, anxiety, and thoughts of harming herself.
Is There Life After Diagnosis: Finding Myself after Learning I Have Bipolar
This mental health recovery story focuses on Alexis’s journey with bipolar and how she learned to manage her mental health without making it who she is entirely.
Family Emergency Prompts OCD Coping Skills
This mental health recovery story focuses on Marilyn’s journey with OCD during a family emergency. Marilyn was able to establish coping mechanisms that helped her to heal, read more here!
Once Blessed; Still Strong: My Life with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
On Christmas, a young man with obsessive compulsive disorder reflects on his mental health, his life, and what is yet to come.
The Plight of the One-Person Mental Health Support System
As the daughter of a victim of sexual abuse, Elizabeth Devine has had to endure her own trauma as well as take on the traumatic experiences of others; today she writes about her own challenges.
Holding on to Keep from Crashing
Living with anxiety and working as a housekeeper in a nursing home, Veronica L. Asay keeps herself together as best she can, pushing her cart, holding on for dear life.
Gabe Nathan’s Note(s) to Self
Short film that explores the destructive and/or constructive thoughts that we all have about ourselves and how they frame our personal narrative.
Vivid Memories of My Recovery Journey with Anxiety and Schizoaffective Disorder (Part 2)
Living with schizoaffective disorder and anxiety, Leif Gregersen was hospitalized numerous times. Now he is a compassionate and vocal advocate for those in need of a voice.
Vivid Memories of My Recovery Journey with Anxiety and Schizoaffective Disorder (Part 1)
Living with schizoaffective disorder and anxiety, Leif Gregersen was hospitalized numerous times. Now he is a compassionate and vocal advocate for those in need of a voice.
Victory Over Suicidal Tendencies: Fostering the Human Connection
This mental health recovery story focuses on Amy’s journey with intergenerational trauma, suicidality and addiction. Amy eventually found support that helped her to heal, read more here!
How a 17-year-old Struggled with Thanatophobia and Learned to Accept and Recover
Lots of people are scared of death, but having thanatophobia—a clinical, often crippling fear of death—is quite different than what most people experience. Join Sibgha Akbar as she writes about recovering and accepting; all at the age of 17.
Postpartum Depression Healing: Samantha’s Story
A young mother shares her personal journey with postpartum depression.
What Reason Do I Have to be Depressed?
Eleni Stephanides was skeptical that going back on antidepressants would help, but she soon felt the clouds lift, and her vitality return.
Was I the Black Sheep? Discovering, Understanding and Healing my Trauma and CPTSD
This mental health recovery story focuses on Ana’s journey with Complex PTSD, and intergenerational trauma. Ana eventually cut ties with family to begin her healing journey. Read to learn more about how Ana learned to ask for help and recover from trauma.
Perinatal Depression and Postpartum Anxiety: Regina’s Story
A young mother uses her personal journey with perinatal depression and postpartum anxiety.
Social Media – Recovering from the Drug Addiction of the Nation
Jason Schreurs would sit with his eyes bloodshot against the computer screen late into the night, forging connections on social media. Eventually, this obsession put him in the hospital.
Jabina’s Story: Postpartum OCD & Major Depressive Disorder
A young mother uses her challenging journey with major depressive disorder and postpartum OCD to help others.
Losing Her Saved Me: How I Healed From Trauma
This mental health recovery story focuses on Amanda’s journey with OCD, Anorexia, Complex PTSD, trauma and grooming. Amanda had to cut off her mother in order to heal. Read to learn more about how Amanda learned to ask for help and recover from trauma.
Postpartum Depression Recovery | Maternal Mental Health: Liz’s Story
A new mother details her how past traumas impacted her postpartum period, and how therapy was key to her recovery from postpartum depression.
Excuse Me While I Obsess: Learning to Manage my Lifelong Struggle with OCD
This mental health recovery story focuses on Manndi’s journey with OCD. Manndi always struggled with symptoms but when she suffered from a miscarriage her OCD tendencies spiraled out of control. Read to learn more about how Manndi learned to ask for help and recover.
Maternal Mental Health: Keli’s Story
A new mother details her recovery journey from postpartum depression, and how medication and therapy were critical to her success.
We’ll Leave The Gaslight on For You
This mental health recovery story focuses on Lindsey’s journey through abuse and childhood trauma, gaslighting, and hospitalizations, where Lindsey learned to trust her intuition and find practices around caring for herself. Read more in this mental health essay!
Life Has Become Wonderful: My Life with Schizoaffective Disorder (PART 2 OF 2)
This mental health recovery story focuses on Leif’s journey through hospitals, homelessness, and diagnosis. Leif learned to advocate for himself and now finds ways to do so for others. Read more in this two-part essay!
Life Has Become Wonderful: My Life with Schizoaffective Disorder (PART 1 OF 2)
This mental health recovery story focuses on Leif’s journey through hospitals, homelessness, and diagnosis. Leif learned to advocate for himself and now finds ways to do so for others. Read more in this two-part essay!
