Category: LINKS

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Using Books to Learn and Cope with Mental Illness

Maybe you’re a bookworm. Maybe you have “reading more” as one of your plans for the summer. Maybe you read as a hobby and use it as a form of stress relief when you need a break from school and/or work. Whatever the reason, you may be on the lookout for something new to read.

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“When I Came Out”

Mental health and mental illness are almost always tied to marginalized groups, with those who identify as LGBT being no exception. You’re probably somewhat aware of the staggering differences in statistics between LGBT+ people and those who are cisgender and/or heterosexual (if you want to check out the specifics, you can do so here), especially in LGBT youth as they try to navigate these identities.

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Video Games about Mental Health

More often than not, people have a negative view of video games and its relationship with mental health. Video games are often associated with addiction and seen as a poor coping mechanism. Those who play violent video games tend to be more likely to show depressive symptoms too.

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The South Asian Sexual and Mental Health Alliance

For Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Month, we wanted to highlight the South Asian Sexual and Mental Health Alliance (SASMHA) today. The organization was developed to specifically provide resources and fight the cultural...

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How to Use Empathy

This video was based on a TED talk by Dr. Brené Brown. She is a research professor at the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work. She has spent more than a decade studying vulnerability, courage, worthiness, and shame.

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Stay Hydrated!

Staying hydrated is not just important for your physical health, but can have substantial benefits for your mental health and your mood too.

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An App to Consider: Oak

There are a lot of benefits to deep breathing. Although the steps are incredibly simple (deep breath in, hold, breathe out, repeat), you can try different patterns and lengths of time, and may need some assistance with it. You may also want a source of some background noise instead of searching “calming sounds” online and hoping for the best.

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A Story of Hope

When Dr. Bertice Berry had all of her scheduled lectures cancelled in March of 2020, she was left with a lot of free time. Dr. Berry had been spending her days flying all over the country to give talks to people about communication and telling stories to inspire hope. When all of that was immediately taken away, she had to figure out her next steps.

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Improving Sleep

While it’s incredibly important to get a good night’s sleep, sleeping patterns and the amount of sleep adolescents get can get jumbled because of mental illness (for example, we’ve talked about “depression naps” and the effects that they can have). Overall, it’s difficult for adolescents to get the recommended amount of sleep they should be getting, and with higher rates of mental illness within this age group today, it can be even more difficult because of the ways that it can affect your sleep, such as depression napping and insomnia.

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Taking a Break

Though we’re constantly on our computers, sometimes we need to have a brief distraction from whatever task we’re currently focusing on, whether to jump start our motivation or calm any stress that the assignment is causing. The reasons we’re working or need a distraction may vary, and just like needing distractions for different reasons, the things we seek out to relax and ease our anxiety differ from person to person.