It would seem like I've fallen into a hole recently. I haven't disappeared entirely, but nothing I've tried to write lately has made much sense, if any. I think I need a vacation. Bob is doing well; however, when your house feels like a demilitarized zone 90% of the time, there are bound to be some casualties. Unfortunately, in our case, it appears the first casualty is our marriage. So please bear with me as I try to hold it together, figure it out, and try to make sense of the chaos. I'll be back next week. Thanks.

Determination helps me overcome anxiety. White-knuckled stubbornness. Hours spent thinking to myself, "anxiety cannot win." Sometimes this is rather like yelling at the sea to stop making so many waves but in spite of that, it works for me. For a trait that's usually frowned upon, stubbornness, determination, has its uses to overcome anxiety.

I was reading a study that basically was saying that partying isn’t a requirement for happiness in college. My first thought: well sure it’s not essential, but it was definitely a huge part of my college lifestyle and I thought I was happy because of it. It made me feel like a belonged, had confidence, and could let go of all stress from life when I drank. Fortunately I have learned in recovery that it was really all a rouge, and mask to real self confidence and having choices in this world.

The Bill of Rights was added to the United States Constitution to ensure the federal government did not trample the rights of the people. At the time, many contested the Bill of Rights saying that the federal government had no power that was not explicitly enumerated in the Constitution, so there was no need to spell out the Peoples' rights. Well, it's a good thing we do have the Bill of Rights because today it serves to remind the government to stay in its' own lane. Like our country's Bill of Rights, there should be no need for a Partner's Bill of Rights within a relationship. However, when you love someone, it is easy to blur the boundary lines between "me" and "you" as two merge into "one relationship."  When you consider that in an abusive relationship there is one partner fighting to completely engulf the other partner into him or herself, then the boundary lines easily become non-existent. No matter what the Constitution of your relationship, it is a good idea to keep in mind the following inalienable rights.

As an ADHD life coach, I get to work with some of the most amazingly creative adults living with ADHD every day. This week, I met with a new client to talk about how ADHD was impacting her life and began helping her design initial ADHD coaching strategies to better manage these challenges.

Sooner or later we are all tormented by that nagging, unnerving question. You know the one. Am I wearing my underwear over my clothes? Is my cheese slipping off the cracker? Am I marching to the beat of a different didgeridoo? Is the diploma in my den from Whassamatta U? Like a pebble wedged firmly in your shoe the uncertainty refuses to leave, taunting and mocking until thinking of anything else is impossible. I’ve been troubled by these moments of existential meltdown for decades, which is why I was so excited when my friends at Kronko told me about self-diagnosis with SynAPPS® - the latest in “smart” applications for iPhones, iPads, and ay caramba. Here’s how it works. As an intelligent application, SynAPPS® records your online activities in order to build, and regularly update, a psychodynamic knowledge base enabling it to gauge your sanity quotient on demand.

By now we know the symptoms of bipolar disorder - wild mood swings from euphoria (mania or hypomania) to depression. We know that bipolar disorder comes in lots of variants, bipolar 1, bipolar 2, cyclothmia, rapid-cycling and so forth. But when are the symptoms of bipolar disorder not bipolar disorder? Are there other illnesses that can account for bipolar symptoms? When is bipolar disorder not bipolar disorder?

While I would recommend being open about one's own struggles as a way to fight stigma, which is usually due to ignorance, openness is not for everyone. Ultimately, each person has to decide for himself or herself what is right. I understand the reasons for keeping quiet about a diagnosis, especially some of the more misunderstood ones. Yet the only way we can hope to get rid of stigma is by education, and education begins with openness.

When cruising Facebook profiles, many times under "relationship status," you'll find someone wrote "it's complicated." As a matter of fact, you'll find the phrase on so many profiles, it's become sort of a joke. What's no laughing matter is that for many with a mental illness, relationships can be complicated.

As young people seeking help for our mental health issues, sometimes we face unique challenges. I occasionally get criticism from older people telling me that I am just taking myself too seriously. They say I don't really have a mental illness or addiction, but insist that I am just young or immature and I will grow out of it. This was especially troubling when it came to my alcoholism.