Anxiety’s Magical Little Pill
Taking “a magic little pill” to help cope with her sometimes debilitating anxiety had serious limitations and, eventually, Maria realized she needed more help.
All The Colors Of Me Only Some Will See: Relearning to Love Your Body After a Trauma
Anne Marie Malloy had trouble loving who she saw in the mirror after facing childhood trauma, so she’s reclaimed control over self-identity with piercings, Doc Martens, and a rebellious attitude to match.
Learning to Prioritize Mental Health and Self-Care through a Traumatic Experience
This mental health recovery story focuses on Andrea’s journey after an incident of unwanted touch in a public place. Andrea felt anger, confused, uncertain how to go on. Through mental health care and re-prioritizing her needs, read how Andrea learned to heal from her trauma.
Long-Distance Running and Long-Running Depression: An Enduring Partnership
Eleni Stephanides has learned how to run with depression, instead of running from it.
A New Psychiatric RN Faces Her Career, and her own Mental Health
As someone who lives with panic disorder, OCD and anxiety, Caitlin Irish is uniquely positioned to help people as a psychiatric nurse, and uniquely challenged.
Magical Thinking as Trauma Response: How I Created Safety through Imagination
Faced with traumas before unimagined, Laura turned to the tool of magical thinking to create safety after ongoing experiences of trauma.
Anxiety & Trauma Poems
Faced with trauma and grief, writer Laura Farrell turned to poetry to process her experiences.
Done Running: a Budding Pharmacist Confronts Her Eating Disorder & Sexuality
Jules Aukerman, a budding pharmacist, confronts her sexuality and her eating disorder in this genuine, compassionate essay.
Misunderstood, Misdiagnosed, Misled: My Story of Illness and Addiction
Christina faced issues with addiction and the law, due to underlying mental issues, eventually with the proper help and diagnosis she learned to tackle these issues.
Mind Games: Depression & Anxiety Gripped My Father; COVID Nearly Took Him Away
Khadija grew up with two hard-working, loving parents, it was later in life that she experienced the impact of her father’s depression.
When Running From The Voices In Your Head Takes You Someplace New
Avis Yarbrough considers herself “shy” and “timid,” someone who stays at home. But when she first started hearing voices in her late twenties, she was catapulted on a trip she would have never taken otherwise.
How Living With Depression Influences My Personal Growth
Onome felt a lack of support in her childhood, which quickly spiraled into depression, although it was hard to find treatment in Nigeria and Ghan, she eventually got the help she needed.
Deciding to Get Better: The Choice to Fight Schizoaffective Disorder
Cheyenne Ruiz spent much of her adolescence fighting panic attacks, working through depression, and pretending hallucinations weren’t happening. One hallucination pushed her to take recovery into her own hands.
Postnatal Depression, Regular Old Depression, and How Mindfulness Saved Me
Shannon McBride has felt the fog of depression and anxiety nearly her whole life, until an accidental run-in with a pamphlet at the post-office changed her life.
How I Overcame My Social Anxiety by Becoming a Journalist
Victor’s social anxiety felt debilitating and out of control, until he found and embraced journalism, a new tool for managing these difficult emotions.
Now Unquiet: The Journey of Pianist Jonathan Biss
Pianist Jonathan Biss recounts his journey and examines the interplay between his lifelong passion for music and his own personal struggles with anxiety.
Where’s Mamma? One Woman’s Struggle with Postpartum Depression
Robin lived the “perfect life” and was excited to welcome her new baby boy, quickly after his birth Robin noticed a shift in how she felt. As her postpartum worsened, Robin did not know what to do and eventually sought help.
To Hell and Back, a Man’s Struggle with Suicidal Ideation
While hospitalized under the mental health act, Dominic found himself feeling hopeless and desperate to end his mental pain, read his story to learn how he moved through the pain and found hope again!
Falsehoods, Delusions, and Lies: My Life with Schizoaffective Disorder and Anxiety
Living with schizoaffective disorder and anxiety, Leif Gregersen was hospitalized numerous times. Now he is a compassionate and vocal advocate for those in need of a voice.
With Depression, Anxiety, and Lyme Disease; My Dream is Survival
Max Noir lives with anxiety, depression, and chronic lyme disease, but she has not let these conditions diminish her capabilities, limit her travel, or her love of life.
Anxiety: Irrational, Illogical, Catastrophic and, Eventually; Manageable
After silently living with anxiety and panic attacks, therapy and medication helped Nicci Attfield, from South Africa, find her voice.
Wired Differently: How Brain Surgery Quelled My OCD
After experiencing mountains of trauma at the hands of her therapist, Harper Hanson found that treating her OCD might actually be better solved in the operating room.
