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Your Options for Responding to Mental Illness Stigma (Protectively, Collaboratively, or Assertively)
I have been open about my bipolar disorder for almost twenty years. Immediately after I spoke at my first mental health awareness event, I was met with feedback and gratitude. People thought it was a brave thing for me to speak up about my mental illness to fight stigma. But the truth is, I felt I...
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Personal Stories and Professional Insights on Navigating Chronic Pain
Living with chronic pain is a physically exhausting experience that extends far beyond physical discomfort. I know this both from my own lived experience with peripheral neuropathy and major nerve damage and as the CEO of People USA, a peer-led non-profit that serves individuals with behavioral...
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Coping With Chronic Pain: Good Advice Is Easy to Give but Hard to Take
Like many people, I live with pain every day. I’m lucky that, for the most part, my pain is tolerable and doesn’t interfere too much with my life. I walk slowly—but I walk. I sleep badly, but I sleep. It’s tough to sit in a car going long distances. Fortunately, my wife now does the...
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Consumer Perspectives: The Synergy of Housing and Employment Services in Mental Healthcare
This article is part of a quarterly series giving voice to the perspectives of individuals with lived experiences as they share their opinions on a particular topic. The authors are served by Services for the UnderServed (S:US), a New York City-based nonprofit that is committed to giving every New...
