A Tall Drink of Water To Help My Mental Health #NaBloPoMo

It is NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month) and I am going to participate by blogging every day of November in response to the official prompts. It is more of a blogging exercise for me than anything else, but please read away … When you’re having a bad day with your mental health, what do you […]

Nayck, 50, Identifies As a Black Gay Domini-rican in Pittsburgh #AMPLIFY

Gay Pittsburgh

  Name: Nayck Age: 50 County of Residence: Allegheny County, previously Philadelphia Preferred Pronouns: he/him/his How do you describe your identity? That can be a loaded question. I was born in the US, of Dominican parents and grew up in Puerto Rico. I’m of African descent, and consider myself gay. I guess that makes me a black, gay Domini-rican. Please […]

Carina, 18, Identifies as Plus-sized Tattooed Monogamous Queer and Femme #AMPLIFY

Washington County pansexual queer

Name: Carina Nicole Age: 18 County of Residence: Washington Preferred Pronouns: she/her or they/them How do you describe your identity? Plus-sized tattooed monogamous queer femme. Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face? I came out as bisexual at thirteen, and pansexual at sixteen. I still have not fully come out as genderfluid. […]

’10 Days in a Madhouse’ Is Just a Terrible Movie

Nellie Bly Movie

Let me start here – I really wanted to like this movie. As an adult woman from Pittsburgh living with mental illness, I have mad respect (see what I did there?) for Nellie Bly and I hoped that this movie version of her investigation into the mental health system of her day would contribute a […]

Casey, 38, Honors One Year Since Coming Out As a Gay Woman #AMPLIFY

Pittsburgh Queer Women

Name: Casey Age: 38 County of Residence: Allegheny. I spent some time up in Erie when I was about four or so, and I lived in Philly area for about 7 years right before I moved to Pittsburgh in 2008. But I grew up mostly in the Maryland (Baltimore-DC corridor) area. Preferred Pronouns: her, she…for now How do you describe […]

Crockpot Tuesdays

I’m writing this post on a Tuesday about crockpots, but there is no reason to assume I’ll return to the topic on a Tuesday in the future. Fair warning. 🙂 A consequence of living with anxiety and bipolar disorder is that cooking often falls to the side. Eating can be a challenge. Sometimes, it is […]

The First Time I Called 911

CN: Discussion of suicide Write about a defining moment in your life when you were forced to grow up in an instant (or a series of instants). My mother has always lived with depression and a host of other ailments, many resulting from a childhood bout of encephalitis that destroyed her short-term memory. She was […]

The Ritual of Our Morning Commute

Daily Blogging Prompt

Think about your day. Select one of your daily rituals and explain it to us: why do you do what you do? How did you come to adopt this ritual? What happens on days when you can’t perform it? There are so many rituals that I want to have, but not many that I consistently […]

My Therapist is a Nun

Persad Center

For ten years, I saw the same therapist, “D,” here in Pittsburgh. I was referred to her by my then-PCP because she was in a unique practice specializing in treating my diagnosis. The psychiatrist in the practice moved out-of-state after a few years, but I stayed with her. She was a tremendous support to me […]

May is Mental Health Awareness Month

Mental Health Awareness Month

  I’d love to see a therapist, but I’m too busy with work/family/other activities. I talked to a counselor one time and it didn’t help. I’m not someone who talks about my feelings with a stranger. Psychiatry is a racket. It is on my list of things to do, right after I accomplish <insert xyz […]