I still remember the first time I went to a therapy session. I was 17 years old, and I saw my therapist at a family services center near my house. I was confused during most of our session so while I was trying to answer her questions honestly, I didn’t also know what she was getting at. I saw this therapist for a few months, and then I didn’t give it any thought until a few years later. But in the ten years since that day, there is so much I’ve learned about therapy: it’s goal, it’s purpose, how it works for individuals, etc. But I had one huge misconception that I didn’t shake off until recently, and I want to share it today in the hope that it can help anyone who thinks therapy might be worth exploring.
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Advice on Pushing Through
I’ve been a bit discouraged this past week. To be fair, I think a lot of people have been. There’s plenty to be discouraged about, and it seems like it’s coming from every part of our world. Back in January, I actually wrote a post about making it through a tough time. That’s right, in January. In the United States. Maybe I should have saved that advice for another time. But when I thought about that post, I realized one of my keys to getting through a tough time is pushing through, but I never elaborated on that idea, so I’d like to build on that today.
Continue readingClosing Thoughts During Suicide Prevention Month 2020
In the three years I’ve been writing this blog, I’ve learned a lot about mental health and mental illness, but the topic I’ve learned the most about has been suicide prevention. As we reach the end of another year of Suicide Prevention Month, I try to take some time and reflect on what I’ve learned and the info and resources that have been shared. And since I love finding the perfect word or phrase to try to wrap up all the things I write, I spend too much time trying to find that one perfect thing to say. In reality, it probably won’t come this month, because while we’re wrapping up this month, we’re not finished talking about suicide prevention.
Continue readingMy Attitude on Mental Health, Explained
For one reason or another, I’ve been thinking about the word optimism for the past weeks. I’m thinking about it in a lot of ways – what it means to practice it, what it looks like in my life, and what it looks like for my mental health, just to name a few. Whether this is purely in my own imagination or something evident in my writing, I feel like sometimes my posts can seem overly optimistic about how to approach mental health and mental illness – and in months like September, suicide prevention. I truly do believe in the idea that ripples in the pond can raise awareness, reduce stigma, and help people learn that it’s okay not to be okay. But I also know how impossibly frustrating it can be to exist that way. At the end of the day, I think I’ll always end up opting for the glass half-full when it comes to mental health, but I don’t think I’ve ever really explained why. There are a few key reasons for why I write the way I do, and I thought I’d share them with you today.
Read morWhat Is Your Role in Suicide Prevention?
In the three years since I started this blog, I have gained more and more courage to speak on many topics in the mental health space. Every September, I try to write a few posts for Suicide Prevention Awareness Month to raise awareness, education and resources. I also try to write a post for World Suicide Prevention Day that tries to bring the discussion to the forefront (you can find the 2020 post here). And while I am proud of how I’ve grown into being able to speak on this topic, I also think I was pretty harsh on myself in the past because I thought I wasn’t qualified to talk about suicide prevention. Recently though, I’ve learned how wrong I’ve been – and where I can go from here.
Continue readingHow Can We Use Metaphors to Describe Mental Health?
Getting through the day while struggling with mental health is difficult. Trying to be productive isn’t easy when you’re dealing with negative thoughts, a lack of energy or any one of the many symptoms that make existing hard. Nevertheless, millions of people do their best every single day get through things, and one of the best ways to explain that is through metaphors.
Continue readingHitting a Mental Health Wall – and How to Respond
It feels like every few months, I have to write a reminder post of some sort. Sometimes, they’re reminder posts about my own mental health journey – reminding myself that progress is a process, and that when I have a bad mental health day, all of the progress I’ve made isn’t undone (even though it feels like it). Other times I’ll write an encouragement post that’s for anyone who happens to come across it, because we could all use some encouragement now and then. So I’m back today with another reminder post to remind myself (and anyone who reads this) that the physical toll it takes to maintain mental health and fight against the stigma has a breaking point – and that it’s okay to hit that point.
Continue readingThe Fight Against Suicide: World Suicide Prevention Day
TW: This post discusses suicide, suicide rates statistics and suicide prevention.
When I write about suicide prevention on this blog, it’s usually within the context of the current state of mental health in the United States. But today, I want to look at suicide prevention from a global perspective by talking about an extremely important day in the mental health community: World Suicide Prevention Day. Because make no mistake – suicide prevention is a global public health issue, and too many people still don’t really know what we’re up against.
Continue readingSuicide Prevention Lifelines and Other Resources
TW: This post discusses suicide.
As I wrote earlier this week, September is National Suicide Prevention Month in the United States. This month is extremely important to me for many reasons, and I’m not alone in feeling that. There are so many more people than you may realize who are going through difficult moments, and so many people that have dealt with – or are continuously dealing with – these struggles on a daily basis. Last year, I wrote about some of the resources to turn to for suicide prevention, but I thought I would update that list this year because of the current state of the world. I believe education and awareness are still lacking when it comes to discussing the topic of suicide, which is why we need to continue sharing these resources as far and wide as possible.
Continue readingSuicide Prevention Awareness Month 2020
TW: This post discusses suicide.
Every September while I’ve been writing this blog, I post about Suicide Prevention Month. Since this is a mental health blog, I believe it’s important to see the connection between mental health and suicide prevention, and my own research and experience has shown me ways to advocate and talk about suicide prevention. One of those ways is through education and awareness. Suicide is a public health issue, and we need to understand how important suicide prevention is to fighting against it.
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My Brain's Not Broken 