Stigma Fighters: Lea G.
As you might or might not know, I battled depression for a long time. I still do, really. I began to write a comment on her blog post, and I just found that I couldn't stop. I just kept writing and writing and writing. Before I published it, I paused. Was it really okay to just sort of dump all of this on somebody? And I decided the answer was 'yes.' Because I wasn't just dumping this on anybody. I was telling a story, and it was a story with a moral. A good moral. And so I share that comment here, with all of you, because I know how many people fight with depression in silence, feeling more isolated and helpless than people who have never experienced depression could possibly imagine. I write this because, particularly as I find myself struggling occasionally with thoughts that I know are fundamentally depressive thoughts, that suicide is the fifth leading cause of death for pregnant women. So pregnant mamas, PPD mamas, PPD daddies, and everyone else out there who has ever battled depression, I write this for you as well. I may have been the youngest goth known to man. I totally [...]
Approved Colleges – A Pioneer in Online Education
Recently, I've had opportunity to connect with Approved Colleges, a website dedicated to the advancement of students pursuing their degrees online. I am a tenacious individual who doesn't stop until she gets what she wants. That includes my educational career. I am going back to finish my graduate degree in the Fall 2014 and I'm extremely excited about it. Approved Colleges is an educational database where students looking to pursue online education can search for a variety of degrees. Looking through their degree listings, I was surprised to find some truly unique courses of study. For example, you can study how to create furniture online. That's kind of awesome. Check that degree out here You can also pursue your master's degree in speech language pathology, which I was considering seriously for a while. Here's more on that degree Another viable option for those who are inclined in the culinary arts is to study gourmet cooking! There are so many different educational paths. That's what I love about the concept of online education. You can pursue a path that you're passionate about all from the comfort of your home. Online degrees are the future of education. Pursuing online education is a viable option for parents, who [...]
BlogHer VOTY and How I Feel
I was nominated for BlogHer Voices of The Year for two categories: humor (3-Year-Olds Are Assholes) and Op-Ed (Fighting Against The Stigma of Mental Illness) I am so grateful that I was nominated. I didn't win. Two of my favorite people on the Internet did win, however. Lea Grover and Jenni Chiu. Congratulations ladies, you deserve it and more. It's been a hell of a year for me on a personal level. Becoming a single mother suddenly has been rough for myself and my children. I was hoping to end the year with a bang. I was hoping to win Voices of The Year. If I won for anything, I wanted to win for my mental illness piece. I would have been psyched if I won for humor, but to me it's more important to fight for a cause I believe in. My cause is a stigma fighter. I wanted to win for Fighting Against The Stigma of Mental Illness so that I could stand up in front of a group of people that I respect and say that mentally ill people are also intelligent functional members of society and we deserve a voice. I am grateful to have had the support [...]
Stigma Fighters- Maria S.
It was March 8, 1982, the greatest day in history...the day I was born. It was a blizzardy, blustery night, with blinding snowfall, crazy winds, and chaotic natural danger. This was what I was born into; who knew it would be a metaphor for my mind the rest of my life? Allow me to preface the rest of this piece by saying I grew up a cheerful kid and have many happy memories from my childhood. I did not deal with abuse or trauma. Aside from my parents not getting along, life was pretty normal and happy. I was always the academic, the top of my class, class president, band president--basically, every nerdy job in school, I occupied. I was voted in grade school as "Most Likely to Succeed," and my classmates predicted I'd grow up to be a nun or the president, which I find completely laughable now; I don't think a nun would have the foul mouth I have. In retrospect, however, I see why they thought these things. I was ALWAYS pleasing everyone from my parents, to my friends, to my teachers. I wanted so badly for everyone else to be happy that I soon lost sight [...]
Stigma Fighters – Lance B.
The first time someone called me crazy, I was 12-years-old. I'm a classic overachiever who started young. I spent the early part of the 1980s as the smallest and youngest boy in my class. The only ways I knew to deal with bullying were a sharp wit and the occasional freak out. But as any comedian will tell you, the funny isn't something that you can just pull out of your backpack between science and math class to fend off someone six inches taller who wants to take out their parents' divorce on your scrawny butt. When anxiety and depression make your ability to handle stress and confrontation really freaking hard, all you have left is a tantrum. Four years later, at age 16, I was diagnosed with anxiety and depression. I was smart but my grades were suffering and I'd started drinking to keep whatever demons inside of me were strangling me on a daily basis. Being a teenager in suburban Atlanta in 1986 meant taking medications or seeing a shrink were what crazy people did. That stigma wasn't something I was prepared for, then. So, I drank and did the best I could. I spent the next twenty [...]