When Disabled Womanhood Means Shrinking: How Diet Culture Affects the Bodies and Minds of Disabled Women
In middle school, Erica began to notice her weight and developed disordered thinking about her body in an attempt to control it. Through recovery, Erica learned that her need to control her body was in part to make her disability less noticeable to others.
The Biggest Storm of My Life: My Precarious Journey with Anxiety and Depression
by Listen to Editor in Chief Gabriel Nathan read this story: I’ve often struggled to stay afloat on the choppy seas of life. Small waves have peaked behind my back, and in a flash,...
A Fractured Journey: Feeling the Throes of Bipolar Disorder Before Diagnosis
Jason Schreurs zig-zags through different moments in his life, finding both clarity and confusion throughout. It all coalesces with one surprise diagnosis.
How Severus Snape Saved My Life
Severus Snape saved my life; a life lived with seemingly endless pain and despair due to anxiety and depression, writes Giovanna Errore from Italy.
Implicit Messages in Mental Health Peer Specialist Work
A mental health peer specialist takes us inside to show us what it is like to work with clinicians to help individuals with mental illness recover and thrive.
My Story of PTSD: Fighting the World Against All Odds
Through a difficult childhood, Kate developed PTSD, slowly as Kate began to understand the effects of her father’s absence and mother’s discipline on her mental health she began to heal.
Heart Caretaking: A Mother and Scholar Turns a Corner on Panic and Anxiety
When panic and anxiety come for the accademic, how does she cope? Sarah Barnette shares her recovery story.
Anxiety and Depression; My Two “Best Friends”
Teenager Alex Andrews was well-acquainted with her school’s bathroom floor, where she wrestled with sometimes crippling anxiety and depression.
Winning My Ongoing Battle with Depression and Alcohol Abuse
During childhood, Joao had trouble finding friends he could trust, how Joao moved through experiences of bullying and self-doubt.
Why I Tell My University Students I’m Depressed
Peter Leman, a university professor with depression, discloses to his students to help bust the stigma of mental illness on college campuses.
Watching Mental Illness from the Sideline: A Brother’s Story
Dave Brennan reflects on the difficulties of living with someone with a bipolar diagnosis, as well as how we may look past these difficulties and see the rest of that person.
My Unusual OCD Symptom Could Have Got Me Fired, Or Worse
At times, Martha Ocasio’s symptoms from her OCD and anxiety disorder made herself and others feel uncomfortable.
The Depression That Would Not Go: How Do We Fight Depression When Medicine Doesn’t Do the Trick?
Anuradha Malhotra has keeps finding ways to quell her depressive symptoms, but her cures always seem to run out of gas. Now she’s finding other ways of moving forward.
Is This the Face of a Hero? Life as an ER Doctor in the Time of COVID
Dr. Erica Harris wrestles with the term “hero” as an emergency room physician during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Re-parenting My Inner Child: My Journey of Healing from Childhood Neglect
In childhood, Amanda the constant fear of neglect and need, how Amanda moved through her upbringing and re-parented herself.
Dusk to Darkness; Navigating and Emerging from a World of Self-Harm
Australian Zoe Judd writes with vivid brilliance about her recovery from self-harm behaviors.
Are We Destined to Repeat the Family Cycle?
Growing up, Natalie struggled with her father’s alcoholism and manipulation, how Natalie worked through her relationship through therapy and writing.
How do you Recover from OCD and an Addiction to Self-Hatred?
Overcoming an addiction to self-hatred has been a life’s work for Harris Pike, in addition to managing anxiety, depression, ocd, and psychosis.
Anxiety and Me (and Maybe You, Too)
Kaci Curtis’s anxiety and panic manifested in obsessive worries and fears. Find out about how this young mother battles her brain every day.
It Gets Better: A Yarn Bomber’s Tale of Hope
Yarn Bomber Nicole Nikolich creates vibrant works of art for the street that are filled with humor and hope and help her battle anxiety and depression.
Colours Went Flat: Losing My Brother to Suicide
Suicide loss is different than any other kind of loss, which Indian writer Raashi Thakran beautifully describes in her essay about her brother.
My Struggle with Anxiety and Depression Has Been My Greatest Gift
Arielle Kremnev experienced an increase anxiety and depression after the birth of her second child.
Intrusive Thoughts & A Failing of Words
Katie Thomas is a caring mother, sister, and wife, but often battles intrusive thoughts of doing horrible things to the ones she loves.
I Want to Live, but I Couldn’t Always Say That
After several suicide attempts, Sarah Sharp now writes and lives with a passionate desire to stay alive.
A Flight Attendant with OCD Grounds Herself During COVID-19
Under normal circumstances, being a flight attendant with anxiety and OCD is challenging; with COVID-19, it was next to impossible.
You Have an Illness (Anxiety); Just Not the One You Think You Have
Ben Knight’s anxiety raged to the point where he obsessed over a physical ailment that he never had. Read about his whirlwind journey back to reality.
