Darkness to Dialogue: Living Well With Mental Illness

Finding Balance Between Structure and Flexibility in Mental Health Recovery Article Summary Structure can be essential for mental health recovery, but too much rigidity can hold us back. This post explores how to balance stability with flexibility so you can build resilience and thrive on your recovery journey. Why This Matters When living with mental health challenges, structure can feel like a safe harbor, a predictable anchor in a sea of uncertainty. But what happens when that structure becomes too rigid? For many on the path to recovery, the balance between stability and adaptability is a critical, and often overlooked, part of healing. In this post, we’ll explore why structure matters, the risks of rigidity, and how flexibility can empower your mental health recovery. We’ll also look at how this balance impacts different mental health conditions and practical strategies to make it work in your life. When I first began my own mental health recovery journey, I clung tightly to struc...

Trigger Warning: This post discusses domestic violence, including physical, emotional, and psychological abuse. It may be distressing for survivors. Please read with care. If you are in danger, call 911 or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 (SAFE) — thehotline.org . Domestic Violence Isn’t Just Physical: What Everyone Needs to Understand This Awareness Month Summary October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. But awareness has to go deeper than purple ribbons and statistics. Abuse isn’t always visible. It can be emotional, financial, psychological, or digital — and its wounds often cut even deeper than physical harm. Survivors also face long-term mental health effects that are rarely discussed. By expanding how we understand domestic violence, we can better support survivors and take meaningful action beyond October. Awareness Is Only the Beginning When you hear the phrase domestic violence, what comes to mind? For many, it’s bruises, broken bones, or police...

    “Healing isn’t about perfection. It’s about persistence. It’s about survival. And it’s about choosing yourself again, every single day.” Summary Healing is often pictured as peaceful and serene, but the truth is it can be raw, messy, and full of grit. Recovery requires both grace and grit: compassion for yourself and persistence when the path is hard. My Healing Wasn’t Pretty, And That’s Okay When I first began my healing journey, I imagined it as something graceful: long walks in nature, quiet reflection, and deep breaths in peaceful spaces. Sometimes it was like that. But more often, it was anything but. Healing for me meant waking up to the same intrusive thoughts for the hundredth time. It meant dragging myself through days when even basic tasks felt monumental. It meant showing up even when I felt hollow. Grace gave me permission to slow down, to breathe, to forgive myself. But grit? Grit was what kept me going when I had nothing left to give. Healing wasn’...

Disclaimer: This post discusses suicide and may be distressing for some readers. It is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional help. If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 in the U.S.  What People Really Want To Know About Suicide: Honest Answers, Warning Signs, And How To Help Summary Suicide is a subject people often avoid because of fear, stigma, or uncertainty. Yet when you or someone you love has been touched by suicide, silence can be heavier than words. This post explores the questions people truly want to ask, whether they’ve lived through it personally or are simply trying to understand. My Personal Connection I’ll be honest: suicide isn’t an abstract issue for me. Like many, I’ve had my own encounters with suicidal thoughts, and I’ve also known others who’ve struggled. The silence surrounding suicide was often worse than the pain itself. People tiptoe, afraid of saying the wrong thing, while those in the storm ofte...

Summary  Do you ever react in ways you later regret? In recovery, the difference between reacting and deciding can define your progress. By learning to pause, reflect, and choose intentional responses, you gain control over your healing journey and build resilience that lasts. Quick Insight Reacting is automatic; deciding is intentional. In mental health recovery, pausing before responding allows you to manage emotions, make healthier choices, and strengthen long-term coping skills. Learning to Pause in Recovery Recovery from mental illness isn’t a straight line. For years, I believed that healing meant suppressing my emotions or never stumbling. But the truth is, emotions are going to happen; they’re unavoidable. What matters is how we respond to them. For me, reacting meant snapping at loved ones, shutting down, or spiraling into shame. These patterns kept me stuck in cycles of guilt and frustration, even as I was making progress in other areas of life. Over time, I realized that...

  Monthly Mental Health Spotlight August/September 2025 Edition Written By: Aaron Smith Curated By: Caralyn Dreyer Finding Home: Aaron’s Story Every so often, I come across a story that reminds me why I do what I do. Aaron Smith’s journey is one of those stories. His path through questioning faith, exploring altered states, falling into addiction, and finding peace through yoga nidra is not just compelling; it’s a reminder that mental health recovery can take many forms. I’m honored to share his story here. Summary Aaron Smith’s mental health recovery journey began with a teenage mystical experience, took a detour into addiction, and ultimately found grounding in yoga nidra. His story is raw, inspiring, and full of insights for anyone seeking healing. Key Insights Aaron Smith overcame anxiety, depression, and addiction through yoga nidra, a meditative practice he describes as both instantly rewarding and deeply transformative. It became the key to his mental, emotional, and spiritu...

Why Healing Isn’t Perfect You’re recovering, yet some days you still wake up with anxiety or sadness, and you wonder if you’re failing. Healing isn’t about perfection. It’s about living a meaningful life  with  the shadows that remain. “Recovery isn’t about erasing symptoms, it’s about learning to live fully with them.” Key Insight True recovery doesn’t always mean being symptom-free. Real recovery is learning to thrive despite symptoms, valuing progress over perfection, and redefining “wellness” for your own life. My Recovery Story I remember the afternoon I realized my “good days” didn’t look like what I thought recovery should. I’d finally made peace with getting out of bed without dread. I laughed at something small. My heart felt lighter. But that evening, a sleepless wave hit, my chest tightened, and the old fear whispered in my mind. I wondered  if I still have nights like this, am I really getting better? I’ve carried that tension a lot: wanting the rising sun to ...