

When Mental Illness Causes a Shopping Addiction
Though addiction runs in my family, I never worried too much about it catching up to me. I don’t have the desire to drink when I’m upset and am actually turned off by alcohol when I’m not in a good mood. I’ve never had the desire to smoke or do drugs. I was able to give up sugar and binge-eating fairly easily. I hate casinos and find gambling to be boring. I saw all of those things as being the dangerous addictions that can take over your life. It wasn’t until recently that I

What is Depression Like?
Earlier today I tweeted out this: I received more than 100 responses from my fellow supporters ranging anywhere from the simple and straightforward “horrible” to more complex responses, each of which that describes the individual's own experience with depression in their own eyes. I composed a list of the first 50 responses I received to give those who don’t understand depression an idea of what it’s like to live with one of the world’s darkest and most misunderstood diseases


Darkness
I was living in the dark for so long.
I hated it.
Man, I'm scared of the dang dark.
For a good portion of my adolescent life (I want to [embarrassingly] say between ages 7 and 17), I would check under my bed for a murderer. Every. Single. Night. I hated being alone in the dark (and I’m not going to lie, I still sleep with a stuffed animal- ask my roommate).
But I digress because this darkness I am referring to is not the 6 square feet underneath the mattress or the un
Can Exercise Induce a Panic Attack?
I used to be extremely active and fit. Working out helped my anxiety and depression and was something I always looked forward to. Having my first panic attack, however, changed everything for me. The television being on at the laundromat is now too much stimulation and can trigger nausea. I tend to prefer dim lighting because even bright lights are too stimulating. After I had my first panic attack I began to live in fear of having another one, making me extremely sensitive t