The Reluctant Filmmaker: Surviving Suicide of a Son
Yolonda Johnson-Young has created a film titled Finding Elijah to help her answer the many questions she had after losing her son to suicide.
Don’t Mistake a Few Bad Days For a Bad Life with Anxiety
Carol Blake writes her anxieties, joys, depressive thoughts, and words of gratefulness on physical paper to see her thoughts with objective eyes.
Writing Her Way Out of a Social Anxiety Tunnel in the UK
Claire Eastham is a blogger who lives in London. She writes about her journey with social anxiety disorder.
Bulimia: Look into Her Greedy Eyes and Destroy Her!
Sonia’s intrusive thoughts about her body controlled her behavior; how Sonia regained control of her life through identifying her disorder and finding help.
Knowing Your Limits: Where Anxiety and Eating Intersect
Eating and anxiety share the same spot in Rachel Nelson’s brain. After a life filled with crash diets and, Rachel’s recovering.
The Vicious Cycle of Pure O | Purely Obsessional OCD & Mental Health in Turkey
Pinar Tarhan is a writer from Turkey who lives with Purely Obsessional OCD, also known as Pure O, and shares about her mental health recovery.
Gaslighting is Not Just a Movie: Recovering from the Effects of PTSD, Depression and Anxiety
After leaving an abusive relationship, Felicia Darlington’s anxiety and hopelessness felt out of control. Her strong essay details how she found support and learned to be comfortable in motherhood.
Major Depressive Disorder, Social Anxiety, and Hypothyroidism: A Survival Story
After a brain surgery left him with anxiety, weight gain, and depressive symptoms, Jakob
Waldron found out what real friends looked like.
How Does a Doctor with OCD Navigate Life, Career, and the Everyday?
For Rachel Davis, a doctor with OCD, every moment of every day is about managing her symptoms so she can function, live, and thrive.
Singing a Lullaby to Myself | Anxiety & Mental Health in Rwanda
by “My whole life became worry,” Florence Mukagenzi, a medical student from Rwanda says about her world. “It all felt so unsafe.” And so begins Florence’s recovery journey from paralyzing anxiety, which she exquisitely...
How Becoming a Parent Forced Me to Deal with my Anxiety
Feeling anxious and depressed after the birth of her son, Katharine joined a support group and found help to understand what was going on in her body and her mind. Katharine found ways to understand her anxiety and become the parent she longed to be.
Suppress it, Survive it – How Unresolved Grief can Lead to Depression
Ananya Sahoo, a young woman from India, tried to suppress depression and place the intense grief from losses in a box; but theses boxes always open.
How Do You Change the Negative Self-Talk Conversation?
Author and advocate Beck Medina works daily to improve her mental health by cultivating self-compassion. Her essay is a mature take on what it means to be young and plugged-in in 2019 and the cost to your self-image, and how to maintain stability while living with panic attacks and anxiety.
A Voice on Anxiety and Depression in India
Sanjukta Chauhan, a self-described “annoyingly optimistic” student from India, uses writing to tackle her depression.
How do You Live Through Anxiety, Depression, and a Friend’s Death?
Leah Holleran’s mystery illness was as common as common could be: anxiety and depression, but she and her family didn’t know it. Leah eventually solved the mystery of her mental health challenge, but not before struggling with self-harm and the loss of her best friend to an overdose.
An Outsider in My Own Skin; a Transgender Mental Health Story
by Have you ever felt like an outsider in your own skin? As if the body you’re stuck with isn’t really something you own, but something you’ve picked up for the time being; like the shell of a hermit crab. Have you ever...
Paramedic Mental Health: Empathy in the Eye of the Storm
Ian Stoddart, a paramedic for 32 years, advocates practicing empathy for positive mental health.
Manic MFA: How My Degree Almost Cost Me My Sanity
Trying to manage bipolar disorder and a MFA program, she was influenced by mania, anxiety dictated the pace of her life, and her marriage was in danger.
An Average Anorexia Story (Serious, there is no big surprise or plot twist)
As her body changed, Amanda lost track of who she was. Slowly, through recovery from anorexia, Amanda found a way to reconnect to herself and to her body.
Uncovering Incredible: My Journey through Lifelong Anxiety
I believed that my slightest misstep from perfection would result in the immediate and irrevocable loss of love and respect from every single person around me.
First Responder Mental Health: A Paramedic’s Tale
Ashley Neubauer is a paramedic who loves helping people. The stresses of her job, however, affect her mental health, which she must monitor carefully.
Eight Miles Of Agony: Anxiety and Travel
I don’t know if I will ever be free of the panic attacks but I have hope that I will know how to cope. As of right now, I am taking things one day at a time, living my life and sharing my story so that others know that they are not alone.
What Comes After a Brother’s Death? PTSD, Depression, Anxiety; and Hope
After her young brother’s death, Lauren Fraser takes us on her journey of recovery from mental health challenges like anxiety, depression, and ptsd in this moving personal essay.
