We live in a world where many suffer from mental illness, an issue that is not always physically seen but can be wholly as present as any other issue. We live in a nation where a new international study has criticised Ireland for its lack of reform
It’s barely a whisper. It’s more like white noise. Echoing through my daily life. It’s as if it’s in competition with my natural state of being. It’s not a he or a she in fact I’m not entirely sure what it is
I lost my job in 2016 due to mental health problems and around that time realised I had a desire to draw even though it was never something I was good at. I started to write quotes on tiles and plates and draw little images for them
Why bother stepping outside of your Comfort Zone?
How many times have you heard yourself or others say ‘I need to step outside of my comfort zone’ or ‘I need to push past my comfort zone.’
Helium Arts is Ireland’s children’s arts and health charity. We support children struggling with the social and emotional challenges of long-term illness or disability through a range of creative arts programmes
When your mental and physical health collide Endometriosis and its impact on my mental health
Lying on the floor trying to catch my breath while curled up in the fetal position, rocking myself
Working in mental health services while taking anti-depressants
I have always wanted to work in mental health, before I even knew what that meant. I wanted to work with people who were vulnerable and help them through whatever hard time
Sometimes life is completely overwhelming. Music has always helped me to manage my thoughts when I can't articulate how I am feeling as I just stick on a track and crank up the volume
Recovery after a suicide attempt
January 1st 2018. A new year is supposed to be a fresh start; mine didn’t work out that way. The first day of a brand-new year ended with me being taken to hospital in the back of a police car
Advice to My Graduating Niece on Handling the Problems Life Throws
A couple years ago, my niece was graduating, and the families of her class were asked to send cards and letters for the graduates to open on the day of graduation
Violet Dempsey – “Inspired by Kokoro”
My work explores and investigates interconnectivity. How we make creative connections and how we identify the potential to connect within the world we live in both locally and globally
Barry Murphy – Part Mark-Making, Part Action-Painting
I began painting two years ago as a last 'try anything' resort to help me cope with depression as I had been suffering for a couple of years
At its core, the song is about personal experiences of shame and sense of failure when met with rejection, especially when trying to find a partner in life. The particular moment that inspired Mark McHale (vocals)
This painting is based on the theme of spirituality, specifically yoga, mindfulness, and meditation. It focuses on illustrating the inner strength of people and how we are stronger than we may think
About 6 weeks ago, I packed up my belongings and moved from my rented Drumcondra home back to my home place of Clare. This was not an easy decision – far from it – but a necessary one
Writing my feelings on the Internet helped me grow in real life. In the hallway of my condo, there’s a message on my whiteboard calendar. It reads, simply, “Be kind to yourself.” It was handwritten about a year ago
Time to Exhale – My Repeal Campaign Recovery
As the dust settles on an intense campaign, psychotherapist Karen Sugrue considers how she and other campaigners can manage leftover emotions and exhaustion
Jim O’Donoghue Martin, Video Blue: ‘Reviver’
My name is Jim O'Donoghue Martin, and I make music as Video Blue. I'm from Dundalk, but based in Hackney, east-London
All those wasted hours “What if, should have and why didn’t I?” thoughts have wasted enough...
Andy is the founder of the acclaimed Swirl Zine- a magazine which is an “uncomplicated, empowering guide to managing worry and rumination”
Michelle Harton: Exploring Emotions and Memories
I feel art is about a person’s connection with a piece, the emotions and memories, conscious or unknown from this life or another that are briefly unlocked
My first day of college at 18 years of age was not a daunting prospect, but an exhilarating one for a positive, fun-loving and friendly girl such as myself. The college life lived up to my expectations… for a while
Suicide and the mental healthcare system – Our Story
I’m relatively good at biting my tongue. Perhaps that’s an exaggeration. I’ve been known to occasionally bite my tongue
What I Did When I Couldn’t Afford Therapy
It’s unfortunate that I live in a country where you have to pay to live and pay to be buried (America). I mean I get it. Doctors need to make their living, and they can’t do that by seeing patients who can’t afford to pay up
A Lust for Life and Joe Caslin present: When Words Fail
A celebration of creativity and mental health. At A Lust for Life, we’re big believers in creativity – in making stuff
10,777 miles away from home, I finally faced my demons… but it hasn’t been without it’s struggles
Content Warning: In this article, Lisa describes a period in her life where she felt suicidal, and attempted suicide, in detail
Caitriona McMahon recounts a recent visit to hospital, where medical staff failed to acknowledge her anxiety as part of her presentation. Content warning: this article contains detailed descriptions of panic attacks
Stigmatising the Stigma Surrounding Mental Illness
Carly Davis writes about her struggle coming to terms with Bipolar 2 and reflects on other members of her family who may have suffered an undiagnosed mental illness
What does it feel like to have anxiety?
