The 2014 NAMI National Convention was an amazing, surreal experience. For four days, people from all over the country came together to educate and learn about mental illness. The entire conference was a smorgasbord of options, from panels on the latest updates in schizophr...
Bullying is never okay. It is not just kids being kids. It is not simply part of growing up. It is harmful and destructive and a major challenge to mental health. That’s why the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Education are sponsoring...
At times, I need to talk honestly and directly about my depression. It’s hard, but my recovery depends on it. Then, after a while, I need a break. For me, the best break is something that makes me laugh. You can find humor in a lot of places, but I wasn’t expecting to ...
Literature is a valid resource to learn more about complex issues, including mental health and trauma. In fact, books can also play a vital role in mental illness recovery, and “ bibliotherapy ” considers reading as therapeutic in understanding emotions. The art of storyt...
Determine if what you are experiencing might be a symptom of an underlying mental health condition.
I fight the suicidal thoughts that creep into my mind daily. But I can do this. I have to. My story doesn’t end here.
It’s taken me a lot of learning and growing to realize I am not defined by my illness, but by my courage and strength.
My psychiatrist finally found a combination of medications that work for me and I don’t have as many dark days anymore.
I live with a high-functioning depression in my life, and in the workplace. I’ve been struggling since 2015, when I thought it was just fatigue. Medication and therapy have helped me feel better, but I still experience depressive episodes. Sometimes going to the office ...
We’re seeing epidemic levels of stress in children and teenagers, with increasing rates of clinical depression , anxiety and other coping problems. Fear , uncertainty and lack of control—factors that power stress—are ramped up in times of rapid, unpredictable change...
I’ve now been in therapy for four years. I talk about four years a lot. It’s an important number in my life. After I was raped in 2011, I suffered in silence for just under four years. It happened at college in Chicago by a fellow student on the third weekend of my freshman...
It’s a scary thing to speak openly about an illness that is often extremely misunderstood. I want my experience to give hope to at least one person living with BPD.
It’s taken a while for me to accept that my biggest enemy in life may just be my own fingers. I, along with thousands of other people in the world, am engaged in a fierce battle with trichotillomania — a compulsive disorder that results in people pulling out their hair. ...
I do not ‘suffer from bipolar disorder,’ though I once did. It is not because I am ‘cured’ but because I have learned a lot about managing symptoms.
Eating disorders are characterized by the intentional changing of food consumption to the point where physical health or social behaviors are affected.
PTSD is the result of traumatic events, such as military combat, assault, an accident or a natural disaster.
Learn how to search for a mental health professional.
Caroline has lived with with schizophrenia for more than 35 years. Thanks to her relationship with God, her daughters and her doctors she's doing well.