Latest Stories

Most recently published stories in Psyche.

Why Is There Such A Stigma Around Addiction?
Stigma: a mark of disgrace associated with a particular circumstance, quality, or person. There is so much great work being done at the moment to reduce the stigma around addiction. Rethink Addiction[1]and Addicted Australia[2]are just two examples of those challenging the current perceptions of addiction with great success. This work is so important, for while addiction is shrouded with shame and disgrace, we will never be able to confront the real causes of addiction and learn from the experiences of those who have battled and beaten this most evil of demons. Viewing people with addictions as bad people, undisciplined, selfish or weak does nothing but destroy any dignity the person has and makes it less likely that they will begin to be honest about their struggle and to seek help.
By Belinda Tobin5 years ago in Psyche
Inside the Minds: The Man I Used to Call "Dad"
I was trained to be an adult from a very young age. I had to know what to do, making decisions, and defining what is good and what is bad for the entire family. I thought that was typical for every kid but as I grew older, I knew it was not.
By Vitak Cheav5 years ago in Psyche
The White Wall Diaries
"For crazy is just a term we place on someone who’s a little unstable. To be two people and not know when or where it will all end. She is my friend, my sister, she is a whole new version of me. Such lies, such battles of trying to be someone else- to actually pretend to be someone else. For people may call me crazy. I just say I’m unstable." - The journal entrie wrote just three days before my first brush with death.
By M5 years ago in Psyche
Goodbye Pain, Hello Healing
In order to move forward into 2021, I have to reflect on all the life altering events I've experienced recently. This past year and a half has shaped me into someone I don't totally recognize. Vauge vocabulary is how I choose to describe who I am becoming because if there's anything I take away from 2020 is that new challanges and decision making is always right around the corner. And that at those critical moments, you can lose your self with a simple yes or no. I hadn't realized I was looking at each day with a light and dark attitude until this new year. It's been as if I am the Earth, forever rotating towards and away from the sun. Both nightfall and daylight equally appealing. Wanting to choose to heal but feeling too sick to step up. So in order to truly give myself a fresh start, away from this internal love-hate relationship, I have to go back to when my life really started to change.
By Rebecca Ciminillo5 years ago in Psyche
Adult Diagnosis
An autism diagnosis that comes during adulthood can really re-contextualize an entire life’s worth of events, behaviors, thoughts, and feelings. Even the phrase “autistic adult” can often summon imagery of childhood, or child-like behaviors in many - an overall ableist view of autistic adults that many of us internalize ourselves, whether we realize it or not. Rarely are there resources targeted towards autistic adults, and even more rare that those sparse resources address autistic adults as fully fledged human beings with their own wants, feelings, and will. Mostly, when an autistic adult wants to look into their own neurodiversity and explore symptoms and signs, they must first wade through article after article geared towards the parents of autistic children, and even of those, many lament the poor, unfortunate situation these parents are in - having an autistic child. The disabled in question are rarely given agency.
By Cat Bog5 years ago in Psyche
You Need to Log Off of Your Zoom Meetings for Your Own Mental Health
I was participating in a virtual happy hour with some friends when I felt an anxiety attack sneak up on me. One minute I was nodding along and smiling at something a friend was saying, the next minute I felt a heavy weight on my chest. My heart was racing. My breathing became labored and shallow. Sweat dripped down my back. I felt lightheaded and shaky.
By Rose Bak 5 years ago in Psyche
The Cypress Tree and the Night’s sky
Before work every morning I rise and paint the city and nearby surroundings. Most mornings, I don't get to finish because I have to hurry off to work and meet the demands of daily life. However, I cannot sleep when the sun rises. The sun creeps into my window every morning, and like a warm friend reminds me of the day's immediate demands. This is even with a cloth over my window. With my mind hazes, I take off the window covering and am nearly blinded by the glaze of our galaxy's only star. It appears completely red most mornings and covers the sky briefly with a yellow tint like my skin.
By Michael Mannen5 years ago in Psyche
6 things that happen during recovery
Nothing can prepare you for deciding to take the step towards your recovery. Maybe you were forced to sober up or maybe you just woke up and decided to put your recovery first so you could stop putting everything else you love last. Maybe you hit rock bottom and all that’s left is to get your shit together... whatever it is, one day you’ll be so thankful that you took that first step. Here are some of the things you can expect to happen in those first few months:
By Tenielle5 years ago in Psyche
Where Does Sanity End and Insanity Begin?
Perhaps the headline for this article is too extreme, but really there is no way around it because it’s difficult to conceptualize, much less to describe, insanity and sanity as a spectrum, and so we cling to some definitive distinction, likely cause this dividing line is so central to the reliability of our own perceived reality. Yet, exempting various forms of hallucination — the direct, confirmable non-existence of something perceived — the line becomes quite blurry.
By Martin Vidal5 years ago in Psyche
Happiness is Habit
When I was 18 I slipped under dark waters. I call it my Big Sad. Three family bereavements coupled with the stresses of my final year at school meant that I was struggling to stay afloat. I found my grades slipping, my anxiety piling up, and an inability to find a way out of my situation.
By Elspeth Evans5 years ago in Psyche
Giving Voice - Part 2
These are my favorite kinds of days, warm sun, and cold breeze. It is perfect hoodie weather. So, I took a walk. I listened to some classics on my headphones and did my best to ignore the vehicles flying by. It reminds me a lot of my life right now, just trying to keep my head down and ignoring the near misses flying by. I remember being actively engaged in life, much like one would remember a favorite childhood birthday, pleasant and warm but foggy and without detail.
By David Zwakenberg5 years ago in Psyche
I Finally Found The Answers!
Trigger Warning: Emotional Abuse Disclaimer: This discusses the questions I've had as an emotional abuse victim and the answers I've found. Mentions of the experience may be present, but brief. If this were a movie, I would give this a PG rating, but I recognize that particularly in the early phases of healing, even the slightest mention can trigger painful recollection, but the intent of this is to facilitate healing not prevent it.
By Cici Woods5 years ago in Psyche