Google the term anxiety, and you'll find no shortage of symptoms. If you've never experienced an anxiety disorder, reading the symptoms alone may not give you a true insight into the way they impact people's lives
Part 2: How the Psychiatric Hospital Saved My Life
By September 22nd 2017, the weight of living had pulled me to rock bottom. The new antipsychotic medicine was mostly handling the voices and delusions
Part 1: How Schizophrenia Changed Me
After my psychological testing, I made a follow-up appointment with a therapist. I walked into the office, pale, wide-eyed and wary of all the invisible voices whispering to me as I notified the receptionist and sat down
“Your Dad only has 13 hours to live” – My battle with depression
When I was 9 years of age, like any 9 year old, you would be out playing tip the can… or even with my Barbies at that age. For as long as I’ll live, I’ll never forget the day
How my family befriended and beat the Anxiety monsters
It’s challenging as a parent to watch your child struggle. To hear that nagging voice in your head which tells you that something is not right. There’s just something
Friday September 16th 2005 was the last time I set foot in Waterford city centre. Returning from living in Dublin, I was experiencing the early stages of agoraphobia, a condition that would haunt my life
Trichotillomania, Anxiety and Depression: I am more than these things
When I was 9 years old my dad died in a car crash. That day my little heart broke. My heart felt like it had been physically ripped from my chest
My name is Mick Finnegan I'm 35 and I'm from Crumlin in Dublin. Initially life was good. I believed I grew up in what appeared to be a loving family. However my family were either using or selling drugs
My Lifelong Experiences With Mental Illness
I have been affected and surrounded by mental illness my entire life. I was born to a mother with Bipolar II Disorder, and a father who at the time was an alcoholic
I began my journey with Pieta House during the Autumn of 2016. I had heard of their amazing work over the years previous, but like most people with mental health disorders I never thought I was worthy of their support
The impact of Infertility and IVF on your Mental Health
‘So when you are going to have a baby?’ You’re barely down the aisle and people are asking you this. As time goes on and you still haven’t had a baby people keep asking you
What You Can Do to Improve Your Body Image and Self Esteem
For the longest time, I thought that the only way I would ever be fully satisfied with myself meant being practically flawless in every aspect of my life
The definition of grief is deep sadness - but grief is so much more than just sadness. We have all suffered loss in our life, be it a loved one, a miscarriage or simply the loss of a close relationship
A while ago, Jennifer Coleman wrote for us about her struggles with depression. Since then, she had a setback, and writes today about what it’s like when depression returns
I was rooting around in my old handbags looking for some spare change for ice-cream, when I came across papers titled ‘Making A Will’. My mind instantly went back to that day in an old, dusty solicitor’s office
Self-Care, a term used frequently among the subject of mental health, but also a great thing for anyone to engage in. It's a term so broad, and yet so specific at the same time. If you get it right - it saves you - or more importantly
Hiding in plain sight – The paradoxes of a suicide
In the majority of cases it's nearly impossible to make sense of a suicide. Unless you are in that place yourself, you would think why on earth would anyone do that?