When Control Disappears and Anxiety Stays
Instead of fighting against anxiety, I’ve learned to accept it and embrace it. Anxiety is only a small part of me, it doesn’t define me.
My Fight Against Rape and PTSD in College
I fight for myself and those recovery from rape and PTSD. I still struggle, but I am not a victim. I am a survivor. I am not defined by what happened to me.
Eating Disorder Healing and Changing Our Narratives Around Them
This mental health recovery story focuses on Ziba’s journey through an eating disorder, that often felt invisible. Ziba felt unseen in her disordered habits around eating and misunderstood when she first shared that she made herself sick to doctors. As she learned more about her disease and found help herself, Ziba worked to dismantle stereotypes and bust stigma. Through therapy and group work Ziba was able to understand her disorder and reconnect to herself. Read more!
Hereditary Depression, Unplugged: My Uncle understood my mental illness because he shared it. Then he died.
When Christopher Dale lost his Uncle Steve, he felt he’d lost a guiding compass for navigating his hereditary depression. Now he’s trying to carry on Uncle Steve’s lessons himself.
I Want to Live: Turning a Corner with Suicidal Ideation and Depression
This mental health recovery story focuses on Tina’s journey through a fixation on death, depression and suicidal ideation. Tina’s thoughts and actions felt out of control, guide by anxiety. Suicidal ideation was a constant in her life, how Tina sought help and learned that are her core, she wanted to live. Through therapy and a close encounter with death, Tina discovered her will to live. Read more about Tina’s journey!
I’m Being Listened To: A New Page in a Story of Anxiety and Depression
Bryan Long writes about his struggle with anxiety and depression from the perspective of a young man opening up to a provider for the very first time.
The Good, The Bad, and the Obsessive Compulsive: How We Stereotype Those with Mental Illness
If all you knew about mental illness came from television, you might think everyone with obsessive compulsive disorder was a “crazy clean freak.” Alexandra Ages begs to differ—a person with a mental illness is much more than a television archetype.
I Suppressed Everything – A Story of Abuse and Bipolar
This mental recovery story focuses on Lisa’s journey of childhood trauma, abuse and eventually her diagnosis of bipolar. After years of physical, sexual and mental abuse, Lisa thought she had found stability, until her mania set in followed by severe depression. Lisa’s life felt like it was spinning out. Her physical, sexual and mental abuse dictated her life, her mania felt out of control, how Lisa came to terms with her diagnosis of bipolar and past trauma and found a way to heal. With time and therapy Lisa found ways to cope. Read more about Lisa’s journey!
Emptying My Head: Bipolar Depression, A Tale of Two People
This mental health recovery story focuses on Erica’s journey through an abusive childhood, a diagnosis of bipolar depression and the feeling of being misunderstood, by other and by herself. Her bipolar depression and anger left Erica confused, when she found therapy she was able to see what was beneath her rage and come through to the other side. Erica realized that her anger masked a deep sadness, as she worked with a counselor she found a way to explore her past and understand her present. Learn more about Erica’s journey!
The Kid’s Alright, or Close Enough; My Asperger’s Diagnosis
Rachael grew up with a feeling that she was different from others. She experienced anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder symptoms and had regular meltdowns. Eventually these things turned into a problem with substance abuse. Her inability to adapt to change and childhood anxiety created a barrier, how Rachael’s diagnosis of Asperger’s Syndrome in adulthood helped her to understand her past and gain a newfound stability. Once, Rachael could understand what was going in her mind, she was able to take back control of her life. Read more about Rachael’s story!
Battling Depression: Fighting the Legion of Gloom
If you think only a super-human force can successfully battle depression, then you don’t know Shawn Reynolds, comic book aficianado and mental health superhero in his own right.
When Anxiety and Panic Attacks Hit; Hit Back with Therapy
Natalie Rodriguez knew she needed therapy for her anxiety and panic attacks; but she had to fight against shame and stigma to get that help.
Sailing for Life and Surviving PTSD
Hell or High Seas follows veteran Navy rescue swimmer Taylor Greiger and friend Stephen O’Shea on the sailing adventure of a lifetime to prove that Taylor is stronger than his PTSD diagnosis.
When You’re Depressed and Doctors Aren’t Great, What Do You Do?
JoEllen Notte, a sex educator who focuses on mental health, delves into her experiences as a woman who is depressed navigating a health system that often does not know how to respond.
You’re Not Bored; You’re an Addict.
A woman who lives with alcoholism describes the normalization of alcohol in Western culture and speaks openly and bravely about her alcoholism recovery.
How Do You Recover from Mental Illness and Hurricane Harvey?
Hurricane Harvey wreaked havoc on Houston, and on Sue Ann Perna, who writes with bravery about how this hurricane impacted her mental illness and changed her life.
