‘The numbers are tragically high: every year, approximately 2 million U.S. adolescents attempt to end their own lives. An estimated 2,000 succeed, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness…Yet suicide experts say it’s not uncommon for parents to be taken completely by surprise by a child’s depression and suicide and learn about the factors[…]
“Depression. Anxiety. Emotions!!! We’ve been talking about all of them on Smart Girls a lot lately because frankly, we think it’s time to put an end to the stigma around mental health. Another Smart Girl who is looking to end the stigma around depression is author, musician, and all around artistic lady Elizabeth Swados. After[…]
“So if one out of every four people struggle with mental illness, then why did I feel like I was they only person who had ever experienced this before? If 25 of every hundred people I pass on the street have a clinical need for psychiatric care, then why did I feel like I had[…]
“In the last two decades, it has become widely accepted that postpartum depression, which can make mothers both inattentive and irritable, is dangerous, and many states have instituted programs to screen for it and treat it. Far less recognized is an equally troubling condition: antenatal depression, or depression suffered during pregnancy, which affects up to[…]
“We don’t talk about mental illness in my family. Rather, we wish we didn’t have to. When we do, it’s the folk sickness that twines its way through my maternal lineage like ivy. We speak of it in whispers, though everyone’s been treated for it at some point, Prozac and Zoloft and Lexapro all the[…]
“The road to wellness begins with you. Below are some tools to help you communicate better with your doctor, keep track of your symptoms and moods, record the progress you’re making, and reach recovery!” Access the resources here Source: dbsalliance.org
“I wish somebody had told me that it’s OK to be anxious,” says Wilson in the video. “That you don’t have to fight it. That, in fact, fighting it is the thing that makes it worse.” And in addition to discussing her experience, she also demonstrates a breathing exercise that she uses to help her[…]
“The first large study to compare mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT)—a psychological therapy designed to change the way people think and feel about their experiences—with maintenance antidepressant medication suggests that MBCT could offer an alternative to antidepressants for preventing depression relapse. The study investigators aimed to determine whether MBCT with support to taper or discontinue antidepressant[…]
“Her plunge into suicidal darkness began at 39, after the birth of her daughter. Could it be hormonal? Her gynecologist shook her head, then told Stowe about an Emory neurologist named Helen Mayberg she had just read about, who was doing a special type of brain surgery with electrodes for treatment-resistant depression, with promising results.[…]
“Parenting is difficult enough when you feel fantastic, but when you’re struggling with depression, it can seem downright impossible. It need not be so, though. Experiencing depression doesn’t mean you can’t be an incredible, loving, smart, and effective parent … Don’t hesitate to reach out. Ask for help from your spouse or partner, friends, an extended[…]
