Written by Hannah Blum, author of The Truth About Broken: The Unfixed Version of Self-Love Eight years ago I posted a picture on FaceBook of me laughing in a beautiful white dress at a Spring Festival. I received tons of likes and comments about how beautiful it was and how happy I looked. Someone even … Continue reading 5 Signs That Social Media Is Affecting Your Mental Health & What To Do About It
Written by Hannah Blum, author of “Oh Mind, Where Have You Gone Today?” Vivien Leigh was a British actress whose charm, ambition, and sophistication captured the attention of all those who met her. She is considered to be one of the best actresses of all time. Leigh’s acting career skyrocketed when she won the role … Continue reading Gone with the Wind, Lost in Her Mind: Vivien Leigh and Her Life with Bipolar
Written by Hannah Blum, author of The Truth About Broken: The Unfixed Version of Self-Love Those of us who experience extreme empathy can feel misunderstood at times. Our sensitivity to the feelings, thoughts, and emotions of others can be both beautiful and consuming. It’s important to remind ourselves of the power of empathy and the gift we … Continue reading 12 Quotes for People Who Feel Extreme Empathy
Written by Hannah Blum, author of “Oh Mind, Where Have You Gone Today?” In 1961, a year before her death, Marilyn Monroe wrote a six-page letter letter to her psychiatrist Dr. Ralph Greenson about her time at Payne-Whitney’s psychiatric ward. “Just now when I looked out the hospital window where the snow had covered everything … Continue reading Marilyn Monroe: What You Didn’t Know About Her Life with Mental Illness
As someone who lives with bipolar disorder, trust me I understand what it is like to feel too much and fall too hard in both love and life. Also, I know how it feels to be rejected, taken advantage of or punished for this way of communicating with others. Whether you have a mental illness or not, many of us can relate to the self-doubt, constant questioning and shame that comes with acting on our emotions. To the women who feel too much and fall too hard, here are five reasons you should not feel ashamed. Continue reading “To the Women Who Feel Too Much and Fall Too Hard: 5 Reasons You Shouldn’t Feel Ashamed”
One of the best parts of being a mental health advocate is the connections you make to others with a similar passion for life and mental health. I was thrilled when Julie Kraft, author of the incredible book, The Other Side of Me: Memoir Of a Bipolar Mind, agreed to share part of her story with me. She is both beautiful on the outside and on the inside. In this interview, Julie shares her journey with bipolar disorder and opens up about motherhood, love, stigma and how a move from her home in Canada to Germany gave her clarity in a world that made her feel so clouded. Thank you, Julie, for speaking your truth. Continue reading “Beautiful with a Bipolar Mind: An Interview with Author Julie Kraft”
If you are looking for me to say how much I hate my life with bipolar 2 disorder, you will not find it in this post. It does not define me, but it is a significant part of who I am. If you erase bipolar, you erase me as a whole. I am never going to live without it, and I want to give others a taste of my reality. I do not place pressure on myself to be perfect. I am honest. This is my mind; this is my journey. Here is a little bit of what it is like to live in the mind of a woman diagnosed with bipolar 2 disorder.
Continue reading “Inside the Mind of a Woman With Bipolar Disorder”
When a violent crime occurs, it is assumed that the perpetrator must have been mentally ill. Has someone with diabetes ever killed someone? Yes, but we do not hear of this in the media. “His blood sugar was low which caused him/her to carry out the mass shooting…” Has a young African-American male shot someone? Yes. Does that mean that all young African-American males are murderers? No! It is natural that we want to blame “others” for negative behaviors, because it refrains us from looking in the mirror and realizing that we are all capable of corruption. Stigma is a barrier that keeps people with a mental illness from progressing in society. Continue reading “6 Stereotypes That Hurt People With Mental Illness”
Written by Hannah Blum, author of The Truth About Broken: The Unfixed Version of Self-Love As a woman diagnosed with bipolar disorder, I am not naive to the fact that people I date struggle to see beyond the label that society has stamped on me, which is why I wrote this post. If you are dating … Continue reading 17 Things You Should Know About Dating A Girl With Mental Illness
Self-harm is an emotional, and misunderstood topic. It is difficult to comprehend the logic behind people inflicting intentional pain on themselves. It is part of the struggle for many people suffering from mental illness. Self-harm is not commonly done with the intentions of committing suicide. More so, as a way to release internal pain. You are thinking, Isn’t that backwards? Inflicting pain to reduce it?
Continue reading “An Artistic Alternative To Self-Harm: Creating Instead of Cutting”
Blooming Mind Press 