Show Me Your Crazy and I’ll Show You Mine
I'm a little crazy. My friends know this. My friend Donna and I have this theory that 10 percent of every person is crazy. Even the most "normal" looking person has a streak of crazy in them; kind of like a skunk's white streak. The person in the above picture (me) is mostly functional but has moments of pronounced irrationality. There are times when I overreact to something someone has said to me. I also might cry for "no reason." The point is that every person has moments of "craziness." No one is entirely functional all the time. Here's the the thing, since we're all crazy (a little bit) we need to accept other people's craziness or idiosyncrasies. That's how you know who your friends are. Your true friends accept the fact that you might get pissed off because the tablecloth is blue when you expected it would be orange. They'll laugh internally and give you a hug. They'll tell you that it's okay that there's a blue tablecloth. It's not the end of the world. Someday, your orange tablecloth will come. Until that day, let's just eat cookies and forget about it. So embrace your crazy. Certainly don't [...]
Stigma Fighters- Liz B.
My name is Liz. I had my first psychotic break in 1995 when I was 15 years old at a camp for highly intelligent kids who thought they might go to law school someday. I was having visual and auditory hallucinations. Apparently that isn't normal. I had a few misdiagnoses but was eventually diagnosed as Bipolar I and have been treated for it now for several years. In 1998, while a first year student in college I was sexual assaulted. I was dealing with that and Bipolar, had another psychotic break and yet still successfully graduated. I went on to graduate school. While in grad school, I had my third psychotic break. I also realized I had been raped and began to face that reality. When I went to get my first full time job out of college, I was in a full blown depression. And since people usually don't like sad people, I had a hard time getting hired. So I worked three part-time jobs to make ends meet. Somedays I didn't eat to save money. Then I got my first full time job and for the first time in my life I had health insurance. During that time, [...]
A Visit to The Purina One Cat Cafe and a Purina One GIVEAWAY!
On Sunday, my kids and my soul sister, Donna, had the pleasure of visiting the Purina One Cat Cafe in New York City which was located at 168 Bowery. The goal of the Cat Cafe was two fold. First, Purina One teamed up with North Shore Animal League to try and get some adorable kitties homes. Second, all the cats in the Cat Cafe were fed Purina One to promote feline health. Visitors to the Cat Cafe were encouraged to try the Purina One 28 day challenge. Feed your cat Purina One for 28 days and see visible signs of feline health. The cat cafe had two distinct parts. There was the cafe portion where we met a colorful set of baristas serving delicious snacks and coffee of course! Then there was the second room where the cats were free to roam and interact with the customers. Here's more from Purina One and North Shore Animal League on what the Cat Cafe is all about: http://youtu.be/15vy5Ny7lAM Purina One gave me some awesome coupons to try the 28 challenge on my kitties. I'm excited to see how they like the food and to watch their health improve. I'm giving away two [...]
Help People For No Reason
Help people for no reason. It's what we're here on this planet for. No human being is an island. We can't do it alone. Help someone because you believe in them. Don't do it because you want something from them in return. Just help them. The reward will be that it makes you feel good to do something good for someone else. There have been times in my life when people helped me for absolutely no reason. They just wanted to help and they did. I am forever grateful to every individual who has ever helped me when they had no incentive to do so. They simply believed in me and wanted me to succeed. In turn, I choose to actively help others. When I believe in someone I help that person in whatever way that I feel I can be of assistance to them. And my reward is that I did something kind for someone. I feel good because it has been done for me the past. I will continue to help people that I believe in until I die. The world is ultimately a self-centered place. Let's change this. Today, think about someone who you can help and [...]
