Latest Stories

Most recently published stories in Psyche.

Recognizable Symptoms of Bipolar Depression
Prior to being diagnosed with a hormone disorder, doctors who I went to were completely and totally convinced that I was bipolar. I can totally see why they thought I was; the hormone disorder I had mimicked it perfectly — with the one exception of having physical symptoms as well.
By Ossiana Tepfenhart8 years ago in Psyche
Do the Signs of Depression Between Men and Women Differ?
Many people suffer from depression — it's a common mental health issue. It also comes with a lot of symptoms that are difficult to cope with, like migraine and body aching. And most of the time, the presence of depression is questionable. But, there are times when depression does follow up from a tragic and stressful event that occurred sometime in a person's life.
By Jacqueline Hanikeh8 years ago in Psyche
Isolation Therapy for the Over-Empathic
Let me start by making one thing plain: If you grew up with siblings, friends, cousins and plenty of people your own age being kind to you, you won't relate. This is going out to the Only Child, the Friendless, the Bullied. This is for the kids who grew up learning a lot of solitary games, and knew how to have fun solo.
By SR James8 years ago in Psyche
All About Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Well, hello there! Thank you for stepping into my office, have a seat. I’m about to take you on a pretty intense ride: the OCD ride. If you know me pretty well, then you already know that I suffer from OCD and know how debilitating it has been for me. If you haven’t read my OCD story, let me know and I'll tell you more about it. Thanks!!
By Tara Frey8 years ago in Psyche
Abyss
Sometimes when we are going through a rough patch, we don't know what it is to feel, we feel numb inside and sometimes the feeling never seems to leave the body. The pain screams in the pit of our stomach, the thoughts run all over the body making it feel colder. What will happen if we stop feeling?
By Emily Buehner8 years ago in Psyche
I Had No Idea
I'll start off by saying that I had to grow up early in life, and for some absolutely obscene reason this made me believe that I knew more than other people my age. That's because of my experiences and the decisions that I've already made, decisions that people should not have to make at my age, or any age for that matter. I knew what the heck was going on in, well, life.
By Francesca Skoda8 years ago in Psyche
Physical Symptoms of Depression
There are numerous people across the world who suffer deeply with depression. And it's not a joking matter. There are individuals that got the mental condition through a really stressful situation, a cause, or the depression randomly appeared without a reason — it happens. And it's also frustrating, because depression literally controls your life. It's tough to handle, but with certain medications, focusing on clearing your mind, and doing activities that help, it's possible to overcome it.
By Jacqueline Hanikeh8 years ago in Psyche
Mental Illness Isn't Going Away
I have anxiety, and like many people with any sort of chronic ailment, I have good days and bad ones. However, something I've discovered over the years is that the tolerance, for lack of a better term, for a mental illness is sometimes just not there in the way that it can be for a physical condition. Sometimes, the desire to simply understand what a person with mental illness might be going through on the daily isn't there either.
By Christina St-Jean8 years ago in Psyche
I Died That Day
Imagine a warm blanket wrapping around your body. At first, everything is fine and you barely even notice that your very being is slowly being swallowed. As time passes, you try to wiggle out of the blanket — what you once thought was warm and cozy is actually full of holes and so very cold. Struggle as hard as desired, but the blanket only wraps tighter around you. Soon, you are so very cold, your skin screams and begs for freedom and you cry and scream out, but no one comes for you. To the outside world, it looks as if a person is just lying there with a blanket, nothing more. Only you are aware of the battle you're facing and, before you know it, the blanket has encased your entire body. You cannot breathe, you cannot cry for help, you cannot run. You lay drowning in the darkness as a seemingly simple piece of material digs into your skin and forces its way into your mouth and nostrils. There is no point in coming for your eyes, for when you try to look, all you see is darkness.
By Kisha Holler8 years ago in Psyche
Reaching Out for Help with Your Mental Health
Psychological difficulties are far from rare. In fact, it is estimated that approximately 1 in 4 people in the U.K. will experience a mental health issue each year. However, whilst the majority of us would seek medical attention for a broken leg, if and when we start struggling mentally, it's all too often a different story. Afraid of negative judgement and stigmatisation, we tend to suppress our problems in the hope that they'll eventually vanish. Up to the age of 15, I too was guilty of this. I had been suffering from distressing intrusive thoughts since the age of 8, but had never reached out for support, not knowing that around 94% of people experience a similar thing at least once in their lifetime, and petrified that I was simply evil and abnormal. Sometimes it seems easier to put on a brave face and carry on like nothing’s wrong rather than address the problem head on, and that’s exactly what I decided to do. Instead of telling someone what I was going through, I bottled up my painful emotions and damaging self-beliefs for years on end and fought my mind alone before finally reaching breaking point during the summer of 2014.
By Esther 💫8 years ago in Psyche
Self-Harm: The Silent Addiction
What comes to your mind when you think about Self-Harm (SH)? Do you know someone that self-harms, or knew someone that did, or have you yourself battled through the hell that is Self-Injury?
By Katie Roles8 years ago in Psyche
Two Important Lessons That Can Be Learned in Psychotherapy
Two of the purposes for which clients enter psychotherapy are recovery after a traumatic event has plunged them into an abyss of negative emotions, and the human capacity for misconceptions about others with whom we have associations. These two problems often fog human ability to get and maintain relationships and function well in the world. Learning the following two lessons in psychotherapy can aid anyone in finding their way out of the self-imposed prison many find they have fallen into of self-pity and resentment.
By Shirley J. Davis8 years ago in Psyche