Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Psyche.
Trauma and The Phoenix
Life is good. The goal is to hold tight and keep this thought in front of you because sometimes it's not. If you've lived sufficient time on planet Earth, this statement will mean something to you. If it doesn't, prepare for it. We often discover that life is a flame, and we are its paper. We either become scattered ash – or a rising phoenix. I've often wondered what differentiates between the two. Is it simply a matter of being optimistic, resilient, or knowing that the good times will outweigh the bad in totality? For some people, yes. For others, not so much.
By Francesca Flood, Ed.D.5 years ago in Psyche
How to improve your Mental Health
Mental health isn’t just a person’s condition. It’s a lifestyle. Being physically fit can improve your mood but that alone is not going to help you solve the problems with mental health. Exercise and healthy eating won’t make your mental state improve just because you are physically fit. On the contrary, exercise and healthy eating only improve your mental state because you are becoming physically fit, mentally healthy, healthy and fit.
By Roy's Corner5 years ago in Psyche
An Analysis: Salvador Dali’s “The Disintegration of the Persistence of Memory”
To thoroughly understand the brilliance of Salvador Dalí and “The Disintegration of the Persistence of Memory”, we must first briefly touch on the life of the artist himself, the thoughts or methods behind Surrealism, and develop an understanding of “The Persistence of Memory” (1931, oil on canvas, 9’5” x 1’1”), a work which really birthed “The Disintegration of the Persistence of Memory” (1954, oil on canvas, 25.4 cm x 33 cm).
By Real Monsters 5 years ago in Psyche
Tony
I stood by the road in shock. We had been trying to stop your dad from drink-driving, but it was too late. He was too far gone for us to stop him from getting in that car. You were determined to follow him, but it's ok, I understand; you were trying to protect your dad. Any caring son would have done that, but I wasn't prepared for the car crash that followed There was a sudden screech off wheel's, followed by a loud crash. I shut my eyes and refused to look, when I opened them again there were police and ambulance services surrounding you. I froze, heartbroken with tears streaming down my face. "How could he do that to his own son?" You would have asked me to forgive him for being an alcoholic, and I'm sorry but I just can't. He destroyed your life, your mum's life and, your ten- year old sisters life, and he left me heartbroken for many long years.
By Carol Ann Townend5 years ago in Psyche
Shrödinger's Suicide
I'm not suicidal, I'm just standing on the edge of a cliff waiting to be pushed off. This is a phrase that came to my mind recently. I've suffered with varying degrees of depression for more than half my life. Whilst I was first initially diagnosed with 'mild' depression at 18, I was writing poetry at 13 that could have been dismissed as teen angst. I also admitted to a friend that I sometimes scratched at my arm with a compass. Not to mention that I developed chronic fatigue as I started high school, an illness that can be a result of great stress (read: mental breakdown).
By Luke Elliott5 years ago in Psyche
Banshee
Do you know what the most horrible sound in the world is? It is your mother wailing, waking you at five a.m. Snatches of conversation cutting into your room, hacking into your fogged over brain, and forcing you to pay attention to something that you are not ready for.
By Crysta Coburn5 years ago in Psyche
5 Useful Stress Busters for Today’s Challenging Times
The Sun never rises in the west. Today’s world will never stop bombarding us with stress. We can’t stop stress triggers. It is possible to trick our mind to come out of stress. We can defeat heart attacks and death at an early age by keeping our stress at bay. At its optimum level, stress motivates us to perform well under pressure. Yet, if we don’t manage high levels of unwanted stress, our health and sense of well-being can suffer. Here are some tips for getting your stress under control.
By Anitha Sankaran5 years ago in Psyche
Electroconvulsive Therapy & Me
The first time I heard of ECT(1) was under circumstances I can’t really talk about. Suffice it to say that someone I knew, who I very much identified with, was choosing to undergo treatments. I can’t really say more than that about the circumstances. But the circumstances, while important to me, are not what I want to talk about. What I want to talk about was my response.
By Melissa Klinginsmith5 years ago in Psyche
Laughter
The story you are about to read was inspired by our Golden retriever, "Mei Li." She crossed the Rainbow bridge on Saturday September 24, 2022, but will live forever in our hearts as she has brought so much joy and laughter to our life's. You will understand why she is so important to this story before you reach the end.
By Gerald Holmes5 years ago in Psyche
The Perfect Bark
My teachers look at me funny when I make weird noises, but my friends, they usually just laugh. It’s funny to them, and they are pretty cool about it — they don’t make fun of me really, but only get a kick out of it — like when we are in the middle of a test or something, and then out of nowhere I let out a bark, I mean a loud bark, where everyone turns around to see me and smiles, and then someone starts laughing, and then everyone else gets going. To tell you the truth, it doesn’t bother me at all, and I laugh right along with them most of the time.
By Brandt Ryan5 years ago in Psyche
