Latest Stories

Most recently published stories in Psyche.

My Borderline Existence: Death
My wonderful mother was vibrant and intelligent. She was 28 years old when my baby brother was born. She died five months later of an insidious cancer. To make things worse, my grandfather (her father) disowned his three grandchildren. Of course, now I understand that this type of loss is the basis of a borderline personality disorder (BPD) diagnosis. But wait, it gets worse. Soon after my mother died, my father married our 18 year-old babysitter. She left after being nearly beaten to death when I was 12 years old. I was left to fend for myself, take care of my siblings and my abusive father.
By JP4 years ago in Psyche
My life with Aspergers (high functioning autism)
An introduction to me: Since moving to Western Australia in 2012 from England (which despite its stereotype is not anywhere near as miserable as people think it is) life has definitely not been uneventful.
By Ellie Hopwood4 years ago in Psyche
Home Is Where the Heart Is...
The last few years have been weird. I left the place I grew up and moved two states away. I started living with my fiancé (boyfriend at the time). Added to our fur family. It’s been a lot of growing up and a lot of reality checks. It’s been weird…but also eye opening and wonderful. Through all the stress of “adulting” and trying to steady ourselves in an ever changing world, we have managed to turn every living situation into our own space. No matter what the environment might have been, no matter what stressors were present, we somehow turned the spaces into a small sanctuary of sorts. A home. And all of this has me asking the question: What makes a home?
By Rowan Flores4 years ago in Psyche
The Truth About Journaling
Ever been so angry that you can't do anything but kind of scream and growl? And then a few seconds later the tears come. Or maybe a family member did something that hurt you and all you could think to do was slam the door and yell ugly things on your way out.
By Charlotte Stetson4 years ago in Psyche
Why you should meditate every day
Understanding Meditation Meditation is an age-old practice used to be present and aware. A consistent meditation practice promotes mental clarity, calmness, and stability. Many faith-based communities and religions incorporate meditation into their spiritual traditions and teachings, but the techniques are non-secular and accessible to everybody and their ability level. If you have breath in your body, then you can meditate.
By Sallypalm.4 years ago in Psyche
Conspiracy Theories: Clickbait or a Threat to Society?
Watching conspiracy theories videos on YouTube is very entertaining and all, although it is very easy to start with videos of UFO sightings and without realizing it it’s just turned 2 AM and you’re watching undeniable proof that Mark Zuckerberg is an alien cyborg sent to earth to control and spy on us through Facebook. Luckily, for most of us, we forget all about it when we close the tab and go to sleep, but there are a lot of people who do not see these theories as science fiction stories but as reality. Crazy right?
By Mindsmatter.4 years ago in Psyche
It's the little things
When anyone tries to explain what kindness is, the littlest things always seem to be the ones that come to mind. The little kindnesses are in the supporting The following is my guide to kindness and inclusivity in 2022.
By Jaimie4 years ago in Psyche
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
This piece is about mental health awareness and the struggle many people face every single day. It is not meant as a diagnostic tool or to give any medical advice whatsoever. Every individual has their own story and their own treatment plan, so even if you see part of yourself in this piece, it's vital that you seek the help of a trained professional. It IS okay not to be okay.
By Analise Dionn4 years ago in Psyche
Until my Last Breath
Until my Last Breath (thoughts of a chaotic mind.) By: Destiny Tozier As I sit here pondering the time that has gone by, freshly turned 35 as of January 13, a mother and a college student I question what it is I truly want from this life. Knowing I spent most of it in a chaos I could have changed or walked away from at any time, fighting battles that at the end of the day never were mine to fight, spending months at a time on a healing journey that makes me wonder if I have ever healed at all. The only victory I think I won in the war of tearing myself to the core, was the actual ability to let go of things and people that no longer or have never made me feel good nor brought anything of substance to the table because they didn't care to be a part of what was important to me.
By Destiny Tozier4 years ago in Psyche
What Is Sexuality?
What is sexuality? This, it appears, is the multi-million dollar question. It is said the subject is too complex for one consistent definition. And despite all the books I have read, I could not find one clear model that I could use to understand my sexuality, let alone discuss the concept with my children. Without a simple visual model and a common language, I feel the opportunity to have full and frank conversations with my kids is lost. But I have developed a solution that seems to be working, and here it is. Perhaps it could be helpful for you too?
By Belinda Tobin4 years ago in Psyche
Hiding
"You know the vary powerful and the vary stupid have one thing in common. They don't alter their views to fit the facts. They alter the facts to fit their views. Which can be uncomfortable if you happen to be one of the facts that needs altering" Doctor Who, The Fourth Doctor. The Face of Evil.
By Ashley Wood4 years ago in Psyche
Brain imaging, Consciousness, Jaynes and Wittgenstein
Your brain represents only 2% of your body weight. However, it is estimated that it consumes 20% of more of your body’s energy, even at rest. Modern Brain imaging techniques like fMRI or PET scans purport to associate particular states of consciousness with increased activity in specific areas of the brain. In the most basic of terms increased “activity” as measured by fMRI or PET or other techniques correlates with increased “activity” in a particular state of consciousness. So so far so good. It certainly makes cognitive sense to connect the two. It turns out that one of the founders of modern brain imaging techniques, Robert G. Shulman has begun to question this supposed link. In a fascinating new (not so new anymore but very much underappreciated still) work he suggests and describes in detail the weaknesses of this approach to cognitive neuroscience and modern neurophilosophy. It turns out that many imaging studies actually show a decrease in brain activity related to rest as measured by modern technologies in response to a given cognitive task. Modern interpretations of this data suggest that the decrease is attributable to increases in activity in areas related to self reflection and social reasoning. In other words it’s not really a decrease at all but simply an increase in other non-related areas of the brain. Shulman argues that every area of the brain is active at rest not just the specific areas attributed by modern researchers. So far I have relied (and cribbed) extensively from Colin Klein’s excellent review of Shulman’s book. I highly recommend you read it if you are at all interested in this area of research/philosophy/neuroscience.
By Everyday Junglist4 years ago in Psyche