A young woman struggling with an eating disorder, anxiety, and chronic illness finds peace through mindfulness and writing.
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Bipolar Disorder, Love, and Breathless Creativity; Casey Cannizzaro | RDID 220
Casey Cannizzaro talks openly about his life with bipolar disorder and addiction.
An OCD Therapist (Almost) Missed Her Own OCD; Natalia Aiza’s Orthorexia-by-Proxy RDID; 219
OCD Therapist Natalia Aiza discusses her OCD and orthorexia-by-proxy.
From Fearing Food to Embracing it — Eating Disorder and OCD Recovery in the Kitchen
A cookbook author with an eating disorder and OCD finds recovery in connecting with people through baking.
All the Pain We Cannot See; Giovanna Errore’s Invisible Illness | RDID; 218
Writer and translator Giovanna Errore opens up about her fibromyalgia and anxiety.
Dubious of Disclosure: Delving into my Depression
Disclosing depression may seem easy. After all, scarcely a day goes by when this celebrity or that one “comes out” as living with depression, or anxiety (two of the socially “acceptable” mental health diagnoses) but, for many people, talking openly about their mental health challenges, whatever those are, isn’t easy; it can be excruciating, and the very thought of being out in the open as someone living with mental illness can be incredibly, well, anxiety-provoking. Miriam Beigelman doesn’t take coming forward lightly, and she talks about this in her brave essay.
Chaos Comes to Light — A Therapist’s Life With AuDHD and Eating Disorder Recovery
A therapist with an eating disorder finally finds recovery after realising she has ADHD and autism.
Barefoot Mornings – A Walk to Calm My ADHD Brain
A young woman goes on a walk to clear her mind and cope with her struggles with ADHD and anxiety.
A Screenwriter with Bipolar Disorder Rewrites His Recovery; Coli Sylla | RDID; 216
Screenwriter Coli Sylla lives a creative, productive, and full life with bipolar disorder.
From the Executive Director of Recovery Diaries: A Thank You, With Love (and Anxiety)
Gabe Nathan, Executive Director of a mental health organization thanks the Recovery Diaries community for their support.
Enough Was Enough – Overcoming a Traumatic Workplace
An obstetric nurse recovers from PTSD after retiring from the relentless medical system.
Until There’s a Cure for Mental Illness, There’s NAMI-Man: Nick Emeigh | RDID; 214
Nick Emeigh, Executive Director of NAMI-Bucks, survived multiple suicide attempts and lives in recovery.
Overcoming the Trauma of Erasure
For Shumaila Hemani, an immigrant seeking permanent status in Canada, enduring the trauma of erasure is a constant struggle.
Anxiety, OCD, and a Brain That Tries to Protect: Kayla Ackelson | RDID; 213
Kayla Ackelson, a writer, artist, and creator with an OCD brain talks about her recovery.
Living in Loops: Understanding My Life With OCD
A young woman learns to live a healthy life while compassionately dealing with OCD.
Out of Addiction and Into The Open
A man breaks his 20-year cocaine addiction with the help of the 12-step program.
A Smart Scale Warped My Body Image, But Here’s What I Learned
A smart scale threatened to undo Naima Karp’s positive body image and disordered eating.
A Flight Back to My Truest Self – Recovery from Emetophobia
A young man emerges from isolation and begins to travel again after receiving help for emetophobia and anxiety.
Writing Through Grief, Addiction and Recovery (And How My Biggest Breakdown Led To My Biggest Breakthrough)
Danielle Marr has discovered how writing can help her live with addiction and recovery.
A Promise to Keep Choosing Life: Bipolar, Psychosis, and Recovery
A woman decides to find a way to thrive with bipolar and psychosis through art and therapy.
Do I Look Like a Crazy Person? Speaking Out and Up with Mental Illness
Valéry Brousseau isn’t a “crazy person”; she’s a Canadian mental health advocate sharing her story of hope.
Surviving Suicidality in a Wonderful World: Javier Ortega-Araiza | RDID; 205
A podcast interview with writer and entrepreneur Javier Ortega-Araiza about surviving suicidality.
From “Suck It Up” to Speaking Out: My Way Through Panic Disorder and Depression
A young man finds a way to navigate life with panic and depression in a healthy way.
The Healing Power of Self-Witness after Trauma
Melissa Dagenhart lived through an act of violence; her essay is about recovery after trauma.
Living & Thriving with Illogical and Irrational Anxiety: Nicci Attfield | RDID; 204
A podcast interview featuring writer Nicci Attfield, who lives with anxiety and ADD.
A Black Mental Health Advocate & Survivor Speaks: Jasmin Pierre | RDID; 203
A Recovery Diaries in Depth podcast interview featuring Jasmin Pierre, an advocate focusing on Black mental health issues.
