Back on Track: Recovering from Mental Illness and Addiction
After ten years of fighting a wrenching addiction to heroin, Stacey Anne Quin is winning herself back from the brink of mental illness and addiction.
Tag: trauma
Throw Pillows and Coffee Mugs: Accoutrements of Trauma, Abuse, and Recovery
Alan Caldwell has been collecting stories about his history of abuse and trauma and family for years, but only recently begun writing them down.
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.
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.
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!
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Hell or High Seas: Suicide Attempt Survivor on the Big Screen
Tackling PTSD on the High Seas presents U.S Navy Taylor Greiger’s transformation from suicide attempt survivor into suicide prevention awareness activist.
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.
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.
Afraid of Being Seen: Recovering from Trauma & Learning to Show up Authentically
by Lisa Greene
Lisa Greene’s trauma recovery journey is hopeful, inspiring, and beautifully crafted, like the intentional life she leads.
A New Book Returns Us to Our Town
A new book about many different productions of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town features a production by mental health workers.
Gunshot Survivor Mental Health: Jalil Frazier’s Story
Jalil Frazier was shot trying to prevent a robbery. He is a member of a support group for gunshot violence survivors who speaks about his journey.
Connected Through Trauma: A Police Officer’s Story of PTSD, Suicidality, and Hope
As a police officer, trauma, PTSD, and thoughts of suicide threatened to end Constable James Jefferson’s career, and his life, but he wouldn’t allow it.
Gunshot Survivor Depression & Trauma Recovery: B’s Story (Steven Smith)
Steven Smith is an anti-gun violence advocate and member of a support group for gunshot violence survivors who speaks about his journey.