It’s been a while, and to exemplify how long it’s been, I present to you: the new result when I type the letter “m” into my Google Chrome search bar! Yes, I’ve been playing The Sims and neglecting my responsibilities mightily. And yet, by some miracle, I have transferred from Temple to New York University,…
Hello! I’m back! And a happy mental health awareness month to you and yours!!! I’m so glad to be returning to the blog to put in my two cents about the effects of the pandemic on my own outlook and mental health, and how I see us moving forward as functioning humans. (Re: title: catch…
For many years, whether or not someone liked Harry Potter was paramount to my opinion of them. If they, like some in my 6th grade Algebra class, thought it was “gay,” then I had a problem with them. There are other litmus tests, now, like your opinions on American police and how you talk about…
It’s Memorial Day! So, the day that the beach weekend is actually named after. Today we celebrate something much more important than a day in the Hamptons. It’s a day to memorialize human casualties of war. I like to celebrate this day separate from my feelings about individual wars or the military as a whole,…
Hi, my name is (also) Olivia and I’m here to talk about college and my freshman year experience. My first semester of college was cut short by a week because of a trip to the Crisis Response Center at Pennsylvania Hospital – that’s like the emergency room for mental health. Luckily, I was not hospitalized…
Primary declaration season is finally upon us, and I know this is an unpopular take, but I’m ravenous. Receiving news of political tumult (at best) and terror (at worst) day in and day out is exhausting. I can’t even begin to imagine what it’s like for folks (minorities, furloughed workers, the lowest economic classes, etc)…
To crave connection with others is only natural, in most cases, and such connection also happens naturally, for many people. Social relationships form every day, strengthen over time, and may weaken or break, leading to new ones — a glorified cycle. However, many of us, myself included, struggle to continually form relationships and socialize, especially…
I’m at my most vulnerable when I’m lonely, by far. Most of my family members are introverts, and can go long, long periods of time without needing human interaction. My sister and father are especially like this, as are many of my extended family members. My mother and I- me to an extreme- are reliant…
Over this past weekend, I perceived one of my fundamental understandings of mental illness to be challenged. I watched as someone posted about their active suicidal ideations on social media, bare for all to see, and got a near-unanimously positive reaction. Every article, tweet, comment section that I read was heaping on the comfort and…
I’ve done a full read-through of the Harry Potter series every time I’ve been in any overnight treatment. Sometimes this has meant I’ve had a week to work with, sometimes several months. I’ve always managed, and with good reason. Tucked inside the many hundreds of pages of seemingly child-geared storytelling can be found countless golden…