My Shame: How My Anxiety Keeps Causing Me to Quit
Daniel Gaughan writes about how “my anxiety keeps causing me to quit.”
Police Officer Trauma & PTSD: Officer James Jefferson | RDID; 202
Police PTSD, trauma, and suicide are discussed with Officer James Jefferson.
Why More Than the Madness: Writing About Bipolar
John Kaniecki lives and writes with bipolar disorder.
The Death that Gifted my Purpose; Living (and Writing) with Trauma and Bipolar Disorder
A screenwriter is affected by the death of his young friend while managing his bipolar disorder.
From Shadows to Light: A Teacher’s Journey Through Depression and Anxiety
A teacher with anxiety and depression leaves teaching to become a mental health advocate.
Changing Your Own Story with Borderline Personality Disorder: For my friends with a highly stigmatized diagnosis
A young woman with borderline personality disorder writes her own narrative, her own way.
Thyroid Cancer and Mental Health; a Med Student Survives
Cancer and mental illness collide in this essay from a medical student in Pakistan.
How a Chance Encounter Led to a 30-Year Therapeutic Journey; in Conversation with Brian Marshall | RDID; 120
A chance encounter led to a lifelong therapeutic bond for Brian Marshall.
Believe: My Struggle to (believe that I can) Change Negative Self-Talk
Our Executive Director, Gabe Nathan, explores negative self-talk on a recent trip to Baltimore.
Hunger Crawls Through Me: A Moment of Living with Familial Rejection and D.I.D.
Is it poetry? Is it prose? To try and categorize Elizabeth Devine’s story of dissociative identity disorder and how it impacts her relationship with her family might be futile. To write about something so disorienting might necessitate forms beyond the typical narrative essay.
Walking Across America for Men’s Mental Health, a Conversation with Tim Perreira | RDID; 119
People do all kinds of things to bring attention to mental health and suicide prevention. There are people who have ridden bicycles nude around the United Kingdom. Some take ice baths and do push-up challenges. A few years ago, the host of this very podcast filmed...
A Tale of Two Faces: Discovering, Accepting, and Living with Mental Illness
Tiffany North is living with mental illness, and not letting her bipolar disorder define or derail her.
A Doctor in Rwanda’s Life with Anxiety | RDID; 117
Florence Mukangenzi is a doctor in Rwanda living and working with anxiety.
Jason Schreurs: A Punk Rocker with Bipolar Finds Hope and Healing | RDID; Ep 116
Jason Schreurs is a punk musician, support group facilitator, writer and advocate who lives with bipolar disorder.
When Faith Hurts: Testimony of an EXvangelical on Religious Trauma
Cassandra Brandt documents her recovery from the religious trauma of her fundamentalist Christian upbringing.
Go to Your Room if You’re Gonna Cry – Breaking Generational Trauma
Laura Baumeister is breaking generational trauma and doing her best to raise the next healthier generation.
Kindness is a Powerful Choice; with Dr. Erica Harris | RDID; Ep 113
The trauma of COVID has not lessened Dr. Erica Harris’s commitment to providing care with kindness.
How Three Small Letters, ADD, Changed My Life
Nicci Attfield writes about the attention deficit disorder diagnosis that changed her life for the better.
Thigh Gaps, Epiphanies, and a Coming-of-Age: My Anorexia Story
Shannon Frost Greenstein writes about the epiphany that changed her life and helped her heal from anorexia.
What Would AI Ask? Mental Health, Suicide Prevention, and More with Gabriel Nathan & Chat GPT! RDID, Ep 109
AI and suicide prevention? Seems like they don’t go together, but our mental health “conversation” with Chat GPT proves that wrong.
Reclaiming My Story: From Foster Child to Freedom
It took fifty years for Jamie Swann to realize that she had been a foster child. Her essay describes the impact of that discovery on her mental health.
A Doctor with OCD Advocates, Treats, and Thrives; with Dr. Rachel A Davis | RDID Ep. 107
A doctor with OCD, Dr. Rachel Davis, openly speaks about her own mental health challenges as she helps others.
A College Professor Breaks Mental Health Stigma with Peter Leman | RDID Ep. 106
College professor Peter Leman talks about suicide prevention and mental health in higher education.
I Have OCD; and I Can Never Forget That
For Tyler Mendelsohn, every day comes with the reminder that “I have OCD”, but every day is also unexplainable and magical.
A Christian Mental Health Advocate’s Compassion & Empathy | Katie Dale Ep. 105
Mental health advocate Katie R. Dale openly talks about faith and mental health on our new podcast, Recovery Diaries In Depth.
A Musician’s Journey Through Grief and Anxiety with Jerzy Jung | RDID Ep. 104
Musician Jerzy Jung opens up in Recovery Diaries in Depth about anxiety, fear, and shame.
