Finding Your Marbles
A Mental Health Survival Guide

I just received this appeal from activist Angela Shelton and I thought it’d pass it on. Angela is a filmmaker who went on a cross-country tour to meet other women who shared her name. She discovered that 24 out of the 40 Angela Sheltons she spoke to are survivors of rape, childhood sexual abuse, and/or domestic violence. It’s a powerful film and Angela is an awesome voice for survivors. Please consider her appeal.

Continue reading “Please Support Angela Shelton” »

Since my original post on resources for rape survivors, 10 Things to Do If You Have Been Raped, I have received hundreds of emails from readers who are looking for resources that can help them survive the first stages of healing from rape. Since then, I’ve been searching for “first aid” resources, resources that can provide immediate support and help for people who are in a crisis and need help NOW.

It has taken a year, but I have found two resources that I feel are the best resources out there for rape survivors in crisis. They are both easily accessible, friendly, and best of all, they are provided by people who know exactly what rape survivors need in order to heal. Enough from me. Here they are:

Continue reading “Two New Resources for Rape Survivors” »

Last week I was talking to a friend of mine who was having trouble starting a healing journal. He had kept a journal before, but he was finding it difficult to use a journal as a healing tool.

I believe in the healing power of creative expression, and especially in the power of writing. Writing allows you to have a safe place to explore your own emotions and feelings, and it has an incredible way of helping you connect with your inner self. I think that if you learn to write, and you learn to trust your writing, you will be well along the path to recovery.

In this article, I am going to share some of the things that I did to get started with my healing journal, and I’ll also share some of the tricks I use to “protect” my writing.

Continue reading “How To Start A Healing Journal” »

Because I am “in the business,” I spend a fair amount of time reading self-help blogs and sites. Most of these sites mean well, and their authors sincerely do want to help other people get rich, lose weight, or manage their time. Some, however, are not so good, and can present a real danger to anyone suffering from a mood disorder or mental illness.

In this article, I will talk about self-help websites, how they can benefit you in your recovery, and what pitfalls you should avoid.

Continue reading “How to Avoid the Dangers of Self-Help Websites” »

Just a quick note that I will be appearing on “Get Real Girls” on FM 107.1 in Minneapolis this Saturday at 8:30 AM (Central Time), so if you’re able to tune in, why not check it out. I’ll be talking about my article “How to Cry” and the challenges that men face dealing with [...]

Continue reading “FYM Radio Interview Saturday at 8:30 AM Central Time” »

On Saturday I learned that Finding Your Marbles has been added to the prestigious SOB (Successful and Outstanding Blogger) list!
This is a pretty big deal, and I’m honored to be joining such an incredible group of bloggers. Thanks to Liz at Successful Blog for the award and thanks especially to you readers for supporting [...]

Continue reading “I’m a SOB!” »

The other day I had a terrible experience on one of the mental health forums where I am a member. A few members launched an attack on me, something that occurs all too common on any forum, but on a mental health forum they can be particularly disruptive. After I was unsuccessful in my attempts to get the members to withdraw their attack, I wrote to the forum administrators to complain.

Their response caught me off guard, to say the least:

You are known to be outspoken so you shouldn’t be surprised when you get attacked by other members.name withheld

Well.

Continue reading “What To Do When You are Being Bullied” »

For me, one of the toughest things about recovering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and anxiety has been learning how to manage triggers.

If you’ve got PTSD or you have panic attacks, you know what I mean by triggers; those little things that, once your “anxiety brain” gets hold of them, send you into a downward spiral of fear, panic, and sometimes, even depression.

My worst trigger is child abuse. If I see a news story about an abused child, or even if I overhear someone talking about an abused child, my pulse rate just shoots up. If the abuse is sexual, then all bets are off and I have to take action to manage the trigger before I get anxious.

I do a couple of little things to manage triggers and minimize the effects that they have on me. They may work for you.

Continue reading “What To Do When You Are Triggered” »

After many friendly suggestions, ok, complaints, I’ve decided to pull all advertising off Finding Your Marbles. I’m currently in the process of removing the ad code from the site, so please don’t mind the mess for the next couple of days.

Continue reading “Finding Your Marbles, Now Ad-Free!” »

Just a quick post to let people know that I’m sticking around and writing. I have been off managing a few personal issues that have come up but I’m back at writing now. I plan to start posting new articles later this week.

Continue reading “Alive and Kicking” »