My 24 Years in a Psychiatric Hospital (part 2: the Recovery Mall)

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In a recent post, I chronicled the first half of my 24 years of employment as a clinical psychologist at Eastern State Hospital, a public psychiatric hospital in Lexington, Kentucky, which opened in 1824. If you would like to catch up and read part 1 first, it’s right here. In the early 2000’s, “recovery” entered the scene as a new way of thinking about treatment. The concept of recovery had primarily been used in reference to substance use concerns, but …

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You Have Got This!

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Stories of Hope: An Interview with Laura Burton This is part of a series featuring individuals who share their life experiences with mental health issues. Recently, I asked advocate Laura Burton about her journey and her current activities. Here’s our interview: DS: Tell us about when you first started becoming aware of concerns related to your mental health. How did these issues continue to affect you before you sought treatment? LB: I was 16 years old when my symptoms of …

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My 24 Years in a Psychiatric Hospital (part 1: the early years)

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It’s probably safe to say that psychiatric hospitals have gotten a bad rap. They have often been inaccurately depicted in films, TV and other media as dark, scary institutions where deranged patients are forcibly medicated, put into straitjackets, or mistreated by cruel and sadistic staff. Even worse is the demeaning language which has been used to describe these facilities: “loony bin,” “nuthouse,” “bedlam,” or “lunatic asylum.” Just to be clear, these terms are now considered inappropriate and unacceptable. When I …

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You Are Beautiful Inside and Out

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Stories of Hope: An Interview with Krystian Leonard This is part of a series featuring individuals who share their life experiences with mental health issues. Recently, I asked advocate, author and college student Krystian Leonard about her journey and her current activities. Here’s our interview: DS: Tell us a little about your story and the physical and emotional challenges you faced when you were younger. How did these issues continue to affect you and those around you as you were …

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Teaching Mental Health Awareness to Scouts and Other Youth Groups

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I think it’s always great when we can bring positive, accurate information and increased awareness about mental health into mainstream groups, communities, and organizations. So I was excited to learn of a recent initiative to teach mental health awareness to youth groups. Through an initiative led by the International Bipolar Foundation, whose tag line is “a world of hope, resources, and support,” there is now a packet of resources and a structured plan for Girl Scouts and other similar scouting …

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Recovery is Completely Different for Everyone

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Stories of Hope: An Interview with Stephanie Palmer This is part of a series featuring individuals who share their life experiences with mental health issues. Recently, I asked Stephanie Palmer about her mental health journey and her current activities. Here’s our interview: DS: Tell us about when you first started becoming aware of concerns related to your mental health. How did these issues continue to affect you before you sought treatment? SP: I suffered with poor mental health for a …

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When Your New Year’s Resolution Falters

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If you’re like most of us, you’ll struggle with maintaining those well-intentioned New Year’s resolutions. In fact, one study shows that less than half of us (about 46%) will maintain our New Year’s resolutions for six months. So what can you do when your resolution starts to falter? Here are 10 quick steps you can take to assess what’s going wrong and to get back on track. 1) Think “goals” instead of “resolutions.” The term “resolution” has more to do …

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Be Kind to Yourself

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Stories of Hope: An Interview with Brandy Higgins This is part of a series featuring individuals who share their life experiences with mental health issues. Recently, I asked writer and registered nurse Brandy Higgins about her mental health journey and her current activities. Here’s our interview: DS: Tell us about when you first started becoming aware of concerns related to your mental health. How did these issues continue to affect you before you sought treatment? BH: At the age of 10, …

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