Have you considered what happens during a mental health crisis when you call the police? Recently one of my neighbors tried to enter my apartment without my permission. I quickly slammed the door and told him to go away. He stood outside my door talking nonsense, so I told him, "Go away or I will call the police." That did the trick. However, it made me think about how police encounters with individuals with mental illness can turn tragic (Handling Police Encounters with People with Mental Illnesses). How do we call the police for someone in a mental health crisis who is a danger to him/herself or others in a way that the encounter proceeds as safely as possible?

Do you know there are herbal remedies for anxiety? I have an extremely annoying neighbor. He was up all night laughing last night, which means I didn't get any sleep. This has been going on for weeks. Talking to him hasn't done any good. My anger and annoyance, fueled by sleep deprivation, are rapidly approaching homicidal ideation. Fortunately, there are three herbal remedies I know that help ease the raging anxiety.

The lack of motivation that can be caused by depression and other mental illnesses can be debilitating. There are some things that are so important they must be done as soon as possible. But for those who battle depression, the lack of motivation can be an enemy that seems insurmountable at times (Depression Can Drain You of Your Will to Live). Here's what to do when depression causes a lack of motivation.

Does the news trigger your mental illness symptoms? I guess you could say early on there were signs I was going to be a reporter when I grew up--I read the newspaper as soon as I learned to read. Then, as today, there were some very disturbing things going on. I remember having a nightmare about the Neighborhood of Make-Believe being bombed when Reagan ordered the bombing of Libya. I never outgrew this, either--I am currently coping with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) flashbacks caused by the coverage of a high-profile rape case and a disgusting child abuse case. It made me wonder--what can I do when the news triggers my mental illness symptoms? Here are three ideas.

Posttraumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, is an anxiety disorder that develops as a result of a traumatic event. According to Dr. Aphrodite Matsakis, PTSD occurs in 2% of those exposed to an accident, 25 -33% of those exposed to a community disaster, 25% of those who experience traumatic death of a friend or loved one, 30% of Vietnam veterans, 65% of those assaulted, 84% of battered women, and 35-92% of rape victims. Flashbacks are a common symptom of PTSD. Here's to use coping skills to fight the flashback symptom of PTSD.

Recently, I remembered the time I was kicked off a mission trip to Mexico because of my "demonic influence" (depression). It's a wound that has not yet fully healed, largely because it altered my career path (I was going to become a missionary until my diagnosis became a big red flag). Many christians believe three lies about mental illness.

Spirituality can be vital to recovery from mental illness. But, like many things, spirituality and mental illness is a double-edged sword. While belief in a Higher Power can aid mental illness recovery, unhealthy spiritual beliefs can make our mental illness symptoms worse. But what are some warning signs of unhealthy spirituality? How do we know if we have what one writer called "toxic faith?"

I was in college when Columbine happened and the university grew concerned that one of their students with mental illness might decide to copycat the shooting. So they treated me to a no-knock, no-warrant search of my dorm room out of concern I might become violent--even though I had no history of violence and no warning signs. The director of the counseling center, my therapist and even the dean said I was no threat, and I was allowed to graduate, even though I was kicked out of the dorm. The university was worried about me--or more accurately, about my conduct--because I was a mental health consumer. But are people with mental illness more violent than people without mental illness?

Some years ago, the notion of peer support for the mentally ill became an important component of mental health recovery. The mental health community has embraced peer support as crucial to mental health recovery but how valuable is it?

It's the opportunity of a lifetime. I'm in the process of raising money for a mission trip to Kenya. There are several obstacles, but I'm guardedly optimistic (How Not to Expect Too Much From Yourself). This opportunity--and the challenge that comes with it--made me think about healthy goals and reasonable expectations when recovering from mental illness. I've come to three conclusions.