Mental Illness
Mental Health Help Should be Available
What if I told you that the US isn’t doing anything about the root of our most common, deadly, and debilitating diseases? We’re certainly funding treatment for the symptoms of these diseases, but we are not funding the mental health help that can prevent them from developing in the first place. The recent repeal of…
Read MoreWhat is Trichotillomania?
Trichotillomania, also known as hair pulling disorder, is a form of OCD. Approximately 2.5 million Americans currently have trichotillomania or have experienced it at some point in their lifetimes. Experts think that the numbers could be even higher because many people never seek treatment due to embarrassment. Those suffering from trichotillomania sometimes make a sizable…
Read MoreTypes of Anxiety Disorder
Anxiety disorder is not just one simple little thing. There are actually over 17 unique anxiety disorders, each with their own characteristic set of symptoms, recognized by psychologists. Anxiety is the most common mental illness diagnosis. Considering that nearly 18% of the population of the United States has had or has some form of anxiety…
Read MoreTeen Depression: Symptoms & Causes
Depression in teenagers is not mini-adult depression. Teens express depression in their own way and they may also have different reasons for becoming depressed than adults. As parents, it is important to learn and understand more about what our child may be going through. Even if you are already familiar with adult depression, you should still…
Read MoreDual Diagnosis: What is the Relationship Between Substance Abuse and Mental Illness?
What is a dual diagnosis? This is when someone is diagnosed with a mental health disorder while also dealing with an addiction or substance abuse problem. We often recognize depression or anxiety as illnesses, thus a diagnosis. However, struggles with drugs or alcohol count as a diagnosis as well: substance abuse disorder. This is because…
Read MoreHow are Substance Abuse and Mental Illness Related?
Mental illness and substance abuse go hand in hand. They occur together frequently and they also tend to aggravate each other. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, people who have been diagnosed with a mood or anxiety disorder develop a substance abuse disorder at twice the rate of the normal population. On the…
Read MoreWhat Really is OCD and do I Actually Have It?
You may already be familiar with popular notions of OCD symptoms, like fearing germs or constantly checking to make sure the door is locked. We often joke around with the term, calling each-other OCD if we ever display a bit of finickiness or other personality quirks. However, there is much more to OCD than these…
Read MoreGood Grief: Rage Against the Machine
By Brad Lamm, CIP What do we want to do right when we witness the world go sideways? So many of us dig deep and desire to respond, act and maybe even make a difference. I know, I get that more than many, as I work with families on the brink of crisis, desperate to…
Read MoreMental Health Awareness Month: B4Stage4
Brad Lamm, CIP Statistics show that many of us start down the road of addiction when we begin to self-medicate undiagnosed anxiety or mental health disorders with drugs, alcohol or food. This May, Mental Health America (MHA) is sponsoring Mental Health Awareness Month, with the goal of bringing awareness to mental illness before the most…
Read MoreSafe from Self-Harm
Brad Lamm, CIP Cutting. WebMD calls it a practice that is foreign and frightening to parents and loved ones of those who partake. Although it may seem like it, it is not a suicide attempt. Cutting is a form of self-injury — where a person is literally making small cuts on his or her body,…
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