A Secret 35 Years in the Making

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by Paul Porter

I now understood that real secrets were lonely. They planted themselves inside of you and expanded, until you felt like that was all you were-a lonely little secret, isolated in your experiences.

Yvonne Woon

This post is dedicated to:

Kristen Abell, whose beautiful Pecha Kucha continues to inspire professionals in our field, and empowered me to write and share these thoughts: I admire you.

The allies of the mental health community—family and loved ones who help ease the feelings of pain, fear, frustration, and anxiety associated with mental illness: I salute you.

The 61.5 million Americans who experience some form of mental illness in a given year: I’m one of you.

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Hey, I Wanna Get Better! – Mental Illness Looks Like Me

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by Amy Corron

Being very type-A, hyper organized, and a striving perfectionist, it has been my lot in life to be a little more, and sometimes a lot more, stressed than those around me. The right set of environmental factors collided in college and I developed Generalized Anxiety and Panic Disorders. There were a few trauma and crisis moments and times I did not know how I was going to make it through. But after each breath came the next breath, and through counseling and learning more about myself I learned not only how to cope with anxiety, but also how to thrive. In an effort to stomp out stigma and share what mental illness looks like, I am sharing a video of photos of myself through the time span of my experience with anxiety. Mental illness looks like me – a person with a full life who tries to live positively and authenticity at work and at home with family and friends. Continue reading →

Committed to Myself: Coping with My PTSD

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by Annie Greaney

Newton’s first law states that every object will remain at rest or in uniform motion in a straight line unless compelled to change its state by the action of an external force. Pretty simple concept when you think about it. For example, a ball will be stationary until a force is applied, and then it will continue to move until a force stops it.But what if you imagined your mind and thoughts as a ball, how easy can you apply force to stop or start a thought? I would guess for some it would be quite simple, as simple as pushing a ball. For others, take myself, it is hard to control the start or stop forces that trigger my mind to think. Sometimes, the forces are not even real. So how can you stop a force you did not even see coming?  Continue reading →

Transitioning Through Anxiety

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by Katie Ericson

This isn’t something I’ve talked about to many people, but I feel that it’s a story to be told. If there’s one other person out there that can maybe relate to this just a little, then it’s worth it.  It is because of the #SACommits community that I feel comfortable enough to become vulnerable in a way I haven’t before. I am inspired and moved by all of those who have shared stories, thoughts, resources, and encouragement to the community that is student affairs and higher education. And I am more than ready to stomp out the stigma. Continue reading →

The Two Faces of Depression

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by Gavin Henning

I’m sitting on my therapist’s sofa, physically and emotionally distressed. “I need to try something different,” I told her. In the year we had been working together, she had never seen me this upset. But this time felt different. This time was different. My wife and I had another fight about my drinking and my detachment. I thought it was the breaking point in my life. And our marriage.

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My _________ Is Showing: Anxiety in the Workplace

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by Karyn Dyer

Being a graduate student in higher education while also working part time in higher education is often a blessing and a curse. I enjoy my program, and I appreciate the things that I have learned. One of the major criticisms I have about my program is the lack of discussion around mental health and how it affects professionals. But l am thankful for being offered the opportunity to work in a space that is close to where I ultimately want to be. Continue reading →

I’m Not Ready…Yet: Why I Won’t Publicly Own My Depression

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The author of this post chose to remain anonymous.

I’m not ready….yet

A year ago at this time I was doing what I had been for years – ending another semester, looking forward to the summer, and thanking God that I had made it through another school year alive. You see, for most of my life I had been managing…strike that…masking…depression and anxiety. No medication, no therapy since college, just maintaining on the belief that I had nothing to be depressed about so feeling depressed was wrong. Continue reading →

Breaking Free of Stigma for Our Students’ Sake

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by Lisa Latronica

From the time I was a small child, I was called a worrier and perfectionist by all the adults in my life. Teachers commented on how particular I was with my work, and my mom often told me to let small things go. I never really understood any of this, as it was a way of life. I didn’t know any different. Didn’t everyone feel like this? Continue reading →