GoodTherapy.org’s Mental Health Awareness Month Blogging Event

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  Fellice

  April 28th, 2014 at 3:17 PM

  What a cool idea!
  Thanks for the opportunity to share!

  Reply
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  clara

  April 29th, 2014 at 3:50 AM

  It is so importsnt to recognize that the general public often has some great stories that will relate to the casual reader quite a bit but may often find that they have no forum in which they can reach others. This is a wonderful way to share the stories with other people and to spread the message that mental health struggles, while not ideal, do not have to be seen as taboo and that there are people just like you and me, all of whom have their own stories to tell, and all of whom want to share hope and encouragement with others.

  Reply
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  Katherine G

  April 30th, 2014 at 9:07 AM

  Promoted you on Pinterest: pinterest.com/pin/147141112800251676/

  I developed Emotional Fitness Training programs while directing mental health crisis teams in the South Bronx before, during, and after 9/11.

  Why? To fight the stigma attached to seeking help with emotional problems. Appealed mostly to family members and therapists needing to stay strong. However, a useful adjunct to therapy.

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  Ange

  April 30th, 2014 at 9:49 AM

  This is a fantastic idea and opportunity. Although I live in Australia and our mental health awareness week is not until October, I would love to get involved!!
  Also have loved reading many Goodtherapy.org blogs over the last year or so. I find them all fantastic! Keep up the great work – very inspiring!

  Reply
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  M. L.

  May 2nd, 2014 at 10:33 AM

  Calie love your blog! affects not defines.. that is a good way of saying it :)

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  Kathy Hardie-Williams, M.Ed, MS, NCC, MFT, LPC

  May 3rd, 2014 at 12:31 AM

  As a mental health professional and former teacher, I find it difficult to fathom the lack of value that we place on mental health. Of course, I understand that much of our value system is based on our life experiences and those who influence the values we develop. That being said, it has never made sense to me that we focus on our physical health and often leave out the mental health piece. I believe the two are very integrated and from a holistic perspective, we can’t look at one without the other. One of the changes with Obama care that is exciting to me is the idea of ‘integrated care’, where physicians and mental health professionals integrate treatment for their patients. When I see a new client, I recommend that they be evaluated in order to rule out any physical conditions that may be contributing to the mental health challenges they are facing. I would like to think physicians also recommend to their patients that they see a mental health professional to work through emotional challenges, stress from relationships, career, finances, etc. that may be impacting their physical health. Our mental health is an important dimension of ourselves that should be paid attention to and cared for just as our physical and spiritual health.

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  Dawn L. Anderson

  May 3rd, 2014 at 1:06 PM

  Creative writing was part of my CBT a couple of years ago. I’d never faced up to my illness before then, scared of having the stigma it brings attached to my medical notes for the rest of my life. I’ve always spent a lot of time in my head, and my therapy had helped me make sense of a lot of my ponderings.

  Not every day is necessarily a good one for me, but I’m better equipped to cope with “now” than I’ve ever been, and want to pass on the same hope to others, while helping the people around them understand what we all go through when we’ve lost touch with life.

  I commend everyone who’s helping in the fight to bring down the barriers to the compassion shown to those with physical illnesses. Those of us with mental health issues are just as deserving of support and treatment.

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  Gary L. Phillips

  May 16th, 2014 at 11:21 PM

  At a recent conference I attended, the presenter stated that WHO, the World Health Organization, asserts that the number one health problem in the world is depression. In light of the multitude of health problems human beings experience this is a startling and important reality of life today.
  However, a continuing social reality interfere with the help needed for those suffering this painful problem. There continues to be a powerful stigma attached to seeking help for mental health problems such as depression.
  Most likely, the prevailing view of stigma of this nature is that, in some way, if we seek help for this type of mental problem, even though depression and anxiety and relationship problems and all problems relating to mental health are never just “mental problems”, that means we are “crazy.”
  In truth, if any of us suffer in these ways it is “crazy” to not seek help. That is, it is harmful, self-defeating and self-destructive to not seek help in the same way it would be with serious medical problems. In a word, if any of us had a medical concern significantly interfering with living, it would be “crazy” to ignore it and not seek medical help.
  The powerful antidote to the stigma of seeking help for mental health issues/problems, the antidote to seeing ourselves as “crazy” to do so, (help generally understood as some type of psychotherapy) is the core understanding that all of us, in some way, sometime, are all “crazy.” Aren’t we?

  Reply
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  Chronicallysickmanicmother

  May 22nd, 2014 at 2:54 PM

  Thank you for the chance to share! This is a subject I touch on heavily in my blog.

  Reply