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Most people have a tendency to minimize traumatic life events that continue to be distressing well after the event has occurred. We shame ourselves and think, "I should be over this by now," or "it wasn't that bad." Adding even more shame, family and friends may say "Why can't you just let it go?" The problem is, trauma often doesn't go away on its own and no amount of trying to convince ourselves we should be over it will change that.
Feeling anxious and busy--too busy--seems to be an epidemic. Feeling strapped for time negatively impacts a lot of lives. Sometimes this is a signal that big changes are needed; however, sometimes changing what is overwhelming is either impossible (at least immediately) or is undesirable ("busy" doesn't always mean "bad") There are ways to deal with anxiety and busyness without giving your life a major overhaul.
Sometimes the scariest thing about self-harm is just knowing our brains are capable of having such dark thoughts. It is not always obvious at the time, but looking back at and reflecting on those moments, especially if your struggle with self-harm is a thing of the distant past, it can feel strange to recount all the thoughts you had before, during, and after engaging in self-harm. Because of the intense physicality of self-harm, it is easy to overemphasize the literal action of self-harm when in reality it is the thoughts surrounding the action, not the action itself, that hold real power over us.
A few weeks ago, I outlined why I think American society causes anxiety. I want to revisit this topic again, but this time focus on one particular social plague: what Medium’s Gabriella Rackoff calls: "the cult of the entrepreneur."
Breakthrough symptoms caused by mental illness can really hinder your progress towards goals; however, reaching your goals is not impossible. Stress exasperates mental illness symptoms, but that doesn't mean you should give up. Understanding your symptoms as well as your limits can be crucial to your success.
Is bipolar 1 worse than bipolar 2? In my opinion, bipolar 1 is worse than bipolar 2. Find out why. Read on.
Do you feel anxiety during the holiday season? While the holidays are meant to be a fun time for everyone, you are not alone if you struggle with holiday season anxiety. There are many circumstances that could trigger anxiety during this time of the year, like gaining weight, seeing family you don't get along with or buying presents. Read this article for three tips on managing anxiety during the holiday season.
Bipolar can wreck your work life. It's just a fact. It can. If you've ever had a severe episode of depression or mania/hypomania, you know this. But what do you do when bipolar disorder wrecks your work life. Here are a few ideas.
As the new year rolls around, many people create yearly goals or New Year’s resolutions. Plenty of people also create targets throughout the year; I personally set monthly objectives, which are broken down from my yearly goals. However, at times, goals can be harmful to mental health. What are the symptoms of unhealthy yearly goals?
Imagine living with dissociation and chronic illness. Life is challenging enough when you have dissociative identity disorder, and it becomes even more challenging when chronic illness gets thrown into the mix. There are new symptoms to manage and more doctors visits to go to. Emotions come up that you didn't even know existed. Chronic illness changed my life, and also changed how I manage my dissociative identity disorder (DID).
I believe she will only be able to rid herself of her demons, and hopefully her BPD as well, when she's ready to confront the abuse of her father. If she can put the blame where it belongs, she may stop projecting that victim/perpetrator cycle on the present men in her life. These demons are a metaphor for the purgatory she has created for herself. That reality has consequences in the real world, but it need not be real in the tangible sense. Exorcising her demons will require the expenditure of real physical energy and probably the destruction of aspects of her personality. If this ever happens, and it's possible but not probable, then these demons will evaporate. They are only as real as one's personality is real. In short, reality is not the question, it's what you make of the things you feel to be real.