Combating OCD with Narrative Poetry
An OCD story from a young woman who writes about how narrative poetry is helping redirect her obsessive compulsive brain in a beautiful, inspiring way.
Raised by a Broken Woman: Battling Depression and Anxiety Without Parental Support
A never-ending cycle: Broken souls having children only for those children to be shattered souls themselves. Because I know that millions experience this, I want to share my story in order to change a life or even save one.
No Worries! And Other Lies I Tell My Anxious Self
My panic attacks are still not discriminatory nor are they accommodating. For years, they came and went as they pleased. In bedrooms, in showers, on vacations, and in cars.
A Story of Multiple Mental Illness Diagnoses in a Marriage
We have a strong marriage but with our multiple diagnoses there are challenges that most would not understand—like going to the grocery store or out to eat.
Horror, Oppression, Perfectionism, Epiphanies; My Story of Comorbid Resilience
I am what clinicians may refer to as “comorbid,” meaning I experience simultaneous disorders at once. With my history of diagnoses of major depressive, post-traumatic stress, panic, generalized anxiety, illness anxiety, body dysmorphic, and social anxiety disorders, I have had an overwhelming journey.
My Whirlwind Brain; Living with Bipolar Disorder, Depression, and Anxiety
I’m a thirty-seven-year-old woman who was diagnosed with bipolar, depression and anxiety at the age of twenty-two. As I look back on my life I can remember feeling anxious throughout my childhood. I grew up in a good home with loving parents, but my anxiety persisted.
Physician Mental Health & Suicide
by https://youtu.be/7qBobGOF0fs Doctors are the healers and the helpers. But what happens when it’s the doctors who need the healing and the help? An estimated 300 to 400 doctors die by suicide each year, a rate of 28 to 40...
When Thoughts are Sticky; Pure OCD and Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Though I am in recovery from generalized anxiety disorder, (GAD) that doesn’t mean I am cured, I have periods of remission and mini flare-ups.
2 Gabes in A Car Sharing Mental Health Stories
In addition to sharing a first name, they also share a passion for busting stigma about mental illness. Mental health advocacy brought them together, but something deeper created a connection.
Is Mental Illness Your Rabbit, Too? Living with Anxiety and Depression
Not hallucinations, but rather some of the smaller and fuzzier denizens native to Cambridge, Massachusetts. There is no metaphor more fitting for the person I was back then: twitchy, easily startled, a propensity to run scared from others. I had lost all the avenues I’d had to hide from depression and anxiety, and they closed in like a pair of gangsters in an alleyway.
Depression, Anxiety, and Panic Disorder: From Daunted to Driven
I felt like a complete failure. I had always been able to handle everything without an issue. But at first, navigating depression was another story.
Now What?: Suicidality and Planning for an Uncertain Present
When I exhibited symptoms of C-PTSD and OCD, I was afraid and lost. I survived multiple major depressive episodes, all of them including suicidality.
Call Out Each Cloud by its Silver Lining: Life with Depression & Anxiety in India
Whenever I’d gone through stages of major depression or anxiety as a young teenager, all I’d hear was that I was stupid, lazy, and unambitious. Imagine being judged by your symptoms and not by your illness.
Marriage and Mental Illness: The Ups and Downs
When you think of married life, what comes to mind? Are you in complete bliss or just plain miserable? Maybe you’re floating somewhere in between.
Treatment Resistant Depression: My Experience with Countless Interventions
I endured this routine for so long: try a new medication to alleviate my treatment resistant depression and either feel horrible or feel absolutely nothing.
What it Feels Like to be Passively Suicidal and Not Want to Die
The passive suicidal thoughts are still there, but I have started to recognize that they are only powerful if I give them the power.
Acceptance: How One Friend Helped Me Get Help for Depression and Anxiety on my Own Terms
As I battle with depression, anxiety, and PTSD, it has always been far easier for me to support others with mental health struggles than to admit my own.
Worth a Thousand Words: Mental Health in Pictures
These images of mental in pictures are not what the public wants people to show. They are reality. They are dirty, messy, uninhibited, and true.
My Social (Anxiety) Life Online
Social anxiety still exists online. You’re still putting yourself out there and you feel vulnerable opening up, not knowing what response you’ll get.
More Mental Health Accounts to Follow on Instagram
This installment of our mental health resources column highlights Instagram mental health from authors who have appeared on OC87 Recovery Diaries.
How I Recovered from a Disorder I Had Never Heard of – Psychogenic Non-Epileptic Seizures
In my research, I found several articles about Psychogenic Non-Epileptic Seizures. Doctors do not use the term pseudo-seizures anymore because it falsifies them and invalidates them. Pseudo is a prefix meaning “false” or “fake,” and the seizures I was having, while not epileptic, were anything but fake.
