Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Psyche.
Anxiety
Do you wake up every morning already dreading the day? Do you close your eyes hoping you can just sleep the days away? I do. It’s not because I’m depressed. It’s because I have anxiety. Anxiety is a constant battle. It’s always wanting to go out and do things with friends and then the time comes, and you don’t want to go out. It’s not being able to fall asleep for hours because you're laying there thinking about what’s to come. It’s the constant fear of what people think of you when you’re out. It’s going out first thing in the morning to the store, so you can avoid as many people as possible. Anxiety isn’t easy. Worrying all the time is never fun. You constantly feel like people are judging you even when they aren’t looking at you at all. I am a very quiet person and a huge introvert so going out and being in a large crowd isn’t easy either. If you have anxiety and have ever felt this way the please know you are not alone!
By Stephanie Leclercq8 years ago in Psyche
What It’s Like to Be “That Girl” at the Party
When you go to a party or gathering, what do you expect? Most of the time, you see people interacting, catching up, or chatting in groups? But what about the girl in the corner, off to the side, face in phone, pretending to be busy, or even worse—hanging out with the owner’s dog. That girl is me.
By Deserae Manning8 years ago in Psyche
Does Being Crazy Make You a Great Artist?
Crazy is not a technical term. It simply means that one day I'd like to strip naked and show my tatas to the moon. And that's not being poetic. I really want to do that some misty Harry Potter night. But bipolar, ADHD, and anxiety are technical terms with real meanings. I won't go into that now. That's another article. This article questions the fact that crazy and all the technical terms can bring out the Poe and the Basquiat in us all. But as soon as we are medicated and feeling balanced, we become average nerds attempting poetry that sucks. So does crazy make us artistic geniuses and do drugs, the illegal candy, make us Warhol.
By Kimm Smith8 years ago in Psyche
The Anxiety Elf
Here comes Santa! It's about a month until Christmas, so half of us are wetting ourselves with excitement whilst others are wishing it would be over already. I am one of those people who wishes it could be Christmas everyday—yes, like the song. I have been given a wonderful opportunity to be an elf at Santa's grotto at my local farm shop for the month running up to Christmas (and get paid for it), which is great —I love Christmas, I love the film Elf, and I love singing Christmas songs. So it sounds perfect right? BUT how do I go about that when my anxiety is so bad sometimes I struggle to even leave the house...
By TheAdventuresOfRoo8 years ago in Psyche
Mommy and Mary Jane
About a week ago, I had a severe depression spell. My depression comes on in waves, and sometimes it feels like oceanic storms. The waves just never ending, coming and coming and coming. With never ending days, and nights that bring on my loneliness even more. I am alone a lot, and honestly I thought it would help. I could think things through. But no, the silence allows the waves to bring on scary times.
By Agent Moon8 years ago in Psyche
The Lack of Federal Funding for Mental Health and the Criminalization of Mental Illness
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) reports that approximately 1 in 5 U.S. adults live with a mental illness and approximately 1 in 25 U.S. adults live with a serious mental illness that “interferes with or limits one or more major life activities” (Serious Mental Illness Among Adults, 2015). It is estimated that approximately two million individuals experiencing a severe mental illness are annually booked into jails. The mass incarceration of mentally ill individuals in our country is deeply problematic; mentally ill inmates struggle to receive decent care and treatment both inside and outside of prison walls. A lack of federal funding for mental health institutions and the prison expansion that occurred throughout the 1980’s and 1990’s contributed to the criminalization of mental illness.
By Max Hutton8 years ago in Psyche
I Am Not My Diagnosis
Sometimes, us as humans forget that others are humans too. We will see someone with a broken leg, we will say that we are so sorry and hope they are better soon. But when we hear someone has a mental illness, we will say that they are just attention seeking and that they should get over it. Outcasted. For what? That their minds work in a different way?
By C.J. Dalton8 years ago in Psyche
The Falling Bridge
To describe my mind is impossible. Even I don’t dare to venture towards my subconscious, yet I know what lies within. It is like being on top of a bridge you know is about to fall, collapse into rubble in the river that flows beneath. Yet my feet stand ground on the stone like an old oak tree’s roots will into the earth. My legs turn into what I can only describe as tall pieces of grass getting caught in a tornado. My heart is as heavy as the anchor that keeps the planet together and earth’s existence. My subconscious making an appearance trying to convince the others to jump for the fun of it.
By C.J. Dalton8 years ago in Psyche
I Am Suicidal
I am suicidal. But I'll be okay, because I have to be. A lot of people who know me really well don't even know this about me. This is because—well, for years now—I've been putting on a happy face, pretending everything's alright. Don't get me wrong, a lot of the time everything is alright, but there are just some days where it would be easier if...
By Kelsey Park8 years ago in Psyche
Smoothie Girl
I don't belong here. I'm sick, not crazy. I squinted into the light as the girl, unknown to me except by her howls, thumped the floor. She rose from the ground, tore every pseudo-inspirational poster off the dank walls and hurled them towards me. "What are you doing here? Cause a pretty little white girl like you sure ain't in here for trying to kill your mama like me." I mumbled something indiscernible as she moved to her next victim. Three white-cloaked men appeared, shot a liquid into her backside, and dragged her away.
By Anna Bloom8 years ago in Psyche