When people talk about mental health, they often refer to an inner voice which is constantly belittling them. I think everyone has two voices inside them. I refer to mine as the cheerleader and the bully
Through the kalidescope lens of life
I thought when I was seven years old that my life was going to be pretty perfect. I was into Walt Disney Cartoons and all things that simulated perfection in life. I was a girl who didn't see difference or race or see anything wrong
Living with Borderline Personality Disorder
A little about my journey. I was diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder during the winter of 2016. Due to a breakdown I had experienced - anxiety, depression, insomnia all played a part in my diagnosis
Growing up I had a distant and hard relationship with my father. My mum held the fort and did all the work for the family whilst my dad took the easy route and picked and chose when to see his children
For as long as I could remember, I counted on alcohol to help me deal with the crippling anxiety and depression I endured. That combined with medication was my go to and I thought I had it under control
Exams hit me like a whirlwind last week, and as a postgraduate student, I felt the pressure tremendously. I buckled down this semester and prepped in advance so I had nothing to worry about, or so I thought
Change is Possible: Here’s How
Many people seek to change their lives without changing what they do. The “person in a hole” metaphor describes this best: Consider a person who is lost in life, and aimlessly wanders into a field full of holes
Black boulders, to me, I liken my Borderline Personality Disorder. First they attach themselves to you as tiny pebbles; you notice that things you previously enjoyed are being rubbished a little by tiny weights dragging you down
Perspective is a fickle bitch – make no mistake. She leaves us all at some point or another and everything seems bleak. The cereal tastes bland, there’s nothing on the telly, and jokes are just a mass of irritating sentences
This is a deep, dark, place that the mind takes you for reasons that are beyond my comprehension. A tortured mind, a tortured heart, and a tortured soul all of which make up your very being
We Deserve Better: My Story Through Depression
Gary Fitzgibbon shares his depression journey, and the problems he experienced with significant gaps in the mental health services in Ireland
I struggled at times last week, and felt so drained that my thoughts became confusing and a little negative. I was aware of this feeling, and spoke gently to myself as they arose
The Bombshell of Adulthood – My Story, Part 2
Aoife Commins shares part 2 of her personal story. Aoife is a mental health advocate and is about to do a head shave as a fundraiser for Pieta House
Aoife Commins shares her personal story of her struggle with anxiety and depression. Aoife is a mental health advocate and is about to do a head shave as a fundraiser for Pieta House
The reason I have decided to write this now and not last year or next year, is because I feel strong emotionally and mentally now - and I credit this to being sober. The last four years of my life have been a bit of a rollercoaster…
If I broke my leg, I would talk about it
Ever since I wrote publicly about my struggle with depression, I've wondered if people look at me differently. A lot of people told me that "I didn't seem the type" to have mental health issues
I remember sitting on the edge of my bed looking at my sister Evie, with tears in my eyes. “I don’t know if I’ll be able to be a good mother. I don’t know if I’ll cope. I don’t know if I can do the whole labour thing...”
Be Happy, It’s a Wonderful habit
In my English class, we were given an interesting assignment. Write an essay called: ''Be Happy, It's A Wonderful Habit''. It interested me because many of my classmates struggled with the title
It’s been exactly four years and 10 days since my father’s suicide, that is over 2103795.06 minutes that I have spent wishing that I still had my best friend, my rock, my daddy. Four years ago, in this moment, I will have been searching
I swam in the Atlantic today. Well I say swam, really it was more of a dip. But for me, so long as the head goes in and I float, it counts. It all began last Christmas when my beautiful aunt Pauline gave me a gift of a little book
I am unsure what I think about the recent study led by researchers in Oxford University and the subsequent criticisms of their findings around antidepressants and their efficiency
When words are not enough: Art and my mental health
“I just don’t want to be alive”, was the most succinct way I could put it, when a friend asked me to describe how I was feeling
Someone Please Help Me, So I Did
Last year I wrote for A lust for life before I published my first book ‘Someone please help me, so I did’, to share my story in the hope that it would help others to find the strength to share their stories and reach out for support
A few weeks ago I was teaching a child in a one-to-one setting… well, I say I was teaching her, but the truth is that she and her beautiful family have taught me more about goodness and kindness in the time that I have known them
My experience of a toxic working environment and what got me through
It was supposed to be my career turning point. I felt elated when I got the news. My big break finally... and my family and wife were also delighted for me
From drug addiction to new life: How meditation helped me sober down
I was just 14 when I smoked my first weed – I was at a party and all my friends were smoking up. I hesitated initially, but then I thought ‘What harm would one drag do?’