I’m Just Tired: When You Dismiss Depression
“I can’t explain where I’ve been, and though everyone wants to understand, it doesn’t mean they comprehend. They can’t grasp where I am.” – Kathryn Rose Wood
Anxiety Facebook Pages – Mental Health Recovery Accounts to Follow Now
This month’s installment of our mental health resources column is centered on anxiety Facebook pages, including a few pages with one to two million followers.
Glowing on the Outside; Crumbling Inside – Depression, Anxiety and Motherhood
I failed the postpartum screening given, as protocol, by the hospital, and yet they sent me home.
Playing Hide and Seek with a Demon: My Struggle with Anxiety
I don’t know when it started. It was not as though I suddenly woke up with a raging heartbeat and butterflies in my stomach, wishing I could run away from myself. It came in tiny bits of worry.
Addiction and Anxiety – My Poetic Recovery
Trapped between fear and anxiety, I would drink and use drugs to cover up my feelings. After years of living this way with several bad trips, blackouts and hospitalizations, I went into treatment.
Mental Health Silent Retreats Have Changed My Recovery Story
Mental health silent retreats have been an important tool in my recovery. They have allowed me to forgive, heal, and gain clarity.
Episode 19 – Rudy Caseres: Champion for Mental Health
Rudy Caseres is a mental health advocate who lives with bipolar disorder, depression, and anxiety.
“Depression Man” Wages War on Mental Illness through Laughter
As bad as my depression has been – and I’ve experienced more than 40 years of it – I have somehow, luckily, always found the magic of laughter within reach.
8 Accounts Featuring Recovery with Anxiety on Instagram
We’re always looking for mental health empowerment in unsuspecting places, and today we’re featuring feeds focused around the diagnosis of anxiety on Instagram.
Becoming Your Own Best Friend for Your Mental Health
When it comes to mental health, how we can become our own best friend in 2018? Here’s what we came up with. Happy New Year to you, friend.
Anxiety Twitter Accounts That Empathize, Educate, and Entertain
In this installment of our Mental Health Resources column, we’re covering the best of anxiety Twitter accounts. As always, OC87 Recovery Diaries is committed to our shared cause to #buststigma around mental health issues.
Episode 16 – Comedian and TV Personality Paul Gilmartin on Podcasting, PTSD, and Coping with Trauma
Host of The Mental Illness Happy Hour, Paul Gilmartin has come a long way since doing stand-up comedy and hosting the TV show, Dinner and a Movie.
Anxiety, Depression, and Motherhood Mental Health
As I lie in bed, my thoughts spiral saying, “You’re a horrible mother. You’re a horrible writer. You’re a horrible person.”
How the Westminster Dog Show Helped Me Let Go of My Anxiety and Celebrate (And You Can Too)
“What could go wrong for someone who has panic attacks in large crowds at an event regularly attended by 20,000 people?” — Sheila Hageman
Episode 14 – “The Hunting Ground”: Recovering from Sexual Assault – an Interview with Documentary Film Subject, Kamilah Willingham
Interview with Kamilah Willingham, a subject of the documentary film, “The Hunting Ground.”
Living with and Managing Bipolar Disorder
Managing bipolar disorder behavior involves more than medications. Changes in mood are affected by factors in our environment.
The Big Scare: My Anxiety Disorder Story
A therapist writes with humor and passion about her struggles with panic attacks, generalized anxiety disorder, and an eating disorder.
Episode 12 – From Nigeria to the U.S. — A Journey with Anxiety and Depression
Adesola Ogunleye, a Nigerian American immigrant who lives with depression and anxiety, is interviewed on this episode of OC87 Recovery Diaries on the Radio.
Running is Useless: Becoming a Therapist is the Therapy I Needed
This was not exactly the learning I wanted when I went to graduate school, but the lifelong journey of becoming a therapist, is the therapy I have needed.
Episode 11 – An Interview with Gabriel Nathan: Editor in Chief
“When you make a choice to put yourself out there, you’re empowering yourself — and you’re empowering others.” – Gabriel Nathan
Episode 10 – An Autism, Asperger’s Doctor with a Son on the Spectrum
Dr. Robert Naseef can’t alter the fact that he has a son on the spectrum, but he has evolved in the ways in which he copes with his son’s disability.
Start Climbing: When Major Depression Takes Hold
I should probably explain a few things. I’m not crazy. I suffer from major depression, as well as generalized anxiety disorder. I’m basically a shut-in.
A Psychologist Helps You Retrain Your Brain
Laura Farrell reviews Seth Gillihan’s book, Retrain Your Brain: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in 7 Weeks, an interactive guide to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.
Wrestling with Obsessive Thoughts About Everyday Encounters
how an everyday encounter with a stranger on the street can morph into a paralyzing prison-like mental trap of repetitive, obsessive thoughts.
Don’t. TOUCH. ANYTHING! A Story of Anxiety, Obsession, and the Museum Police
I put a lot of thought into how to make the web-series Katie and Shaun responsibly. The portrayal of anxiety and depression is true to my experience.
