Mental health
In today’s world, it is very common to hear the words “mental health”. Teens all over the world struggle with mental health disorders. Mental illness is a crisis in our society that we need to address. One of the primary ways that we can help is to reduce the stigma around the issue. Reducing the stigma around mental health will increase the likelihood of people feeling safe enough to access help. Increased access to services and support will help reduce negative outcomes and improve quality of life for people with mental illness.
In 2017 there was a total of 6,213 suicides in the UK and Republic of Ireland. (Samaritans.org). Unfortunately, there is a negative stigma surrounding mental illness and people who suffer from it. Stigma can cause the person to be unwilling...
Lifestyle
Mental health has always been a taboo topic in conversations, more of a don’t ask don’t tell topic rather than something people feel they can openly discuss. This has severely stunted our society with making professional mental help accessible to those who want and or need it. With outrageous prices and depending on location having to travel, many people who would greatly benefit from some form of therapy are denied that help because of this. In the novel Ordinary People by Judith Guest we see the benefit of therapy highlighted through both Conrad and Calvin, they both have their own setbacks with mental health, and they see Dr. Berger and by the end of the novel they are both shown to be on the path to healing. This is only one, fictional but very real, example of therapy being...
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Dear The United Methodist Church
As a young boy growing up in the Methodist church, I have fond memories of a church that taught me so many things. The members of my church greeted me with a smile every Sunday, asked how I was doing, and genuinely cared about the activities in my life. As I grew up, I became more active within the church. I took part in many mission-based trips, I became one of the worship leaders with the worship team, I spent hours every week in bible studies, small groups, and in church. The people whom surrounded me in the church were the people who would play a large part in molding me into the man I have become today. However, this journey in my faith was not all sunshine and rainbows. As I grew older I began to realize certain things that made me different...
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I didn't believe spiritual warfare was real until I was in it. It is defined as the Christian concept of fighting against the work of preternatural evil forces. It is based on the biblical belief in evil spirits, or demons, that are said to intervene in human affairs in various ways.
It was hard to recognize. It felt like I was being internally attacked, living with a bully inside my head.
I accepted Christ as my savior when I was 15 years old. Living in a world filled with such pain and suffering yet beauty and love, I had to believe there was something greater out there.
In the beginning stages of my christianity, I felt a spiritual elation. I felt my life was perfect with Christ, worshiping every second of the day. I was on a spiritual high. Many "baby christians" describe feeling...
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Dear Society,
The United States is facing an epidemic. An epidemic of missing happiness is happening within this country right now. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, an estimated 16.7 million adults in the U.S. have had at least one depressive episode. That’s at least 67% of all adults in the U.S. Some of these people must have felt helpless at one point or another. Helplessness, loneliness, they are awful feelings. They can lead to some horrible consequences, such as self-harm, or even worse, suicide. The thought of suicide because someone did not receive the help they needed makes me think: “What could have been done to help them?” The most prominent thing people with depression face is stigma, and social distancing is the most significant form of stigma. But,...
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"Say no to drugs" "Meth will ruin you" "It's in your genes, watch out".... But I didn't listen. I chose to try you for myself. To see what all the talk was about. And man, I'll be honest. I fell for you. You're one of a kind, that's for sure. I couldn't get enough of you. You made me feel great. But things went in a downward spiral QUICK. I dropped a ton of weight. Lost the color to my skin and the spark to my eyes. Picked at my skin to and reel the bugs out. I sat on all fours on my bedroom floor looking for any specs of you I could find. I went nationally missing. Lost several people I loved, but most importantly.. almost lost myself. But what can I say? You had me hooked. I shot you into my veins and felt your 'magic' run its course through every part of my body. At that moment, I was...
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Dear pessimism,
Pessimism, you’re like a parasite in the minds of us all. A good parasite, but a parasite nonetheless. You’re great, you make us all take a good, hard look at society, and see whats wrong. But here’s the issue, you’re what's wrong.
Don’t worry, I understand. Why would we want to get rid of you, you’re the one that knocks us back down, sets us down a peg, shows us the reality of life. But you’ve changed. Instead of using this reality to better society, you’ve now just broken the spirits of the world itself. I understand, the world is a horrible place, tragedy after tragedy, death after death, it’s no wonder people aren’t all that happy; but you’re definitely not helping.
I must ask, what happened between you and optimism? You would show us the problems, and...
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Hello readers,
Understanding what it means when I say I am non-binary might be a little difficult at first but I can assure you that it isn’t a new concept or as complicated as it sounds.
Lots of cultures all over the world have terms for enby (non-binary) people and have had them for thousands of years. While each experience is unique, essentially an enby person either identifies with neither male nor female (third gender), no gender at all (agender) or might even identify as a fluctuation on a gender spectrum (genderfluid).
Personally I would say the best term for me is probably third gender or something between the binary. Neither hyper masculine or feminine, rather some mixture of the two.
Some non-binary people prefer their own letter in the LGBT acronym which is...
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My first words in 2018 were something along the lines of,
"Holy shit, I'm fucking freezing."
I blinked my eyes open in 2018 to the sound of silence, save for a few birds chirping and my teeth chattering at 90 miles a minute. Did I have hypothermia? Maybe. Did it feel great to be waking up in nature, not hungover, with complete recollection of the night before, next to someone I loved?
Definitely.
We had decided to trade in the bars, the crowds, and the emptying of our bank accounts on New Year's Eve for a camping trip. In theory, the idea was beautiful. In execution... we maybe weren't quite prepared enough for the 19 degree weather.
However, waking up with a clear head, I knew this was a perfect start for 2018. We had trekked through the freezing cold for a 10 mile hike,...
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