coping
Life presents variables; learning how to cope in order to master, minimize, or tolerate what has come to pass.
The Rawness of My Mental Health
This paper is going to be about mental health and my journey through it without any form of sugarcoating; I want to introduce the real and raw me. Mental illness is a hurricane that starts off by stripping the color from your world, and then perhaps even your identity depending on the severity. The shades of color that were so vivid and bright suddenly dull and fade to gray, and you have no idea how it happened. Your world slipped through your fingers. You plead and beg the universe to let your mind stop swirling for half of a second, please just silence all of the chaotic happenings, but no matter how much you plead for that control, unfortunately, getting to a point where things do start getting quiet and coping mechanisms become less harmful takes an incredible amount of work.
By Alexeus Ruland4 years ago in Psyche
Emptiness
A cold winter night, and not the kind with snow falling and loud winds. The kind that’s quiet; trees bustling in the soft wind, lights off in every apartment, street lights on at full blast, the road empty and icy and a sky so dark that even gas station lights could be mistaken for the sun. And if I’m being honest… It’s just the kind of night for a late night cruise down the road to the elevating sound of driving music. I kind of like nights like this; alone with nobody to judge, nothing but me, my car and an empty road. The more I drive the more time I have to take in my surroundings. Most people enjoy bustling streets of people, a clear sign of civilization; but I tend to enjoy more apocalyptic and abandoned scenes, not the kind with run down buildings but the kind that had just recently been abandoned. I love the look of a well kept building with no sign of life inside, everything untouched, just silence. I love the look of a street with no movement. A dark mildly lit road that just goes on for miles. Lights that shine a dim yellow showing almost orange when I speed past. These scenes make me enjoy working overnight shifts almost as much as the feeling of making it home. Parking the car In the large car garage of my apartment building, and the feeling of walking through the almost eerie brightly lit parking lot all the way to the front desk of the building. The familiar smell of the building, and the routine of walking at just the right pace with just the right steps making it all the way to the elevator. A constant comfort hearing the sound of the elevator ding, and walking out through the quiet hallway to my apartment. Sometimes I can hear the echo of a late night TV show, and the occasional sound of lovers taking advantage of the late night hours they’re together. It’s a bit of a throw off from my usual routine, but definitely not a hindrance to the ritual of walking down the hallway to the one place I have to myself. Walking through the doors to the familiar sight of a modern minimally decorated apartment usually brings me relief, but it feels different this time; I’m not sure if it was the tv or the couple that threw me off on my way, but it just doesn't feel as comforting as before. It's almost… lonely… no… uncomfortable? No, that's not the right word… FUCK! What's the fucking problem. I don't get it… I’ll try my usual routine. Walking past my kitchen, through the living room and finally down the hallway to my bedroom. No matter what I do it feels wrong… cleaning, bathing, changing, it all feels wrong. Why? I cleaned, I took my usual relaxing bath and I changed into comfortable clothes… Maybe, I forgot to do my usual facial routine… I never realized I looked this way. So blank… a cold but blank expression. It’s almost robotic the way my face shifts, the way I blink, the way my face rests. It confuses me how someone could stare back at me this way. I wouldn't sound honest if I didn't say that it was odd; the fact that I don't even recognize my face should be enough of a red flag on it's own. It's scary that I can even say that this is Me, that this is the face of someone that could be called a person. And it really scares me… the emptiness I see in my eyes...
By Mike Woodcox COTTRILL4 years ago in Psyche
A Letter to My Dad
Dear Dad, It has been almost forty years since you stepped out of my life in the most cliché-ridden manner possible. Not just a bad heart that attacked you; not just on the day that you were to be released from hospital; not just when all the signs were good for you and your health. It was the day itself that stays with me.
By Kendall Defoe 4 years ago in Psyche
Gaslighting By Parents
Gaslighting is hard enough to deal with when it comes from an outside source such as a partner, boss, co-worker, or friend, but when it derives from the source of where and when we develop our sense of self and how we fit into the world, it becomes core-level damaging.
By Elizabeth Carver4 years ago in Psyche
F*ck Approval
I'm going to start this story off by admitting something to you: As you know I was in an abusive relationship for 6 years. I never felt good enough for my ex. Even now I'm still seeking approval from those around me, because even 2 years later I still don't feel good enough. I still don't feel like people like me. I still don't feel like I'm doing anything correct. But here's the thing: I'm doing all I know how to do with the resources and knowledge I have. I'm still learning and I will forever be learning. But at the same time I don't feel like I'm doing anything right. But here's something I'm trying to learn: I'm trying to learn that there's only 1 person I need approval from. And this person I've known my entire life, we've been through shit together. We've done some stupid things. We've recovered from some dark shit together. That person knows me better then anyone. That person is me. I have to constantly remember that the only person I need approval from is me. The only person whose opinon of me matters is my own. The only person who knows me well enough is me.
By Amanda Nicole4 years ago in Psyche
A Sordid Business, Sanity
Mr. Price, Three years ago I became the thirty-millionth person misdiagnosed with ADHD in the United States. The first feeling I imagine people have when they hear this, and even what I feel myself, is pity. I am yet another person tragically harmed by the overzealous Big Pharma-influenced healthcare system. Had I not been fed medication from the age of seven, persuaded to ingest greater and greater amounts of amphetamine to mitigate what was clearly insidious inattentiveness, I would Today have been Sane and 10 years of age. Instead, I now sit in a psych ward; removed from society, evidently for its (and my own) safety, I am the death of potential.
By Natan Sahilu4 years ago in Psyche
The Nurturer Versus The Buddy
For seven years I have built a career working with youth in residential settings. I began my career when I was nineteen working in a Psychiatric Medical Institute for Children, then moving to a correctional group home for youth, and on to my current role as a Milieu Lead in a crisis center. I have learned many ways to therapeutically serve youth in a variety of settings. I have built a reputation that I am proud of, and at this point in my career I find myself turning my focus from the clients to the staff who support them. I want to find an effective way to put the knowledge I have gained through experience working with at-risk and traumatized youth and put it into the brains of my peers. One of the first things I teach new staff is how to interact with the youth and create a healthy relationships with firm boundaries.
By Maggie Justice4 years ago in Psyche
Another 'No'
I had my drink ready, hard apple cider that tastes like wine. I put it next to the test because I just knew. Now obviously I’m not trying to put negative thoughts out there, I have been wanting to have a baby for a very long time but every month it’s the same thing. That ‘yes’ that we got last year went away and everyone forgot about it but me and my husband. Ever since then I have been waiting for the ‘yes’ or the + or the double lines and it is always ’no’, negative, one line. I did wait a few days, been taking tests all week but this ‘no’ from today was it for me.
By Alejandra Mora Hendler4 years ago in Psyche
