Mood & Mental Health

You've asked a lot of big questions here, which means I have some big answers for you. This is going to take a minute, so you may want to find somewhere comfy to settle in while you read. Before we get into anything else, I want to say that if you're regularly self-harming, or fear that you might...

Freedom is one of the most wonderful parts of being single. But for me, it’s too easy to get trapped in that. My instinct is to throw myself into new experiences and new people. Instead of embracing freedom, I’ve come to realise that this is me running from it. This is why lockdown has been a strangely empowering experience for me.

You're considering or have made it to therapy. Now how do you do your part to benefit from it?

Anxiety, stress or panic are things everyone experiences sometimes, things most people can manage and cope with most of the time. But if any or all of those things: feels unmanageable for you OR keeps happening about things that aren't based in reality OR becomes constant or chronic, rather than...

Izzybelle's question continued: A few years ago, I met a guy and we became really close friends. After a year, we stopped being friends because I felt (my parents also felt this way) that he didn't care about me; he never texted me (literally never) and he never wanted to hang out, but I was blind...

The same disorder that makes me feel so insecure, tense, vulnerable and outright petrified, also convinces me that it’s protecting me from harm. The disorder that terrorizes me persuades me to keep it active, as a security system, even though it is anything but.

Steelflower's question continued: I'm deadly frightened to tell him because this is something I am really ashamed of. I trust him and know my secret would be safe with him, but I'm terrified that he'll suddenly find me disgusting, or frightening, or that he'll never be able to trust me again -...

Sometimes when we're in a really horrible spot, on top of being supported, an unexpected gift can help, too. So, I got the best gift for you right now I could think of and that I had access to. It's Kate Bornstein! If you don't know about Kate already, know that she's one of the most amazing people...

Considering counseling or think you or a friend might benefit from some therapy? Here's a basic introduction and a shared conversation with adolescent therapist and author Dr. Lynn Ponton to clue you in on what to expect from the couch.

In life, generally, we can get ourselves in a pickle and need someone to talk to. Our friends and families love us, they can have great advice, but sometimes it doesn't match up with what we need or want and we don't want to offload on them or ask them for some new advice and tell them some of their well-meaning words didn't work and "so... can we try something else?". Which is how I have felt a lot of the time.