Living

Following my diagnosis of depression and generalized anxiety disorder, I began seeing a counselor for treatment about 12 years ago. Despite being diagnosed several months earlier, I started counseling only...

Major depressive disorder (MDD) forced me to reshape the way I think about the world in so many different ways. If I'm too tired to make food? Then I have...

Over the years, I have seen a variety of therapists in hopes of treating my major depressive disorder. Through this trial and error, I have found a variety of qualities...

What constitutes a difficult day? Everyone has their definition of a difficult day but I'm referring to days you can anticipate by the calendar's date – anniversaries of a sort...

Here's the thing about tattoos – once you get one, you'll want another, and so on, and so on. Several years ago I felt that itch (not literally, that happens...

When depression strikes and rears its ugly head, anxiety is not far behind. At least that has been my experience. Depression and anxiety go hand in hand like peanut butter...

Over the years, I've had many a difficult conversations about my mental health and assorted mental illnesses. Sometimes these conversations were to reassure my family that I wasn't actively suicidal...

I've had depression and anxiety for 20 years. Almost 5 years ago, I went inpatient for 6 weeks because I was suicidal, severely depressed, self-harming, and abusing my anxiety medication...

Depression sucks. And it can feel like an uphill battle trying to find ways to cope. Tools, techniques, therapies... There's a lot out there. So where do you even begin?...

I've lived with depression for most of my life. It is a vicious disease, capable of draining you to the core. If you live with depression, you may be well...

Tomorrow morning, I have an appointment with my psychologist. Earlier this week, I had an appointment with my psychiatrist. Luckily for me, I do not have to leave my house...

If you're someone living with depression and working on finding the right therapist for you, here are some things to look for. These are some telltale signs that your therapist...

As a person recovering from addiction, I was both aroused and suspicious when I was first prescribed an antidepressant. Aroused because the addict in me wondered if I would get...

What is the biggest depression-related hurdle to accomplishing your goals in your everyday life? Every person has a different answer to that question, as major depressive disorder (MDD) is intensely...

I've been mentally ill for decades, and there have been some dark days. So dark I had to be hospitalized for 6 weeks for my depression and suicidal ideation (plus...

We are all so busy in our daily lives that sometimes we do not take the time to slow down and look after ourselves enough. At least that has been...

Over the years, I have tried a variety of medications to manage my major depressive disorder. It has been such a long journey. Even my psychiatrist has commented recently that...

I've been sad and anxious for most of my life. That's not an inherently negative statement, it's just the truth about my reality. My home life was toxic and dysfunctional...

When I was last in any sort of sustained individual treatment, I worked with Dr. Lev*, a psychiatrist who specialized in borderline personality disorder. She utilized a treatment called transference-focused...

Step 1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol, and that our lives had become unmanageable. For many of us, depression has a deadly consort: substance abuse. There's no use...