Dancing Through Mental Illness with an Eating Disorder
My eating disorder lied, denying any inquiry that there was something wrong. After residential treatment I did outpatient with a dance movement therapist.
Music Video: When Anxiety & Panic Attacks are Your Kinfolk
In 2006 I was diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder with panic attacks and depersonalization. At the time, I was actively pursuing a career in music.
Episode 3 – An Interview with Documentary Filmmaker Glenn Holsten
Glenn Holsten discusses the making of his mental health documentary film, Hollywood Beauty Salon.
When We Were Small: An Intense Struggle with Depression
I will always struggle with depression, but finally I feel I am done clearing the land and am ready to plant the seeds that will become new growth.
22 Mental Health Podcasts
In celebration of our new podcast, we’ve rounded up 22 mental health podcasts that are doing their part to #buststigma around mental illness.
Everything Will Kill You: Anxiety, Fear & Shame Onstage
I wrote a song called “Everything Will Kill You” inspired by all the times that I’ve fearfully prepared myself for tragedies that have never actually happened.
Episode 2 – Art and Mental Health: Can They Co-Exist, or Must They Compete?
Bud and Laura interview Philadelphia artists Abby Squire and Rosie Carlson about how art and mental health affect one another.
Mental Health & Writing: A Bad Son Letter to the World
It all hearkens back to storytelling, to this desire we have to relate something. To let people know who we are, or were, or wish we were, or fear we are.
It’s Time To Talk, Then Reflect, Then Grow
I don’t know if my depression, anxiety, or obsessive-compulsive disorder will ever go away.
Mike Veny: “An Interview With My Depression”
“I’d really love to interview my depression,” Mike said. And we were off. Watch Mike Veny do the (near) impossible: interview his depression.
Mike Veny: Mental Health Recovery, Music & Advocacy
Mike Veny is an advocate who speaks boldly about his journey with mental health. Mike Veny is also a lifesaver. The first life he saved was his own.
We’re All Mad Here: Claire Eastham & Anxiety Recovery
“Here’s my first and most important piece of advice: YOU NEED TO ACCEPT THAT YOU HAVE A MENTAL CONDITION.” – Claire Eastham on anxiety disorder recovery
The Silent Scream: Coping With Depression
I hope, in reading my story about coping with depression, you will be strengthened in your own journey and feel comforted that you are not alone.
The Letter To Mother: PTSD, Anxiety & Major Depression
I am still in the process of healing from PTSD, anxiety, and major depression with the help of a psychiatrist, a therapist, and the love of my life.
Once Upon A Time: PTSD, Anxiety & Major Depression
Recently, I underwent a slight psychological break. Determined to claw my way out of the darkness, I began to write about my journey and experiences.
Who Am I? A Student With OCD & Anxiety
What would you say when someone asks “Who are you?” The first word that comes to mind when I think about this question is Student. I’m a student, an academic, a professional learner for life.
Postnatal Depression: Confessions of a “Terrible” Mother
Postnatal Depression affects 1 in 10 women, yet many people still ignore or hide their symptoms. I did this, and it turned out to be a terrible idea.
How I Accepted My Anxiety
I once heard anxiety compared to a superpower. Once I stopped being so ashamed of it, I saw that anxiety was my superpower too.
Suffering in Silence: Men’s Mental Health in America Today
I joke about men’s mental health because, sometimes, I don’t know what else to do. Of course, the stigma against men’s mental health is not funny.
A Spiritual Solution to a Mental Health Crisis
Confronted with debilitating depression, anxiety, and a life filled with chaos, I was led to a spiritual solution to manage my mental health meltdown.
Friendship and Recovery: Laura & Catherine
Over the 15+ years we’ve know each other, friendship and recovery have been intertwined. Being a person, being a friend, is constant work.
Rachel’s Recovery On Film
Rachel has been on her own since high school. She has fought to overcome depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and anxiety.
I Still Lose Myself
I hurt so much. I didn’t understand how to take care of my body. I didn’t know that I was sick with Bipolar II and a major anxiety disorder.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
It’s okay to not always know how to navigate complex memories, emotions and traumas. The Perks of Being a Wallflower was a gift in teaching me these things.
Cancer, Depression, Anxiety & Reiki
Leah Alexandra Goldstein writes and draws about her healing experience with Reiki in the face of cancer and mental health challenges.
Rachel “Hollywood” Carr
“I would not want to change my life, even all the negative and bad stuff, because it actually made me who I am.” —Rachel “Hollywood” Carr
A Choice
I don’t really want to share any of this. My mind is like a pendulum swinging from, “I don’t have any mental health problems and it’s a sham to pretend. . .
Sing Away The Stigma: Interview with Rachel Kunstadt
Interview with Rachel Kunstadt about Sing Away The Stigma, a musical theater event that uses real people’s journeys with mental health as inspiration.