As we enter into May, Mental Health Awareness Month, we discuss our gratitude at having reached this milestone, one episode at a time. Reaching a 2 year mark is only because of you, our listeners and in this short episode, we invite you to share your story with us.
Parenting a Child with BPD (Lisa Wells)
Lisa Wells is raising a son with Borderline Personality Disorder. As a little boy, her child was diagnosed with ADHD. He was throwing furniture, had to be taken out of school and went through all kinds of treatment. He endured a lot of ridicule, punishment, and rejection from school staff for not behaving in the way they expected. Lisa assumes this contributed to the trauma which led to him to develop BPD and an older teen.
Loving and Supporting a Loved One with BPD (Brina McNally)
When Brina and Paul began to date, he was magnetic and charming. They had a connection from the first moment together having a drink. People at work had complained about Paul, saying he was aggressive and difficult. Brina never witnessed that side of him until about 6 months into their relationship, after Paul had too much to drink at a party. Not long after, Paul was diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder, after having been together almost 4 years and had just gotten engaged.
Healing from BPD with Mindfulness (Hannah Galliers)
Hannah Galliers has navigated through her journey with Borderline Personality Disorder, known in the United Kingdom as Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder (EUPD). Although Hannah’s official diagnosis with BPD was recent, she has been on a healing journey through meditation and mindfulness practices and other therapies for several years.
Borderline Personality Disorder: The Road to Recovery (Debbie DeMarco Bennett)
Debbie DeMarco Bennett grew up in a difficult home situation and moved to foster care as a teen. She went through her own Hell, and chose to go back, to help those who live there. For Debbie, recovery started with a diagnosis.
Breaking the Silence on Borderline Personality Disorder (Solo)
In this short solo episode, Matana outlines the coming episodes dedicated to discussing Borderline Personality Disorder with those affected by it. From being diagnoses to determining the elusive diagnosis, this crippling disorder causes shame, panic and few known treatment options. The stigma is real, but those suffering need not be alone. Join us in upcoming episodes and hear firsthand how those affected are determined to persevere.
The Teen Suicide Prevention Society (Jackie Simmons)
Within the next 24 hours, more than 3,000 teenagers in the United States will attempt to take their own lives. Seventeen of them will succeed. Jackie Simmons’ daughter, Stephanie, shared that statistic when delivering a speech which would change lives and inspire teens to come together with Stephanie’s sisters and to create, “The Teen Suicide Prevention Society.”
Being the Parent of a Child Battling Mental Illness (Avremi Gourarie)
On December 22, 2020, 24 year old Yocheved Gourarie took her own life. Yocheved was a kind and thoughtful person. Loved by all. She was a top student, always maintaining perfect grades in school and at the time of her passing, was in the process of applying to PHD nursing programs. Posthumously, the family learned that she was accepted at Columbia University in their DNP program on track to becoming a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner. Unfortunately, her battle with mental illness raged, and she succumbed to it, not having fulfilled her dreams.
Searching for God in the Garbage (Bracha Goetz)
Bracha Goetz walks us through her journey to finding purpose in her life. Her search began at age 12 when she started wondering what the point of anything was and feeling very empty inside. She thought there must be more to life than what those around her do and expected her to do. She began her struggle with food, experimented with drugs and sought out religions and philosophical schools of thought.
The Power of Pressing Pause (Solo)
Silence has been proven to be important for success. In the silence, the issues we are hiding from come up, and we have to deal with them. If we continue to pretend they don’t exist, we will never grow. We also need time to rest, to recharge, and to reflect on who we are and what we are doing and why. We need time to remember what will feed our souls. Rather than getting caught up in the hurricane of life and doing what we’re told, stop. Think. What do you actually want to do?