Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Psyche.
Managing & Controlling Stress
We will all experience stress to a certain degree in our day-to-day lives. It could be as a result of a personal setback e.g. a relationship breakdown or a bereavement, a health issue, maybe losing a job or it may be due to other pressures at work. In fact, stress can manifest itself for any number of reasons and, in certain instances, a ‘healthy’ level of stress can actually have positive benefits for us. This often occurs at work where a manageable degree of pressure often spurs us on to be more productive.
By T. S. Michaels5 years ago in Psyche
Last Swim
The man walked slowly and carefully into the water. He felt the waves slap leisurely at his feet. Then his calves. Then his thighs, groin, and stomach. When the water got to his shoulders, the man ducked his head beneath the waves and immersed his entire body in the salty water. It was very cold and there was a strong undercurrent which would like to pull him down if he let it. He didn’t.
By Rollin Jewett5 years ago in Psyche
Stolen by the FAE
To say “well, this has been a hell of a year” when looking back would be a massive understatement. Considering my last published post on my personal blog was in April of 2020, it’s fair to say that things have changed. Some of those changes have been large, others have been small. Losing my job was a large change. Making adjustments to my personal hygiene routine is a small one. Beginning pursuit of a degree in counseling psychology? Large. Learning a few new chords on a guitar and getting my fingers on a Casio keyboard again? Not so much.
By Blue Ink Alchemy5 years ago in Psyche
The Fame Monster: at the Intersection of Celebrity and Mental Health Advocacy
As someone with mental health issues, I recognize the importance of celebrities advocating for treatment and reducing the stigma surrounding psychiatric illnesses. But lately, I’ve been disenfranchised with stars’ performative acts and at times, downright triggering attempts to shed light on mental illness. Stars tend to forget that they have a larger audience than most. They also may be so coddled in a Hollywood bubble that they lose their sense of reality. Most recently, Lady Gaga released an ad for her cosmetic line, Haus Laboratories, that fashioned eyeliner swatches to look like self-harm scars on the inside of the model’s wrists. Dozens of followers commented that they found the image insensitive and triggering. Without apologizing or even acknowledging the harm caused, Haus Laboratories promptly removed the image from their Instagram. In the past, Lady Gaga has advocated for access to mental health treatment and has opened up about her personal struggles with mental health. She even penned an essay for The Guardian about the urgency of suicide prevention for World Mental Health Day in 2018. Of course, this is not the first incident where Gaga was called out for being insensitive about mental illness, and other celebrities have been just as guilty, but this latest instance reveals a deeper pattern of celebrities claiming to advocate for mental health while causing harm to those struggling.
By Erica Mones5 years ago in Psyche
The Barbie Head
Writing prompt: the first memory you ever had. It took me a while to dig back to as far as I could remember. Things that stick out are some things that have some kind of trauma around them: the first time I saw blood, conceived of death, hated something or someone, felt terrible physical pain, etcetera. And before concepts, there were images. Dress hems, dogs tied to their house by a chain, a tall palm tree, the gleam of metallic balloons.
By A.X.Partida5 years ago in Psyche
The Best Trick to Naturally Ease Your Anxiety
Do you often feel stuck in the monotony of day-to-day living? Do you feel like something is missing in terms of vibrancy, zest, or aliveness in your life? If so, it is because you are simply failing to recognize the ease and wellbeing which naturally dominate the flow of your life. The perfect tilt of this planet, the incredible power of the sun, the bountiful creation of Earthly harvest; we live in a miracle of cosmic perfection. In fact, so much must go perfectly right each and every day to even afford you the luxury of time and space to feel negative. This grand life may exist beyond our comprehension in some ways, but that doesn’t mean you must resist its blessings while you search for answers. Allowing yourself to enjoy the exhilarating ride is the point, and the only person that ever resists the powerful rapids of wellbeing in favor of exhaustion or heartbreak is you.
By T.K. Sanders5 years ago in Psyche
Detoxifying Toxicity
Covid-19 hurt, in a lot of different ways. I had to take in a roommate because bills were getting tight and I had to find a way to make ends meet. I had made friends with a coworker that I thought I had gotten to know really well and asked her to move in with me since. When she first moved in, it was great, we got along well and she treated my daughter really well too. Soon, I had found out that she actually had a crush on me and wanted to be in a relationship with me, though she had never been with a female before. I didn't really feel the same, and she used that against me and started to treat me differently. She asked me why I asked her to move in if I wasn't interested in her like that, which left me baffled because I didn't think I had given her any indication that I was interested in her that way.
By Crissy Cornwell5 years ago in Psyche
Me - human
It is my first night trip through my reality. Sky full of stars and somewhere in the middle our Moon. Earth's natural satellite. From here it's so bright and mysterious. You would never say that this is only reflected light coming from the Sun. It gets me thinking how so many things are so much different than they seem to be. We see little bright object in the sky called star and we don't even realise it might not longer exist in the Universe. We don't think how big or from how far it's coming, we just see it shining.
By Joanna Golczynska5 years ago in Psyche
