Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Psyche.
Happiness: It's Up To You
For 8 years I've been depressed, attempted suicide 6 times, lost my faith, and constantly neglected myself. It started with the bullying. I was a nice girl, too nice. Stood on my tippy toes, cheered, sucked my thumb, sang proudly, and enjoyed learning. Apparently, that made me an easy target. Kids would hide my belongings from me, call me names that, to this day, I still don't know what it means, pull my hair, etc. Nobody ever helped me. I didn't have that really kind and brave student that would stand up for me like in the movies, and I was too ashamed to tell teachers.
By Lyssa Wyssa💐♐8 years ago in Psyche
Your Health Matters!
So mental health is what we call a tent pole topic in 2018. More and more campaigns, blogs, Facebook pages proliferate, all encouraging people to open up, be honest, and just simply listen to others’ mental health concerns more. Although at the same time it is, of course, worth pointing out the advice one often receives is to stay away from photo-centric social media, lest we become envious, upset, or anxious that our lives don’t measure up to the lives of others.
By Richard Brind8 years ago in Psyche
Their Common Traumas
It was the first day of classes, another year began which I did not think was anything good because the previous ones had been such as I predicted, miserable. I walked through the corridors of the school, like a soul in pain, I haunted every corner. It was my fifth period, I did not know where to go and when I found out where I was, I knew I was late but I introduced myself, I went into the room, all eyes on me, I saw a friend from last year, I sat with her. That's how it all started. She has the most beautiful eyes in the world, when she smiles she creates another planet, when she makes ugly faces she also looks beautiful, I do not know how she did it, but she captivated me, quickly, without much doing. I was always alone, antisocial, and apparently angry. She was happy, pure, free, on the outside everything with which she wanted to hide that inside. She always greeted me, often told me to smile or that I am beautiful that day, I do not know if I fell in love with her because I did not have anyone else or simply because she was the first to captivate my attention. We kissed for the first time on the patio of my house, it was weird, she swore not to kiss me again, but she did. She has a lot of pain, she cries almost every night. She told me her life, I know every detail of it, and I would love to erase some of her moments; abuse, violence, and a broken heart. It was blamed that they played with her, she said she was not enough, she screamed at me, she told me things she did not even think or feel, that anger consumed her. Sometimes I went completely crazy, I did not know what to do; how, why, when. Totally crazy. But those moments in which she smiled, I saw that beautiful heart that was still in her. Every beautiful moment counted for five fights for me, I was the "optimist" but no, completely deluded. I said things something that I did not do myself, we are a disaster of emotions. I suffered from severe anxiety, she from suffering, I from bipolarity, she from bipolar with depressive disorders, like me, too. We walk together to school and sometimes, we fight. She does not know what she wants, sometimes she tells me to leave her, but I can not. When a little girl suffered a lot of abuse, when that anger grew, it grew bigger, then she gave her heart to the wrong person, it broke into pieces. It's been two years since that happened and eight months since I met her and I have not been able to replace those broken pieces. She no longer trusts anyone, she sleeps with an open eye if necessary, the father looks like the groom over protector, and the mother does not look like a mother. They ask for confidence but when she speaks she is being disrespectful, they expect her to listen but if she defends herself she is being disrespectful. People speak bad of her, only to annoy her. When she gets angry, I try to give her love, to advise her but it gets worse, that anger is consuming her. My mind, my past, and my traumas torture me. Since I was little, I lived with my parents, they fought little, we were happy, and I used to go out and play with my friends every day. Then I moved here. She was born here. She is beautiful, necessary clarification. Sometimes I sink into an abyss of thoughts about why this is not going to work, sometimes I want to scream at her because I do not understand her. She says she loves me. I love her more than my life. I would love to know how to make her happy, because it is exactly what she needs to survive. She says many things, it's an open book with an iron cover, but I love the falseness with which she really loves me.
By Maria Morales8 years ago in Psyche
Health Anxiety - An Invisible Demon
If you speak to someone with Health Anxiety (HA) they will often be able to pinpoint where it all began. For some it will be, although deeply unpleasant, a mere episode triggered by trauma, one in which they overcome and return to life as it once was. For others, however, their anxiety becomes ingrained within the very foundations of your being. There is no escaping it, no quick fix or get out clause and all that is left is learning to make peace with who you now are. Some of us achieve this with relative ease, learning to acknowledge our triggers and nip those dark thoughts in the bud before we unravel completely.
By The Anxious Diaries8 years ago in Psyche
The Ways I Deal With My Depression
I have reached a stage in my life that I would not even wish upon my best or worst enemy. I am 62 and I am going through changes that I never imagined in my entire life. Some can be dealt with while the majority of them cannot. Most of them are the result of my earlier decisions while the rest are the results of things way beyond my control. No matter how I look at it, I must deal with them.....alone.
By Maurice Bernier8 years ago in Psyche
How to Overcome Depression
Before starting treatment for my bipolar disorder, I was suffering with major mood swings. Sometimes I'd be high and on top of the world, like nothing could touch me. But then there was always the depression. It came like a nightmare and stayed for what felt like forever so that I couldn't escape it. You don't have to tell me that it's hard to handle depression—I know it is. Now that I'm stabilized and clear-headed, I feel like a totally different person. Someone asked me, "What advice would you give to someone who is depressed or feeling lost?" Keep in mind, some cases of depression are a lot harder than others. But here's some advice that I can give, and hopefully, it helps someone on their journey to a safe and healthy mindset.
By Amanda Doyle8 years ago in Psyche
Anxiety
Let's face it: a lot of people have it. Anxiety. I'm having it right now just writing this. The constant fear of the unknown, of being judged, of being disliked. Now, I'm not a medical professional by any means. I've never even been to college (that's a story for a later time). But I know a thing or two about anxiety and what works for me.
By Bethany Lefler8 years ago in Psyche
Am I Going Crazy?
On the outside, everything is fine. I am sitting with people who know me, who care about me. I am not alone, I am not being tormented outwardly, I am not in an awkward situation. Everything is normal. Except it's not. Inside my head, I am going over and over every possible situation and scenario that could possibly go wrong. Is she looking at me weird? Why did I wear this dress today? Is there something in my teeth? Why am I such a failure at being a friend? How come no one can tell that inside, I'm drowning? Why would I ever tell anyone? Am I going crazy?
By Mathilda Burton8 years ago in Psyche
A Letter to the Addict Still Suffering
Image By: Lauren Crawford - Image Retrieved From: Chiron A Medici Company - https://chironhealth.com/blog/treating-addictions-telemedicine/drugabuse-shutterstock272600351-people-holding-hands-feature-image-drug-addiction-treatment/
By Jaquelyn Cannon8 years ago in Psyche
Battling the Voices
"It's never going to happen to me." I guess I was always one of those people who thought that. I never thought I would become a drug addict. But I did. I never thought I would be homeless. But I was. I never thought I would wake up one morning hearing voices that weren't real. But that happened too.
By Jaquelyn Cannon8 years ago in Psyche
