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Hypocrite
I thought I could go off of my meds. I thought I was stronger than depression. But the black dog is back and he’s sitting on my chest, daring me to leave him off leash. I tried. I thought the exercise would be enough. But five weeks off my meds and his teeth are bared…
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Patient Advocates and Strength in Numbers
I spent last weekend in the beautiful Hyatt Hotel in Jersey City, New Jersey, directly across the Hudson from Manhattan (check out that view!), at the HealtheVoices 2015. This conference, sponsored by Janssen Pharmaceutical and Everyday Health brought together more than 60 of the best bloggers and patient activists from across the country to network…
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Support for Morgan
Many of you may have heard about an incident that happened in Wisconsin regarding two girls stabbing a third girl in the woods, due to a fear of a fictional character called “Slender Man”. What you may not know is that one of the children being prosecuted for this crime is Morgan Geyser, a 12-year…
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A Long December
I’m sorry it’s been so long since I’ve posted. Winter is long and cold here in Chicago, and frankly, I am, as much as I hate to admit it, I am prone to seasonal depression which makes me pretty much hide out, eat, binge watch Netflix, and shun bearing my soul to, well, anyone. But…
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Advocacy One Day, But Not The Next
On his blog today, Pete Earley posted a recap of a speech DJ Jaffe gave at the New York State NAMI conference earlier this year. DJ Jaffe and his mentor, Dr. Fuller Torrey, are two of the most outspoken advocates for AOT legislation in the country. I have blogged before about my feelings on what…
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One Week
What a week. This week has been Mental Health Awareness Week, as I’m sure you know, and today is World Mental Health Day. This year’s theme is Living with Schizophrenia, something we know a lot about. This week was also the week Kelli Stapleton was sentenced to ten to twenty-two years in prison for…
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The Social Services Oxymoron
Why must I hand hold Tim’s case manager through everything? The man has been a licensed clinical social worker employed by our county health department for at least 6 years, yet he acts as if he has never had a single client before Tim. Two weeks ago I asked him about permanent supportive housing options…
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The Devil You Know
We’re learning the hard way that the old adage is true. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. To be fair, it was a bit broken. Tim went on Clozaril a month before his 15th birthday and last fall we decided it was time to try and get him on to another atypical antipsychotic…
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Anderson Cooper 360 – What It’s Like to Hear Voices
Anderson Cooper wore headphones for a day that had voices constantly bombarding him, to simulate what it is like to have auditory hallucinations. Watch his experiment, below:
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My posts over at HealthyPlace.com
Hi – I know -it’s been a while since I’ve posted here. I promise, I will get a post up soon. Until I do, I wanted to tell you that I am now blogging for HealthyPlace.com on the Mental Illness in the Family blog. here are the latest posts over at HealthyPlace: Just Lighten Up:…