Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Psyche.
Skills to Prevent Relapse
What is Dialectical Behavior Therapy? Dialectical behavior therapy, more commonly known as DBT, is a type of therapy that was originally created to help people with borderline personality disorder, a personality disturbance that is so difficult to work with that some mental health professionals actually consider it untreatable.
By Alice Minguez7 years ago in Psyche
A Journey to Understanding
The intense feeling of frustration that surrounds mental health is all too prevalent. Trying to manage daily life tasks and expectations and in many cases failing to do so due to illnesses such as depression and anxiety can be infuriating as hell. I often find myself thinking "Well, I am fully aware that I have a mental illness and I know that this is the cause of most of my irrational thinking and anxious thoughts, so why is it so hard to snap out of it?!" However, when looking at frustration and it’s link to mental health more closely, it’s clear that our frustrations often tend to subside when a desire or intention is achieved. With depression and anxiety, simple tasks can become incredibly difficult which is frustrating in itself, but when these illnesses prevent our expectations and desires from becoming a reality, it can leave individuals feeling hopeless and subsequently, can actually make illnesses like depression and anxiety much worse and more difficult to deal with.
By Becky Pitt7 years ago in Psyche
Define: Normal
What does normal truly mean? It is a question I have contemplated for the majority of my life. Relating to someone else's "normal" is our greatest challenge. Our normalcy is a compilation of our environment, influences, and level of control we experience. Not one person will have the same normal as another. An underlining discomfort surrounds sharing our personal lives and what we learn from them. Why does it feel as if exposing my normal is like unveiling a cold case file?
By Ashley Way7 years ago in Psyche
"I Got Troubled Thoughts, and the Self Esteem to Match, What a Catch"
(Note: The title is taken from Fall Out Boy's song "What a Catch, Donnie") Accepting a Mental Illness My teenage years and early adulthood felt like a tumultuous storm of self-destructive behaviour, an inability to fit in, and a desperate agony to just be happy, or to feel like everyone else.
By Mania Mermaid7 years ago in Psyche
Antipathy
As a child, I did not have the full capacity to understand how quickly life stumbles along. I can remember waking up early in the morning for school thinking it was going to be a long dreadful day and I genuinely believed that those eight hours in the day were going to be comparable to what eight hours felt like in the real world. Boy, was I in for a major wake-up call.
By Cody Wyatt7 years ago in Psyche
What Happens When the Opioid Epidemic Hits Home... Literally. Top Story - September 2017.
He was only 32 years old. It was a Sunday morning. I was working my second job, bartending at a local spot. If I hadn’t been working I’d have probably been there drinking regardless, enjoying a casual Sunday brunch with my friends. It was a slow day, most of the regulars probably out in the Hamptons or taking advantage of the perfect beach weather. I felt the buzz of my phone in my pocket, the all too familiar sensation. Just a couple short bursts, only a text message. I saw one of my roommate’s names pop up, Annie. A short, but athletic dancer in her late twenties. We had spent the last several days trying to solve a peculiar case of an odor that had infiltrated our cozy four-bedroom apartment. Our third roommate was in Spain with his boyfriend, and our fourth in Long Island with his family for the holiday weekend. Therefore it was up to us to discover the source of the invasive smell.
By Ricky Whitcomb7 years ago in Psyche
Depression
Depression... The depths of this sickness that inhabits more than half the population is dark. Lost, in a hole, you can't ever find your way out. My name is Bri, I have suffered from chronic massive depression since I was 8 years old. As a child, my father didn't want to accept the realization that I had a problem. This would only fuel the fire further.
By Bri Baxter7 years ago in Psyche
The Placard On The Door
I walked through the door. I could feel in my bones how badly I didn’t want to be there. The floor beneath me was hard and damp. Concrete, maybe. I couldn’t really see it. I knew I was in a hallway, though. It was long and dark except three lights at the end, one on the right and two on the left. Under each light there was a large door. Dark. Wood. Maybe metal. It was hard to tell from the distance I was standing. As I moved closer all I could hear were my own footsteps and the sound of my heart pounding in my ear. The first door was on the left. I was about halfway to it when I heard something. I paused to drink it in. Nope. Nothing. I continued moving forward. Wait. There it was again. It was a scream. I was almost to the door. As I approached I noticed a very small, metal placard attached high on the giant metal door. 'Self-loathing' read the placard on the door. The handle was large, round, and level with my head. I turned it and pushed the heavy door open.
By Amanda Washburn7 years ago in Psyche