[…] my son’s — were the deal breaker. My Son Has Had to Face the Consequences of Stigma In my book, I share that after my attempted suicide, doctors said I was in no shape to be a mother. At 16, my son moved to Utah to live with my husband’s brother to finish […]
[…] heard of it, but I was intrigued because I was not a stranger to mental illness. My maternal grandmother experienced debilitating depression for years, culminating in her suicide in 1939. My mother was diagnosed with depression and experienced what I believe was PTSD, following her own mother’s suicide. I had grappled with mental health […]
[…] of existence for eternity — but death was nevertheless frequently on my mind. It was not healthy. In the summer of 2015, I finally broke and attempted suicide. Only a seemingly random but well-timed phone call from my mom saved me from that fate. It was at that point that I knew that I […]
[…] a life-threatening challenge. The life expectancy of someone with schizophrenia is roughly two decades shorter than that of the general population, arguably due to the prevalence of suicide among people with the condition (specifically among those who do not seek help, fearing stigma and discrimination). Oftentimes, those who die by suicide are considered “high-functioning,” […]
[…] has the potential to be part of a wider core curriculum. As a former coach, I would love to see classes in mental wellness and training in suicide prevention become common and required coursework in the way that physical education has been for over a century. This could include broader range of psychology courses […]
[…] my two children (who were with their father) and my two best friends. I cried so hard, writing those letters. I have lost a loved one to suicide, so I knew, as I wrote them, exactly how my loved ones would feel once I was gone. In the moment, I was willing to inflict […]
[…] mental health emergency deserve quick access to effective mental health care — just as people expect when experiencing physical health emergencies. In 2020, Congress passed the National Suicide Hotline Designation Act, creating 988 as the nationwide number for suicide prevention and mental health crisis response. This number will be available in every community beginning […]
Since coming out and transitioning, I have faced unexpected discrimination within the health care system, even as a physician myself.
[…] hallucinations. In the decade since that diagnosis, I’ve spent my time trying to get well. It has been an unpredictable journey, with plenty of setbacks. Hospitalizations. Suicide attempts. Medication changes. Psychotic episodes. Sexual assault. Therapists. Doctors. Electroconvulsive shock therapy. Chronic illness. Life. For each of these setbacks, I’ve also made progress in my […]
[…] in my family suffered from mental health issues, and I didn’t hear any conversation about it in the parenting or school community. In the months before Nick’s suicide attempt, our relationship had deteriorated. He’d said I was a bad mother; evidently, I had never loved and cared for him. I was selfish and self-centered. […]
NAMI HelpLine is available M-F, 10 a.m. – 10 p.m. ET. Call 800-950-6264,
text “NAMI” to 62640, or email. In a crisis, call or text 988 (24/7).
