The Trees Have Leaves The first time a person with vision problems puts on a pair of glasses, a common remark is “The trees have leaves!” The light shining between separate and distinct leaves, even the translucent green with thin veins. The viewer is capable of seeing a delicate image of beauty, where before [...]
By the time I reached adolescence, I had suffered emotionally under the weight of the unrest in my household, which included my parents’ divorce. I harbored a lot of anger and sadness. When I started to manifest indications of mental illness, it seemed reasonable that the conflict in my young life had something to do [...]
Let's have a little chat about co-morbidity, shall we? Many people with mental health conditions receive multiple diagnoses. I am one of those people! In fact, I have 19 diagnoses total if we include my physical health problems. Co-morbidity is common. According to the ADAA, almost half of people diagnosed with an anxiety disorder [...]
She began by saying how sorry she was that she had to tell me over the phone. I had canceled my appointment that morning by text, and she had pushed back—asking, in not so many words, if I was positive I couldn’t make it. It was unusual; I have autoimmune conditions with frequent illness and [...]
My Name is Ngoni from Zimbabwe and I have been dealing with depression for some years now. It can be quite debilitating. I have had days when I felt so low I stayed in bed for days. The thoughts that come when in the middle of such an episode can be very dark because it [...]
In 2013, years after being diagnosed with a handful of mental health disorders including PTSD and depression, I finally decided to find a doctor with the hopes of alleviating the state of my mental health condition and get my life back on track. I went on a quest for healing, where I longed for [...]
I was a child with Aspergers Syndrome. I was diagnosed at the age of 7. My childhood was like any other childhood for a typical suburban young boy going to a mainstream public school. Things changed when my family was forced to move by our former landlord to a different town. I had to change [...]
The following is an excerpt from Karen’s new book, "Up All Night: One Last Blast of Mania" available on Amazon.com. Chapter 1 - The Descent For twenty years I had taken lithium. For twenty years I stayed out of the mental hospital. Then everything fell apart. I had told my husband that I hoped that he [...]
I’m a mental health advocate but I struggle to talk to my family about mental health. I’m a mental health advocate, I literally live to be honest and candid about my own mental health. My raw approach to talking about mental health not only helps me understand myself but it has also helped others and [...]
What are Kate Spade's and Anthony Bourdain's Tragic Suicides Trying to Teach Us? In the wake of Kate Spade and now Anthony Bourdain’s tragic suicides, many of us are contemplating why depression and suicide are so prevalent in our society. Healthcare, though expensive, is readily available and is better than any other time in our [...]
