The State of Mental Health in America

Anxy, A Mental Health Magazine, Aims To Normalize Conversations About Mental Health

One in five American adults — a staggering 43.8 million people — experiences mental illness each year, and yet stigma and secrecy continue to surround discussions of mental health, often preventing people from seeking help when they need it. Enter Anxy, a magazine that focuses on mental health through the lenses of design, art, and writing. Currently being funded through a Kickstarter campaign, Anxyaims to promote open discussions about the Read More

Could celebrities’ stories destigmatize mental illness for the masses?

Michael Jackson, Amanda Bynes, Britney Spears — speculating about celebrity mental health sagas is nothing new. The latest newsmaker is rapper Kanye West: West canceled remaining stops on his “Saint Pablo” tour after a recent series of outbursts while performing; he was later taken to a Los Angeles hospital. TMZ reported Tuesday that West suffers from “temporary psychosis due to sleep deprivation and dehydration.”

The incident sparked chatter about his state of mind, culminating with the #prayforkanye hashtag trending on Twitter.

West’s Read More

How virtual reality can help you conquer your worst fears

Name your fear. A sense of dread strikes you at the thought of having to hop onto a crowded train. You squirm as the doctor approaches you with a needle. You tremble and tuck your head between your legs as the plane warms up its engine. You freeze as your secret crush walks past you. The fear feels raw, instinctive, and no amount of clever argument can liberate you from its clutches, or so you think.

But as Bernard said in Read More

When kids with mental illness can’t live at home

January 31 Kelly Burch

Many of Christine Walker’s friends are just starting to help their teenage children plan to leave home, whether for a job, college or a gap year. But Walker’s 16-year-old son Schuyler has already lived away from his family for seven years, spending nearly half his life in residential treatment programs and schools for children with severe mental illness.

“When Schuyler was 7, that was when I had tried absolutely everything — every pill, every doctor, every diet, every Read More

Family Survival Guide

By Chris Aiken, M.D. | Feb. 06, 2017

“You seem like you’re walking on eggshells,” our family therapist told me with a wise nod. The image of cracked eggs under my bare feet was strangely comforting compared to what our family was really going through. We were living with mental illness, specifically bipolar disorder.

Psychiatrists don’t know enough about how to help families in this situation. I should know—I’m a psychiatrist myself. When mental illness hit my home, Read More