A little hope can go a long way. In my parenting journey with Bob, there were many times when I lost hope. On days when all I wanted to do was cry - cry for Bob who was brilliant, but couldn't focus long enough to complete a test; cry because it took him three to four hours a day to complete homework. Or cry simply because I was his mother and felt helpless.

In regard to PTSD, I've heard so many times - from both survivors and clinicians - once you're broken you can't be fixed (Three Ways Trauma Affects Your Brain). Really? I find that hard to believe. And now, there's proof that's all a bunch of baloney.

A few weeks ago, I invited people to write a goodbye letter to fear using my own letter as an example. At the end I challenged readers: Write a goodbye letter to fear. Start with, “Dear Fear,” and let ‘em have it. Name your fears, tell what you have sacrificed, name its tricks and tactics, list your skills and knowledges, tell it what you’d rather do with your life if it no longer held you back. And then hang it in a place where you can see it, so you can read it everyday until the fear is gone. Readers, what would you like to say? Dear Fear….. Here are some of the responses. Watch me read a powerful goodbye letter to fear in this video.

I am happy to be associated with the Stand Up For Mental Health campaign that HealthyPlace has launched; and I am very proud of all those brave individuals who have helped stamp out stigma by going public with the details of their mental health challenges.

My outside HealthyPlace.com life sometimes requires that I read medical studies. Recently, I stumbled across a University of Mississippi Medical Center study on substance use and borderline personality disorder. Basically, the study asked if substance use disorders make borderline personality disorder (BPD) symptoms worse?

There is a scene in No Country for Old Men in which an old man, a wizened retired law man, is reflecting on the troubles facing the world in which he lives. Lamenting these intractable and persistent problems, he says “This country is hard on people.” A more concise and prescient epidemiological statement could scarcely be made.

Early recovery can be a difficult time for many individuals. Whether it is the rollercoaster of emotions to PAWS (Post Acute Withdrawal Syndrome) this period can challenge even the most steadfast recovering person.

I come from a large quirky family of addictive and codependent personalities that bred what seems like nothing but toxic relationships; relationships that ultimately did more to harm our mental, physical and emotional well-being than good (7 Basic Signs of a Toxic Relationship). I've never really considered us "dysfunctional" because we actually functioned quite well as long as everyone did their job and played their role. That job or role always being to pacify and enable the person with issues by protecting them from reality or the consequences of their actions. It looks a little something like this:

In my last video blog post, I explained how and why anxiety can lead to self-injury; how many people who suffer from anxiety often engage in self-harming behaviors in order to cope with their anxiety symptoms. In this video, I focus on natural vitamins and supplements you can use to combat your anxiety, and therefore lessen your urge to self-injure when triggered by anxiety and panic.

A blog, from me, that is actually a bit positive in its desire to promote mental health? Well, yes, this is. If you read enough of my blogs (say two or three) you probably gather that I mix in a healthy amount of sarcasm--alongside with the recovering from mental illness bit. If you read this blog often enough it's clear I've had a rough time the past few months. Honestly, it feels like years and maybe it has been, but this fall and winter hit me hard. I'm sort of back on my feet again--albeit tottering--and so this blog is less sarcastic than most. Perhaps it is even verging on positive?