family
Family can be our support system. Or they can be part of the problem. All about the complicated, loving, and difficult relationship with us and the ones who love us.
The Moment I Haven't Been Waiting on...
The moment that I’ve been dreading since August 2009 is coming. The moment that seemed so far away is now quickly surfacing in the horizon. What moment might you ask? The moment that my stepdad is getting out of prison. The year of 2019 marks the 10th and final year that my stepdad will be completing in prison. He received a 10-year sentence for unlawful touching of a child despite all the other horrible things that he’s done to my sisters and me.
By Maelyn Jeffers7 years ago in Psyche
R.I.P. to My Youth
I never really imagined my youth would have played out the way it did. Although my life is not even halfway over, I have lived a life longer than my years. Additionally, things happen in the blink of an eye and one never knows if we will be here tomorrow. I am known as that goofy girl that helps everyone through their tough times. Everyone truly believes I am happy, but the truth is I am fucking depressed. This here is my confession.
By Jocelyn Ponce7 years ago in Psyche
Unnoticed
This story begins with a sad beginning, with a mom dropping off her little girl at school that morning. The school day went on and on leading to the freedom from school, as the bell rings and all the kids run out the front doors to breathe in the summer air. All the chatter of the middle schoolers as they get their yearbooks signed and say goodbye to their friends and teachers. This only leads to a little girl, named Sara, walking home alone from school with a smile on her face, excited that summer was just beginning. That only changed as soon as she walks in the front door calling for her mom. Every inch of Sara’s body was excited to tell her mom about her day, but there was an eerie silence throughout the house. Calling out for her again, but again no reply as fear was starting to enter her thoughts. Sara started by searching the kitchen, nothing. Searching the living room, nothing. The last idea that entered her mind before it went completely numb was to look in her room. Sara walked slowly and cautiously into her mother’s room only to find her mom laying on the floor with blood soaking the carpet underneath her, not able to see her face. Sara dropped to her knees not sure what to do as all the emotions came in like a wall of bricks hitting her with full force. Tears fill her eyes as she slowly crawls on her hands and knees, closer to her lifeless body. More and more of it coming into view, as she saw a pistol in her mother’s right hand. In shock, Sara couldn’t process everything that was happening right before her eyes. Just staring at her body as Sara sat by her head and began to stroke her hair as her mom used to do for her when she couldn’t sleep and allows the tears to stream down her face.
By Natalie C..7 years ago in Psyche
Supporting Your Loved One’s Sobriety: Tips for Families During and After Treatment
The consumption of alcohol and use of illicit drugs are not exactly uncommon in the United States. Approximately 86.4 percent of Americans over the age of 18 report drinking alcohol at some point during their lives, while 10.6 percent of Americans said they used illicit drugs during a given month in 2016. Unfortunately, misuse and addiction are probably more prevalent than most people think. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, an estimated 20.7 million people over the age of 12 needed substance abuse treatment in 2017. And despite the fact that alcohol abuse is the third highest cause of death in the US and that more than 70,200 Americans died from drug overdoses in 2017, only four million people over the age of 12 who needed substance abuse treatment actually received it in 2017.
By Casey Chesterfield7 years ago in Psyche
I Am a Mom with an Eating Disorder
It was the end of 2017 and I noticed a shift. In a way, I had gotten used to the frequent anxiety attacks and bouts of depression. This was different. I felt like a bottomless pit. I was constantly eating for no reason other than I felt compelled to. I was eating two to three times the "normal" amount almost every day and my body started to reflect that. But more than the physical changes, I noticed the mental changes. Every time that I was left in a pile of candy and snack cake wrappers late at night, I felt guilty. I felt ashamed. I felt out of control. I was eating the snacks that we were buying for our kids and even though they never went without, it got to a point where it was costly. I was having to buy more than I normally would in order to feed my appetite. My husband would come home from work, walk in the kitchen, and ask something along the lines of, "Where did all the fruit snacks go?" I had to look at him, the obvious shame and embarrassment in my eyes, and tell him that I ate them all. In one sitting. I was bawling all the time, depressed, because I didn't know how to stop. Finally, after a few months of this, I decided to seek help.
By Tiffany Green7 years ago in Psyche
Bipolar and Addiction
I have learned so much in my 22 years of life. A lot of things are not as they seem. When I was a young kid, I thought there were no issues in my family at all... Boy was I wrong! As I got older, tensions rose and I started to realize something was different about my father, but I had no idea what. For years, I put it in the back of my mind because I did not even know where to start. Finally, the breaking point came.
By Courtney Elizabeth7 years ago in Psyche
Siblings + Depression (Pt. 1)
I came home for the summer just in time to see my younger brother graduate from high school. The experience for me was, for lack of a better word, weird. On one hand, I was incredibly proud, of course, of this young man that I have seen grow up from birth. I remember him being small enough to hold in my arms and now he’s taller than me and has a raspy bass in his voice. I think back on the times I was so annoyed with him for following me around or copying the things he saw me do. I see how despite those times I’ve still managed to influence who he is in small ways. More so, I see my mother and my grandfather in him. I recognize the acceptance he has in the fact that his father won’t be at his graduation and how he’s at peace with that. I wish I’d been granted that same sense of acceptance.
By Devon Rooks7 years ago in Psyche
Beginning
My toes skim my reflection in the water, turning me into a smudge of myself. As the water stills, I see the shape of my upper body. Pale, of average build, leading up to a normal round face, framed by normal brown hair. Boring, really, except for my eyes, which the water, try as it might, couldn't capture. A mixture of blue and green, like a stormy ocean. Though I have never actually seen the ocean, its what my parents tell me.
By No-Focus-Pocus (HMR)7 years ago in Psyche
Thoughts in My Head
Where do I even begin? Before I had ever become pregnant with any of my children, I worked hard. I hated not having a job to support my self and especially hated having someone take are of me. I first got pregnant when I was 18. Even with him, I worked up until three days before I had him. I never let my pregnancy get in my way. The same thing happened with my next child four years later. Within two or three months after having both of them, I was back to work. I wanted to make sure I could provide for my children. In 2016, I got pregnant with my second son. His pregnancy was a bit different. I started to develop back issues and was taken out of work at seven months pregnant. With the pain that I was going through, I did not mind it so much. It wasn't until a year later in 2017, that I was able to get a job. I began working for an armored truck company, with odd hours in the day. There would be days where I would work nine hours or there would be days where I would work 14 hours a day. It was fine, because I knew my kids where with someone I trusted and they were safe. My job on the other hand, was not such a safe job, but it helped with the bills. In June of 2018, out of no where, I had a gran mal seizure. After weeks of tests and being sick, not knowing what was going on, I was diagnosed with seizures and epilepsy. I was told that it can happen anytime, anywhere. With that being said, I was also informed that I could not drive for a year unless I was seizure free that entire year. Well, the problem is, I have what they call silent seizures multiple times a day. With not being able to drive, its hard to find work especially because July of this year, I also found out I was pregnant. I am currently six months pregnant—a stay at home mom that suffers with having seizures daily and a lot on my mind.
By Amber Consiglio7 years ago in Psyche