Mindful meditation: 4 ways it helped my drug and alcohol addiction recovery
When mindful meditation was first suggested as a way of helping me recover from my addictions, my initial reaction was: okay, I’ll consider just about anything, but what exactly is it?
Flying solo – The challenges of Single Parenting and 3 things that help me day to day
Tonight I felt like I was failing at this parenting thing. My son was late home, hadn’t answered his phone all evening, dinner was cold, my four year old daughter was in the bath
We need to talk – ‘I’m no longer ashamed to talk about having depression and accessing services.’
I have depression. I struggled to write that sentence, and I tried to phrase it in a nice flowery paragraph about being on my way out of a depressive spell etc
Finding meaning in the aftermath of childhood trauma
Through my own personal journey of trauma I have come to appreciate the possibility for personal growth that traumatic events can bring
Face to face with shame – Using DBT to face difficult emotions
“In my view, suicide is not really a wish for life to end.' What is it then?' It is the only way a powerless person can find to make everybody else look away from his shame...”
Breaking free after a separation – Some valuable lessons learned along the way
This January as I carried out the tedious task of taking down our Christmas tree I was extra cautious with my ever growing supply of fairy lights
‘We are not broken, we’re human’ – Overcoming years of misdiagnosis and medication
‘Over the years I’ve come to recognise that depression is, and quite likely always will be to one extent or another, simply part of my life, part of who I am.’
Overcoming the shame of being gay
I have always looked at myself negatively, harshly and unfavourably. For a long time I put this down to my looks, not handsome enough, not fit enough, causing me to be so self-aware which in turn caused deep rooted anxiety
Struggling with the grief of losing a loved one? Do more of what feeds your soul
It’s early January and I’m contemplating ‘The New Year’. I don’t really know how to feel about 2017 coming to a close and facing into a new year
Healing is an ongoing process – You can’t just abandon the process that pulled you out of...
It’s always hard to experience the low points again. To return to incessantly checking your phone and shaking your legs, to question everyone’s motives
How struggling with separation and single parenthood brought me home to myself
One year ago I began this article after returning from a weekend shared with friends which was both painful and deeply humbling
You have to cry out the sad to make room for the happy
When my friend’s Mam passed away a number of years ago, her little boy saw her trying to hold back the tears in front of him
Mojo Rising: ‘I thought of suicide as my only option until I found Mojo’
I have faced different struggles throughout most of my life, but it wasn’t until my forties I reached my lowest point. I had nothing left
Creating a new reality on the other side of abuse, fear, anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts
My story is like so many other people’s stories, in that I hid for years in the belief that no one else
Mojo Rising: ‘I couldn’t help his depression, as his wife I was simply too close.’
Everyone has bumps in their relationships: moments where we fight, times when we disappoint, issues that frustrate us – and yet these are but small challenges we face as humans
Advice to the 15 year old me with Social Anxiety Disorder
I am 15 years old, quiet, anxious. I have just counted on my copy book during the last class in school how many days it would be until I would be finished secondary school forever
Overcoming severe anxiety and panic attacks to feeling calm, happy and brave
The concept of “being aware” was not something that ever existed in my life. I was not aware of my thoughts, my emotions, and certainly not my breathing
Missing someone who’s still here: ‘I’ve lost my sibling, but never had an opportunity to grieve’
On December 12th this year, my sister Shona will be 40 years old. Sadly, there will be no party
Borderline Personality Disorder is a complex mood disorder. It is usually diagnosed between the ages of 30 and 39. I believe this will be diagnosed sooner as we become more educated about the symptoms
Living with scars – If self-harm could speak it would say “I hurt, I am hurting”
There are so many sayings about scars. The ones that are popular are those that depict them as a sign of survival, of strength, or of having struggled but come out the other end