One More Step: A Professional Soccer Player Confronts His Mental Health Challenges
Elliot Kettle, a professional soccer player, writes about confronting his mental health challenges; emetophobia, agoraphobia, and anxiety.
Bipolar Disorder & Marriage with Gabe Howard | RDID Ep. 101
Mental health advocate Gabe Howard talks about marriage with bipolar disorder as the first guest on our new podcast.
Invisible Wounds: A Veteran’s Mental Health Journey
Former English soldier Dominic Barrett writes about depression, anxiety, and PTSD as a result of a high stress encounter while on duty, and also an unhealthy relationship.
It Was Cute Until It Wasn’t Anymore – My OCD, Anxiety, and Depression
Kayla Ackelson lives with OCD, anxiety, and depression and is discovering how to manage those challenges while living a multidimensional life.
Another Anxious-Depressing Thought: Am I Turning into My Mom?
Long-time nurse Donna Barnett confronts her anxious and depressed self and thoughts in this thought-provoking essay.
An Anxious, Depressed Illusion of the Mind
Depressed and anxious, Juliet Spanjaardt learned ways to cope with her debilitating stress and the “hanxiety” created by drugs and alcohol.
Ketamine Addiction & My Journey Out of the Hole of Depression
Daniel Gaughan tried to climb out of the hole of depression via an addiction to ketamine, and he almost lost himself.
Transforming Struggles into Strengths: Overcoming Anxiety and Finding Purpose
Erin Ullman is a therapist with anxiety and she’s helping others, both as a mental health clinician and as an advocate.
Uncovering Hope with Bipolar Disorder
Angela Wise, in her first published essay, writes about living with mental illness and finding hope with bipolar disorder.
Are You Game to Explore a Gamer’s Physical & Mental Health?
Gamer Mollie Evans writes about the unique challenges presented by Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and how it impacts her physical and mental health.
Overcoming an Eating Disorder During the Pandemic Uncovers Deeper Wounds
Kaley Neal writes about her orthorexia eating disorder and exercise compulsion.
On The Ethics of Mental Health Clinicians With Their Own Diagnoses
Does battling with your own mental health diagnosis make you more or less qualified as a clinician? In this essay, Naomi Kunstler explores that question, and shares the price she paid to offer exemplary clinical service while also battling with depression and a history of self-harm.
Trauma and how the Depressed Brain Pushes us into Social Isolation
The post-college search for interpersonal connection left Eleni Stephanides wondering: “Maybe you’re not someone who was meant for relationships.” This, of course, was a falsehood put forth by her trauma and depression.
A Creative Mind, Body, and Voice Navigates Bipolar Disorder
Musician, dancer, and artist Casey Calhoun has long struggled with bipolar disorder, and she writes here about her unique recovery process.
A Double-Edged Sword: Facing the Grief of Miscarriage with Bipolar Disorder
Erika Nichols-Frazer writes about recovering from a miscarriage while living with bipolar disorder.
How Playing Competitive Tennis Helped Me Heal From Anxiety and Depression
Javier Ortega-Araiza, a former competitive youth tennis player with anxiety and depression, shares how tennis helped enhance his mental health.
Be Informed, Not Afraid: Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) Could Save Your Life
Despite the many decades that have passed since “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”, many negative myths still persist about ECT (electroconvulsive therapy) for persistent, suicidal depression; Brian Marshall’s essay aims to bust those myths.
From OCD Parenting to OCD Practitioner: My Recovery From Orthorexia by Proxy
She thought she was being a diligent, careful mom, but it was really OCD and an eating disorder that needed treatment and understanding.
Living and Recovering with Schizoaffective and Autism Disorders
Schizoaffective and autism can be challenging diagnoses to manage; for MJ Van Dyk, therapy has been an essential component to his recovery.
Unpacking Emotional Baggage and Helpful Coping Mechanisms
DEI professional Shaquiea Sykes gets tired carrying around all the emotional baggage of depression; in her essay, she talks about setting it down.
Depression for a “Good Indian Boy”? Impossible
Depression in India is still stigmatized, particularly for a “good Indian boy”, for whom little else is more important than academic and professional achievement.
After Addiction and Binging; a Man Becomes Human Again
Addiction and binging were the two vices Robert Jackson battled, in order to save himself and preserve his relationship with his young child.
My Destiny is Recovery from Schizophrenia; And So Much More
Jahnavi Elango is coping with schizophrenia to the best of her ability, ensuring that she, not her disease, runs her life.
Integration; My Final Stage of Healing from Dissociative Identity Disorder
Shirley Davis is never alone; there are alters living within her, other beings and voices, the result of her dissociative identity disorder.
