A psychiatric involuntary commitment can be a very scary time for the loved ones of the person being committed. Whether you’re the person who made the call to initiate the commitment process or you’re providing support for the person in treatment, it can be hard to know how to feel. When a person who is […]

In the new documentary, “Hemingway: A Film by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick”, Hemingway’s son Patrick discusses his early struggles with mental illness including a bout of psychosis. Patrick recalled being placed briefly in an institution where he was treated for schizophrenia with electroshock therapy. Though his psychotic episode seems to have been isolated, his […]

Imagine yourself as a psychologist. One day, a woman walks into your office and tells you she’s pretty sure she’s actually dead. She tells you her organs don’t exist and that her bones are beginning to decompose. While you can see her before you in the flesh and want to reassure her that she’s as […]

Quiet Minds West Virginia is excited to announce that it will soon be continuing the conversation that started with this blog by venturing into the world of podcasting. Our brand-new podcast, “Let’s Talk About Psychosis” is currently in production and will soon be available to listen to through this website and other outlets. Podcasts hosts […]

Have you ever walked into a big warehouse store and immediately felt overwhelmed? I sometimes feel frozen in these places. There’s so much to look at. So many colors and details. It’s too much! I forget what I came in to buy and I want to leave as soon as I get what I came […]

Many of us are very grateful for the way our mental health medications help us to feel better. I can tell you from experience that even a mild antidepressant can get you feeling like yourself again when things once seemed hopeless and nothing else is working. But how do these drugs work their magic on […]

A few months back, we blogged about a British study focusing on COVID-19 patients that had experienced psychosis. Now, psychiatrists on this side of the pond are taking a look at Americans who have beat COVID-19 but are just beginning to experience symptoms of psychosis. Across the country, doctors are reporting that a small number […]

The state of California has made a major move to help individuals struggling with their mental health. Late last year, state governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation that will set up a certification process for mental health peer counseling. This means that individuals living with a mental health condition will help others like them who are […]

What would it be like to live with not just one schizophrenic in the family, but six of them? That’s the question that faced the Galvin Family in the new non-fiction book, Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family by Robert Kolker. Six of the Galvin’s 12 children – all born between […]

I always knew my sister-in-law was smart. Years before she introduced me to her brother (who became my husband. See? Told you she was smart!), she would spend hours on end studying in our college dorm room. I knew she had a passion for psychology, but when she told me her post-grad studies would focus […]