All people on the internet can do for you is to listen and respond. We can offer our support through words and remind you that you are not alone. We will be here in the middle of the night. We will hear you, and we will try to help. Move forward with the hope […]
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Tell the Truth: Ask for Help!
I’m trying to act in a way that promotes self-acceptance and honesty. I have stopped lying to people when my illness precludes me from participating in something. I no longer say I have a stomach bug, or that my parents need me to help them with something. I say that I am disabled, and I […]
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The Coping Skills You Didn’t Know You Needed
There Is Always Hope Of Reducing Your Pain You can calm and soothe yourself when you hurt. It takes a long time, some training, and a lot of practice, but you can learn how to calm yourself during a depressive episode, an anxiety attack, a panic attack, a bipolar episode, or something similar. When I […]
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How You Should Approach Your Diagnosis of Depression
I think the healthy way of looking at a diagnosis of depression is to view it as finding out that you are diabetic and you will need insulin for the rest of your life. It is something that is not curable, but treatable and livable. It is something that you are stuck with and there […]
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What Is An Episode Like?
I’d like to explain what a typical bipolar episode is like for me. I have rapid-cycling, mixed-state episodes with psychotic features. A mixed-state episode can lean one way or another so it can be helpful to refer to them as manic or depressive for purposes of communication, but every mixed-state episode has features of both […]
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My Suicides, and How I Got Better
Dealing with mental illness has been a beast from the beginning. In 2006, Bipolar II Disorder first presented in my brain. It is typical for a person to develop bipolar between the ages of 18-23 because the brain continues to change and mature through and past this time, up to age 25 for women and […]
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What is the Cause of Mental Illness?
All mental illnesses are sicknesses involving changes in thoughts, emotions, beliefs, or behaviors, and they stem from a combination of chemical imbalances in the brain, brain structure abnormalities, and personal history/environment. It is not something you choose to have, and we’d all cure ourselves if that was possible. No one would choose this. Something qualifies […]
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Can Mental Illness Ever Get Better?
Most mental illnesses cannot be cured, but treatment has the goal of putting the illness into remission, which means you are healthy for a while, sometimes a long while, before you relapse. I am currently in remission for Major Depressive Disorder, which means that depression is not preventing me from functioning, and I’m in partial […]
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How To Help Yourself When You Hurt: 11 Skills to Self-Soothe
Everyone struggles sometimes, and often they feel alone; only you see through your eyes. Feeling alone can be very hard. For whatever kind of pain you have, you’ll need tools to cope with it. Family and friends are a good place to start, but for many that’s not an option. Instead you have to rely on yourself to get through your rough times. The biggest benefit of therapy I’ve gained is learning the things I can do to help myself. I’m going to share with you some of the tools that have collectively saved my life…
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How I Went Crazy
When I was eighteen, I felt on top of the world. I had won several contests for my singing, graduated in the top five percent of my high school class, and been accepted to the most prestigious voice program in the United States. When fall rolled around, I trotted off to Oberlin Conservatory to begin my adult life. It was glorious for a while: the people were socially advanced and forward-thinking, there was a free exchange of exciting ideas, everyone was friendly and smart, and there was world-class music surrounding me everywhere I went. My first two months there were the happiest I’ve ever been…