Alcoholism and Mental Health: The Tipping Point
Sonia Kahlon used alcohol to cope with her stresses and professional life, but she recognized how it sought to destroy her mental health.
Managing Autism & Solitude
Paul Jordan manages his autism and solitude in unique ways that may help others who are autistic, and/or those who care about them.
The Non-Linear Nature of Eating Disorder Recovery
Erin Jamieson became “good” at counting calories, throwing herself headlong into her eating disorder and then, thankfully, into her eating disorder recovery.
Bringing Both Feet in – Love & Mental Health
Kavita Sarmah lives with PTSD and believes that therapy and self-work was the key to help her be open to the prospect of love, marriage, and recovery.
Suicidal Ideation, “The Darkness”, and Men’s Mental Health
Jamie Loyer experienced suicidal ideation, was hospitalized and medicated and he is now a peer specialist, helping people like him recover.
What Yoga Taught Me about Depression
Laura Onstot was so overwhelmed and exhausted, she barely realized she was depressed; journaling and yoga helped clear vision.
Anxiety, Depression, and Two Heavy Whiteboards
While studying astrophysics in Edinburgh, Violet Piper was besieged by depression, anxiety, and thoughts of harming herself.
A Golf Pro Recovers from Bipolar Disorder
Former pro golfer Don Walin writes openly about his bipolar disorder, including some of his manic episodes during his life and career.
Once Blessed; Still Strong: My Life with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
On Christmas, a young man with obsessive compulsive disorder reflects on his mental health, his life, and what is yet to come.
Who Will I be When I Wake up? A Bipolar Journey
Kelly Schermerhorn, who lives with bipolar disorder, doesn’t count sheep to get to sleep; she plays baseball with Jesus to help keep her brain rested and healthy.
Vivid Memories of My Recovery Journey with Anxiety and Schizoaffective Disorder (Part 2)
Living with schizoaffective disorder and anxiety, Leif Gregersen was hospitalized numerous times. Now he is a compassionate and vocal advocate for those in need of a voice.
Vivid Memories of My Recovery Journey with Anxiety and Schizoaffective Disorder (Part 1)
Living with schizoaffective disorder and anxiety, Leif Gregersen was hospitalized numerous times. Now he is a compassionate and vocal advocate for those in need of a voice.
How a 17-year-old Struggled with Thanatophobia and Learned to Accept and Recover
Lots of people are scared of death, but having thanatophobia—a clinical, often crippling fear of death—is quite different than what most people experience. Join Sibgha Akbar as she writes about recovering and accepting; all at the age of 17.
Following Childhood & Adult Suicide Attempts: A Vow to Get Better
Like so many people who try to take their own lives, Sandra Stevens came from trauma; wishing she had never been born. She took many steps to achieve the desire to stay in this world; this is her story.
“What’s Wrong with You?” — the Question Trauma Asks
For his whole life, Jacques Damhuis was confronted with, “What’s wrong with you?” After decades of self-discovery, and some EMDR, he is learning that the answer is “nothing.”
What Reason Do I Have to be Depressed?
Eleni Stephanides was skeptical that going back on antidepressants would help, but she soon felt the clouds lift, and her vitality return.
Looking Down – The Mental Health Impact of Vision Loss
The mental health impact of sudden vision loss can be dramatic, as Christopher Dale explores in this essay.
Shiny Rocks; OCD is Always in My Pocket, Even all Grown Up
Megan Fisher wonders whether or not there is room in her life, and in people’s minds, for the child she was, with OCD, and the adult she is, with OCD.
Surviving Suicidality to Live in a Wonderful World
Javier Ortega-Araiza was feeling suicidal, and it wasn’t the first time that happened. His essay talks about his mental health recovery.
Back on Track: Recovering from Mental Illness and Addiction
After ten years of fighting a wrenching addiction to heroin, Stacey Anne Quin is winning herself back from the brink of mental illness and addiction.
Throw Pillows and Coffee Mugs: Accoutrements of Trauma, Abuse, and Recovery
Alan Caldwell has been collecting stories about his history of abuse and trauma and family for years, but only recently begun writing them down.
For this African American Man; there is Light, Even with Bipolar Schizophrenia
Men in the Black community are viewed as weak if they seek mental health treatment, but Derrick McQueen, a Black man with bipolar schizophrenia, didn’t let stigma stop him from getting help.
PTSD: The Unlikely Disease that Brought my Father and I Together
Carissa Chesanek’s father experienced undiagnosed PTSD from his experience in Vietnam. His daughter never went to war, but was diagnosed with the same illness.
Anxiety’s Magical Little Pill
Taking “a magic little pill” to help cope with her sometimes debilitating anxiety had serious limitations and, eventually, Maria realized she needed more help.