Deleting People on Facebook
I recently offended an ex of mine on my blog. I felt badly that his feelings were hurt. It wasn't my intention. I was simply speaking my truth. Ultimately, his response was to delete me from Facebook. It was a surprise when I went to his page and found that it said the dreaded words "Add Friend." It was somewhat of a surprise but I understood that he was hurt. Fair enough. The thing about everyone being on Facebook these days is that when a relationship ends in real life, it also tends to end on the Internet. And when that relationship is terminated on the Internet not only do you see the death of it, but so do your friends and family potentially. I have deleted people from Facebook before when they've hurt my feelings in a deep way. Sometimes seeing them on my feed was a constantly reminder of what it was that they did to hurt me. I totally get it. I'm a sensitive person and so is my ex apparently :). Sometimes I wish Facebook didn't exist. It was easier in the days before it's existence. We just dumped ex-girlfriends and boyfriends and pretended that they [...]
Sarah Fader Needs a Job
Hi, I'm Sarah Fader and I'm looking for a job in social media. I'm a dynamic, powerful assertive woman who also happens to be a single mother. Below is a video describing what I bring to the table and why you should hire me. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjF_8Ym3UY4 My resume is available upon request. You will be so happy you hired me.
Hostess Cupcakes – Win a Hostess Coupon!
One day when I was hungry, I bought a Hostess Cupcake. I tweeted this picture to the Hostess Cupcake people and told them that these special cupcakes remind me of my childhood in the 1980's. I have fond memories of buying these after my long day of elementary school at P.S. 87. The corner bodega, West Way Deli (which is still there by the way), was chock full of these lovelies. The beautiful people at Hostess sent me and my family a coupon for a Hostess product of our choice. So the kids and I went and got a box of cupcakes at the grocery store! This was an incredibly happy day for everyone involved. So guess what? I am giving away a $2.00 Hostess coupon to get your very own cupcake! You can get any of these delicious items: Ooooooooh! You want them! So enter to win this coupon below! CLICK HERE TO ENTER!
Pop Up Cat Cafe in NYC – 4/24-4/27
If you know me, you know that I love cats. So when my friend Candice told me about a Cat Cafe that was opening up in New York City (where I live) I was psyched. A pop up cafe will be opening up at 168 Bowery in Manhattan on Thursday 4/24/14 and existing through Sunday 4/27/14. You can visit this cat cafe and pet a variety of adorable kitties…like this one: Cat Cafe Neko no Niwa (via Facebook) So the question is, who wants to go visit the kitties with me?
Stigma Fighters- Byron H.
I have an abnormal mental health condition, and I'm awesome. In fact I have two. Two very different ones. But who’s counting? I’m still awesome. Am I fully functional? Not exactly. But it hasn't stopped me yet. I've got a great family and a ton of amazing friends. A lot of my friends also live with various mental illnesses. They are awesome too. If somebody decides not to like me or my friends because they witness how differently we can behave, we'll be okay. But it does make the world a little lonelier and a little harder for us. Most of us are working on it. Every day. It's hard. It takes a lot of our energy. Some even manage to pretty much fit in. It never hurts to have more people supporting our efforts. Please consider empathy. For everybody! Empathy is the willingness to understand, and it's pure gold. Especially to us folks who live with mental illness. I live with complex post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This means that certain events and situations I encounter can make me relive specific highly negative emotional experiences. People invite me to things, and I often say no, because I’m too afraid I’ll [...]
Stigma Fighters – Derek S.
I have a mental illness. It's hardly the nicest thing about me, but it's certainly one of the biggest. Whether I like it or not, it's my daily companion. We go everywhere together, taking part in the same activities, joining in the same conversations. Hell, we sound like the best of friends. Except your best friend doesn't spend all of their time trying to kill you. I think the anxiety started first. I say 'I think' because, at this point, I'm relying solely on the memory of a long lost 10 year old. The sheer awkwardness of 'being'; feeling out of place, or out of sync with things, no matter the situation. The feeling only expanded and grew as time went on, taking on such wonderful qualities as an inner monologue designed specifically to tell me just how bad I was at everything, and an excessive heart rate (with added excessive sweatiness--sexy, I know) at even the thought of having to go outside. I simply learned to live with it over the years, and found different ways of avoiding the world as best I could. From walking back roads to avoid the crowds, to (many years later) drowning out the [...]