I’ve talked a lot about gaslighting on this blog. Not only has it happened to me rather a lot, but it’s a common theme in mentally ill communities, whether it be the mentally ill having been gaslighted, or the gaslighting being perpetrated by the mentally ill. Whatever its origins, it’s a shockingly common and persistent… Continue reading Update: Gaslighting Tactics and Recovery from Abuse
Author: Olivia Epley
Founder of Millennial Girl, Interrupted, a senior in a small Connecticut high school. I've been through many treatments and recoveries and am eager to share the lessons I've learned!
Selecting language in mental health communities
I've been in a widely ranged swath of mental health units, wards, houses, groups and communities. They all have their own rules when it comes to what can and cannot be said: literally, what is allowed to be uttered. The folks in these communities go along with the rules most of the time, for there’s… Continue reading Selecting language in mental health communities
A letter to myself, last summer
Olivia, I know you’re going through hell right now. I hear it in your voice and I feel your loneliness through the recordings you made of just yourself, talking. Your brain’s on fire, everything hurts. I understand. I have a story for you. Your mother will tell you this in a few months, but I… Continue reading A letter to myself, last summer
An update on my moral scrupulosity
I’ve talked about this condition of mine before. An element of my OCD, a powerful one, is entitled obsessive moral scrupulosity, or the obsessive and compulsive need to follow a specific moral code, and often for others to follow it, too. The moral code itself is molded by early childhood influences, and it springs up… Continue reading An update on my moral scrupulosity
The crazy ex girlfriend
It’s a common trope among men. “Dude, she was crazy.” “She went psycho.” I know that one of my exes tells his new girlfriend things like that. And I want to unpack it a bit. This is a bit different from a normal article, but I think it’s something that girls in my age group… Continue reading The crazy ex girlfriend
Just some trauma poetry
First of all, I have a massive, worn old journal full of my poetry that is just for me. However, yesterday I came across a little yellow notebook tucked into the back of my closet. It’s not very good, but it’s from a very important period in my life. After I emerged from my abusive… Continue reading Just some trauma poetry
On Apologies and Radical Acceptance
One of the most difficult battles of my life has been coming to terms with others’ unwillingness to apologize. I apologize compulsively- I’m sorry frequents my lips as often as my name, if not moreso- and I haven’t been able to imagine why others can’t do it. I was talking with my dear therapist the… Continue reading On Apologies and Radical Acceptance
VIDEO: Applying to College with Mental Illness
I made one of those videos that people make after they get into college. Enjoy! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJnC6DzHlh8&t=2s STATS SAT: Wouldn't you like to know... GPA: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Extracurriculars: Watch to find out
PTSD vs. Trauma, and How I Sleep
Trauma, trauma, trauma. I talk all of the time about it. Why does it seem like all of the trauma happens to me, while (for example) my mother has never developed PTSD, despite both having traumatizing things happen to us? The answer is in what the first psychiatrist who ever treated me, said. He was… Continue reading PTSD vs. Trauma, and How I Sleep
My future plans
This break’s been nice. It’s truly exhausting to put things out onto this website, knowing that a handful of people from my old school will likely comment something negative and/or hateful. I have only good things to say today, however! This fall, I’m going to be attending Temple University in Philadelphia, PA. I’m on as… Continue reading My future plans