Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Psyche.
Misery, In Regards to My Body
My body has done a flawless job at disappointing me. Even though we come together and make one final being, we don’t think alike, and we don’t agree on anything. And with that, it’s easier to be at war with the chaos that is my body. It’s easy for me to disassociate myself from my physical attributes because I feel like a stranger in my own skin. While the human body is supposed to be a comfortable place to release vulnerabilities, like the deliverance of tears or staring at oneself in the mirror questioning who they are, I have never felt so distressed. I can’t trust my body because it hasn’t given me much reason to rely on it, and that frightens me. I know it’s normal for people to feel insecure in their skin from time to time, some more than others. However, I am the exception.
By Jules Busshardt8 years ago in Psyche
Carrie Fisher and the Legacy She Left Behind
Not too long ago, I was going through my Facebook memories when I came across a picture I was very familiar with. I had posted it on Facebook on November 29th, 2016. I was the day I met Carrie Fisher at The Grove in Hollywood. She was doing a book signing for The Princess Diarist, and I had booked it out of my last class of the day to meet her.
By Abby Ramsay8 years ago in Psyche
To the World
Dear world, I guess we have different views on what it means to have anxiety. The word anxiety gets thrown around because people believe it's something simple and uncomplicated. It has no actual impact on life, but yet there are thousands of people suffering from anxiety.
By Cheyenne Spring8 years ago in Psyche
Depression
It began at 12. My life was never extraordinary. I was just a simple southern girl who lived in a bad situation. At twelve I realized I wasn’t like most girls. That’s because I liked most girls. Once I came out to my family it was like the devil had made his appearance in our home. My grandmother and father disowned me along with a few other family members. My dad being a drunk told one of his customers who had a child in my class and she started my bullying. She told the whole school about me liking girls. They all started pushing me and calling me names. That is when I started my cutting. By the time I entered eighth grade I was already a regular cutting. Then I got sent off to get help. Let me tell you. The “help” was a joke. They just gave you medicine and picked fun at you when they would leave your room. Nothing truly helped until I got home and started writing. I would use my depression and schizophrenia to help me make up intriguing stories and share them with my friends. The older I got the stranger the stories got. Then one day I stopped writing. I met someone who instantly sparked my soul. We started dating and then, like any young couple, we started other things. I felt cured of my depression. Until I got my annual visit to the doctor. She confirmed that I wouldn’t be able to have kids. My depression came storming back in with its bags packed and a new things with it. How was I going to tell my man? Would he still want a woman who can’t bare children? Would he leave? All these questions and no one to help me ask them. He noticed my mood changes and noticed I had quit putting effort into everything. I saw what my depression was causing and was going to end it that night. When we got back from a family outing; I had a speech prepared and everything. Turns out he had a speech ready too. He sat me on our bed and began rambling about how he noticed changes. I went to interrupt him and he got down on one knee and proposed. I was at a loss for words. Before I gave him an answer, I told him what the doctor had told me. His response? “That’s fine. There are several children needing a good home. We could always adopt a child.” Right then I knew I wanted to marry this man. I know, I know. This sounds all fairy tale like. But this is my real life. My struggles with depression have brought me terrible luck but also something amazing came out of it all. I married my best friend two years after he proposed to me. Then five months after we had married, I found out we were pregnant. As a girl who once thought she would never make it to where she is today because her depression was getting the best of her I can honestly say, I’m proud of my depression. It’s had it’s bad days, but without it, I probably wouldn’t be where I am today. Depression isn’t a nice thing but what if I wouldn’t have went off and got the help I needed? Then I wouldn’t have met my husband when I came back home. I wouldn’t have graduated high school. I wouldn’t be married to the man I love. I wouldn’t be watching he and our three year old daughter cuddle as I type this. I wouldn’t be happy today. Depression is an awful thing, but if you find your own ways to deal with it, and conquer it in your own ways, it will get better. I have faith in everyone who has depression. I know it’s hard but I promise you it gets better. Please make sure you are around to see the better days of depression. I still get my outbursts, but when my husband sees I’m getting bad again, he helps me. He notices what my house work is lacking and helps me. If I do all the dishes but the dinner dishes, he does them. He also puts on my favorite movie and just talks with me. He does everything he can to help my depression just clear out for a while. My little girl doesn’t know that I struggle, and my biggest fear is her knowing and feeling like it’s her fault, as I did with my own mother, but when I start getting bad I hold her. I sing her favorite song to her and tell her how much I love her. As long as my child knows it’s not her fault, I feel somewhat better. It’s been 3 weeks without a breakdown and I’m feeling pretty strong. I know my breakdown day is coming but I feel as though I can welcome it back. It is an old friend to begin with.
By Sandra Reynolds8 years ago in Psyche
Depression, Video Games, Bipolar Disorder — And A Few Smiles Later
Depression. It's a word that most of us recoil from or shrug off whenever we hear it mentioned. It's a state of mind that most of us respond to with a hasty "get over it." If only it were that simple for those of us who suffer. Depression is a mood disorder that doesn't vanish with a simple nudge to the ribs and a supplication from our peers to harden up.
By Dustin Murphy8 years ago in Psyche
Let's Talk About Mental Health In Gamers and What the Video Game Industry Does About It
Gamers. We need to have a serious conversation. I'm not talking about the conversation you'd have with your mom, dad, cousin, uncle, sister, brother, or whoever about dating or sex. I'm talking about a topic that impacts tens of millions of Americans every day, and people right here in our very own diverse gaming community. I'm talking about mental health issues.
By Dustin Murphy8 years ago in Psyche
Find Your Battle Buddy
Before I begin let me start off by saying depression sucks! Anxiety sucks! "Invisible illnesses" SUCK!Ok I think you get my point now. So what the hell am I doing here? Simple. I want to help others who battle the ups and downs of daily life. Their struggles are not going to single them out. Everyone struggles. Even if you haven't officially been diagnosed with something. Struggle is everywhere; some are just better at hiding it than others.The past month and a half or so I was switched medications (again) for my anxiety, depression, and fibromyalgia. At first let me tell you, THEY SUCKED! I felt like a zombie. Almost drooling on myself and not talking to anyone. Zoning out. Just BLAH. The overall feeling of being numb from head to toe. But after about 3 weeks of taking my medications like I should, I began to feel so much better. I tell you this because I have been that person who hated meds and would not take them religiously. Thought they didn't work. Well the truth is that I didn't let them work. This time I have one of those medicine container things with the days and times. I refill it every Saturday night for the whole week. Sorry, off on a tangent. But I began to feel BETTER. Now, as someone who has struggled on and off with depression for 17 years, feeling "better" is not 100% - even 10% better is better than 2% and that's where I am at now. I am about 10% better than I was a month and a half ago.A month and a half ago I hated life. I wore a smile for my children and coworkers and boyfriend just to make sure they didn't feel the same way as me. And of course to mask my true feelings. I don't cry often but damn when I do, it pours out. There are times I would be driving home from grocery shopping and out of nowhere I'm bawling my eyes out. Just crying hysterically. Wondering what the hell I'm doing here...Hell I even took a picture and posted it on my Facebook.
By Ashley Bone8 years ago in Psyche
