This is Part 2 of Erin’s interview. Check out Part 1! You mentioned how some therapists were more helpful than others. When you were looking for a good therapist, how did go about finding someone who would help you? For me, I would usually give it 2-3 sessions before I would decide if I wanted … Continue reading Objectivity and Honesty: Erin’s Story of Finding the Right Therapist
This post comes from an interaction that I observed while attending a guest lecture at my college. But first, some background: there are fidget toys everywhere. I have never had a class where someone wasn’t knitting, coloring, or playing with a fidget toy during the lecture. Sometimes that person is me on the days … Continue reading Of Rubik’s Cubes and Lecture Halls: How the Myth of “Normal” Creates Stigma
Rebecca is a Junior in college in Western Massachusetts. She is pursuing a BS in engineering with a minor in Environmental Science and Policy. What led you to seek counseling? “The thing for me was that I had a really bad spring semester and there were a lot of things going on in my … Continue reading Surviving College Stress: Rebecca’s Story
We wrote about high-functioning depression earlier on this blog; you can find Part 1 here. That post covered what it is and why it is important to talk about it. We are returning to this topic to address the stigma surrounding high-functioning depression and why that stigma can be dangerous. The Struggle of Having … Continue reading High-Functioning Depression: Part 2
Part 1 covered the basics of symptoms and what an eating disorder is. One of the biggest challenges of having an eating disorder is finding the strength to seek treatment. This is difficult because factors like diet culture, social media, and your own self talk will try to convince you that you don’t have an … Continue reading Changing the Conversation About Eating Disorders
From 1999 through 2016, suicide rates have increased by as much as 30% in some states. According to the CDC, 45,ooo people took their own lives in 2016 alone. Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the U.S. but no one is talking about it. A hush surrounds the discussion because many people … Continue reading How to Start the Conversation About Suicide
Refinery29 recently published an article in which three mental health advocates explain why it is so important to speak up. The full article can be found here. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, 1 in 5 adults experience mental illness in a given year—that’s 43.8 million people. Mental illness is incredibly prevalent today, … Continue reading Why it is Important to be Vocal About Mental Health
Books have always been a huge source of comfort for me. When I find myself facing challenges, my immediate response is to find a bunch of books on topic. This approach worked for almost everything. However, when I scanned the library shelves for a book to help me understand my own mental health challenges, I … Continue reading 6 Mental Health Positive Book Recommendations
The Importance of Destigmatizing Depression Why destigmatizing depression helps all of us Destigmatizing depression is beneficial for all of us. According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, more than 15 million adults experience depression. The experience of depression is difficult to quantify. Not everyone feels comfortable opening up about their mental health. Whether … Continue reading The Importance of Destigmatizing Depression
What Role Does Self-Stigma Play in Mental Health Stigma? Mental health stigma! It’s everywhere, in everyone, all the time…or so it seems. When you are living with a mental health challenge, one of the hardest parts is how it makes you feel about yourself. Often the negative self-talk that’s happening in our minds is the … Continue reading Mental Health Stigma and Self-Stigma
