I have been going to therapy for five years and I am not ashamed of it. However, if someone would have asked me about it... I would probably lie; or flat out change the subject. I was 20/21 when I first experienced a panic attack at college. To be honest, I sort of do not [...]
That Time My Therapist Told Me I Wasn’t Raped — And Other Ways People Dismissed My Body I can’t remember when it started. I remember looking up at my mother, perhaps age 4, and she was trying to get me to eat a cookie, saying I wouldn’t get fat, that it was OK. I [...]
“It’s Not Me, It’s My Brain” -- Sarah Comerford Recently I wrote the introduction to the fourth Stigma Fighters anthology. It was a proud moment for me. I’ve been with this organization since its inception, and I am thrilled how far we’ve come. I mention this in the introduction, but I also mention how far [...]
Mental Illness Is Ugly - Sparklle Rainne and Sarah Fader Once upon a time, I lit a box of vomit on fire. It was an attempt to hide my Bulimia. I had nowhere to purge, so I puked into a box and slept with it in my room all night until I could drag it [...]
I like to talk. Preferably to people. For as long as I can remember, I wanted to be the center of attention. Probably because growing up I received very little of it. I grew up not knowing a lot of things but one thing I did know was that of all the things to talk [...]
Trigger warning- sexual assault I was raped when I was fourteen years old. Before the assault I was a socially engaged kid, marching in “Take Back the Night” rallies, listening to And Difranco and Tori Amos, solemnly absorbing the rape stories they sang and understanding their experiences weren’t universal, but at the same time, they [...]
I am twenty-three and I have lived with depression for half of my life. Before I was even aware of what the words depression and anxiety meant I knew there was something wrong with me. It wasn't just sadness but a persistent feeling that nothing would ever bring me happiness. My depression was the result [...]
*Trigger warning - suicide When I sit down and think about it I’ve said the word suicide more in the past two years than I said my entire childhood and adolescence. Two years ago I don’t even think I knew how to spell it right S-U-I-C-I-D-E. “The act or instance of taking one's own life [...]
Killing Us Loudly for Stigma Fighters, Vol. 4 Heydon Hensley * * * Content Warnings: domestic violence, gun violence, suicide It may seem strange having an essay dedicated to domestic violence in this anthology, but even the briefest reflection reveals that domestic violence is – of course – surrounded in stigma. Unfortunately, the stigma and [...]
My First Manic Episode I was teaching 3rd grade Quran and Islamic Studies when I noticed something was wrong. My kids were young at the time, so initially, I thought I was just stressed about being a new mom. My youngest daughter was in preschool. Every morning it was a struggle getting her to class [...]
