coping
Life presents variables; learning how to cope in order to master, minimize, or tolerate what has come to pass.
Dealing with Anxiety
Please note: This article is not intended to diagnosis or prescribe a treatment for any mental or physical health issues. If you feel you may have an anxiety disorder or a physical health problem causing you anxiety, please see a qualified therapist and/or physician. If you have any health problems, which you believe may be aggravated by any of these exercises, please consult a physician before beginning these exercises.
By Holly Paine7 years ago in Psyche
Desperate for the Need to Rise
I live in Seattle. That means during the winter it will rain almost every day, and the sun doesn't rise until after 7 AM and sets at 4 PM. This is only November, so as the year progresses towards the solstice, the daylight hours will only get shorter. I work extremely long hours as well, so I am in darkness for two to four hours before the sun rises, and am often at work four to six hours after it sets. During the winter months, I live my life in the damp dark embrace of my city. I love it here and wouldn't trade even this for anywhere else in the world. But on days like today, weeks like this week, when sleep is a precious commodity I am not taking advantage of, and the worries of my mind press close, it is hard to be cheerful in the absence of the light. I am sure that there are others struggling similarly, and so I thought I would give you five things that help me stay afloat—when the world goes dark and the only constant is the rain.
By Paige Graffunder7 years ago in Psyche
When Suicide Takes a Loved One
When I was 14 and a freshman in high school, there was a new girl in my class. We'll call her Lynn. She was my age; just a month older than me, actually. To be honest with you, I don't remember if we had any classes together, and I don't remember how exactly I'd met her. And she suffered from depression. Depression bad enough, that though she was on medication and had tried several different coping mechanisms, therapists, etc., she still succeeded in taking her own life. I was 17 and a senior in high school when it happened. I'd like to offer some coping techniques for those whom have had a loved one succeed in taking their own life.
By Kristin Lee7 years ago in Psyche
A Manifesto of Anxiety
I was born with this disease, this disorder. I honestly never noticed it “coming on” until I was in fifth grade. I have suspicions that my father might’ve known sooner. As a child, I was uncomfortable around strangers and nearly never spoke with my peers. The teachers had said that I was anti-social. They suspected that I had mental disabilities. However my family never admitted that I ever had a problem. I just thought that I wanted to be alone with my books. However, one day I felt myself becoming so lonely.
By Olive Octavius7 years ago in Psyche
The Continuing Stories of Those We Loved and Lost
Clinical psychologist Dr. Kim Bateman wrote an article for TED Ideas in October of 2017 detailing her fractured journey toward acceptance of the death of her 21 year old brother in a skiing accident in 1990. In her article, she proposes that those who have died may be immortalized through ritualistic reverence; that is, by setting aside your late brother's favorite glass of wine at Christmas, or by visiting your aunt's favourite beach once a year, you bring them back to life in the very process of allowing them to impact your physical behavior. In physics we understand that every movement on earth is catalyzed by a cause; if you visit that beach, or set aside the glass, your lost loved one has in a way reached across the veil and engendered something in the living world.
By Darragh Joyce7 years ago in Psyche
Dealing with Demons
Demons. Lurking in the shadows. Hiding under our beds. Creeping up from behind us. Waiting to jump at us. An endless stalk from the dark corners in the world around us, and the deep recesses of our minds. You can’t run from it, and even if you do it will somehow return. A little stronger than before, a little more vicious, a little hungrier. Everyone is haunted by a personal demon. Each unique and distinct, almost bespoke tailored to their owner. Feeding on hopes and dreams, wants and needs, aspirations and goals. It’s an endless battle to keep it or them at bay or lest be swallowed whole by the endless abyss.
By Harie Calder7 years ago in Psyche
Battling With Mental Illness
I am a soon to be 48-year-old woman who battles with multiple disorders every day. I was diagnosed with major depressive disorder, severe anxiety, social anxiety disorder, post traumatic stress disorder or PTSD for short. I have had it for many years, and when I was in my teens, you could say that I had suicidal tendencies that love to take over.
By Brandi Payne7 years ago in Psyche
Dirty Snow
Dirty Snow She had never seen snow that color—a blended mix of grays and browns from the line of footsteps that had been walked over it, with holes from heels and imprints of sneakers left behind. The path towards the grave was covered in piles of snow since no one deemed it necessary to clean out a path in a graveyard. It made sense, she thought, it’s not like it’s residents could walk, and if you believed in ghosts they would be floating above the snow. Her feet dragged in it, heavy, like her heart. Her body shook from cold, but also from despair. Her eyes had been stained with tears for the past week. No amount of moisturizer could smooth over the circles beneath her eyes. No amount of foundation could cover the tired look on her face. Even when she wasn’t wearing black, people could tell she was mourning. Yet, today of all days, the day of his burial, she hadn’t shed a tear. She was as numb inside from the sadness as her body was outside from the cold.
By Victoria Nicolova7 years ago in Psyche
