Anxiety’s Magical Little Pill
Taking Xanax to help Maria Palmer cope with her sometimes debilitating anxiety had serious limitations and, eventually, Maria realized she needed more help.
Tag: mental health
PTSD: The Unlikely Disease that Brought my Father and I Together
Carissa Chesanek’s father experienced undiagnosed PTSD from his experience in Vietnam. His daughter never went to war, but was diagnosed with the same illness.
Decades-long Relationship with Therapist Truly a Gift
Brian Marshall has seen the same therapist for decades, and his relationship with her has been a key element to his recovery from depression.
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.
Walking through Life with Grief
by Amanda Wolf
Losing people is always hard; for Amanda Wolf, the grief and loss following the deaths of a close friend and her grandfather threatened to overcome her.
Knock, Knock. Who’s There? OCD.
by Megan Fisher
Megan Fisher tried in vain to conceal her OCD behaviors from those closest to her, and therapy wasn’t the magic cure-all, until she found hope and help, compassion and change.
Depression and Mental Illness: Disease or Condition?
by John Callas
A man wrestles with whether his depression and suicidality are diseases or conditions in this introspective and far-reaching essay.
Melancholy & Cinnamon; A Journey through Mental Hell, and How Poetry Saved my Life
Gabrielle Guillon has come a long way from growing up with depression and abuse as her constant companions; poetry has helped her heal.
Labeling Abuse in a Borderline Relationship
Two people with borderline personality disorder begin a romantic relationship that quickly becomes toxic, out-of-control, desperate, and dangerous.
Sincerely, Madness: A Marine Confronts Rape and Self-Harm to find Strength and Hope
Being a Marine is supposed to put you through Hell and test your will, but not by subjecting you to rape by two different superior officers. Years later, Joyce Villeta is recovering and living through her trauma.
During the Pandemic, a Retired Psychiatrist Finds a New Challenge; His Own Mental Health
Bereft of meaningful activities during the pandemic, a recently retired psychiatrist explores his mental health decline and the difference between acedia and depression.
Coloring Sadness: What We Lose, and Find, in a Psychiatric Hospital
by Katie Thomas
Hospitalized for a major depressive episode, Katie Thomas looked into the eyes of broken people and saw herself.
After a Suicide Attempt: What a Difference a Dad Makes
by Chris Brown
After a suicide attempt, Chris Brown, a young man living in England, realized that having a father who could hear him and be with him in that moment, made all the difference.
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.
Why I Ignored a Bipolar Diagnosis in my 20s… and What I Learned in my 30s
Chris Russell, an actor living with bipolar disorder, writes about medication, realizations, acceptance, and managing his mental health.
Good Thoughts for a Better Mind: How Psychoanalysis Transformed My Life
Years of traditional therapy didn’t do much to quell Daniela Silva’s existential dread and fear of smiling. It took a dose Freud to spur her journey forward.
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.
A Kenyan Man’s Journey with Schizophrenia: Therapy and Medication Work Wonders
by Noah Kirui
When Kenyan university student Noah Kirui was in college, he started developing hallucinations and delusions and was eventually diagnosed with schizophrenia.
A Gentle Hand Reaches Out to Those Considering Suicide
Bharti Bansal reaches out a gentle, compassionate hand from India to a friend she has never met, another human being considering suicide, just like she did.