A Few Of My Favorite Things

I love writing about my journey, my condition, my thoughts on mental health, and health in general. But I also utilize a lot of resources, which deserve credit. So today, I thought I'd write about a few of my favorite resources, namely, blogs, and organizations. The format of this blog will be a bit different, but I really hope that it gives my readers some options that they find helpful as well. Without further adieu, here are a few of my favorite things:

Blogs: 

• Cooking For Change: This blog is written by my friend Ashley, who I originally met through twitter. It focuses on, in her own words, "demolishing illness with a gluten free diet". Ashley's blog shares recipes, along with the reason behind why she cooks what she does, as it relates to health. The "about me" section on her blog provides information about Ashley and the blog overall - the story behind her illness and how she came to write about Cooking for Change. What's especially awesome about Ashley's blog is that she uses recipes with actual, normal ingredients, that we'd have in our fridge or pantry, not things that you have to pay $20 for in a specialty store that you can't ever imagine using again. So they're recipes you actually want to, and can, use on a regular basis. And, they're good for helping with illness. That's pretty tough to be, even for a very amateur cook like myself. 

• Luck Fupus: As you may have guessed, this blog addresses the topic of Lupus. It's written by my friend Marla, who I've known since I was about seven years old or so. Marla has been diagnosed with Lupus, along with several other illnesses, which she discusses in her blogs. Lupus, like mental health conditions, is (often) an "invisible illness", in that it causes uninformed people say silly things like "you're not sick, you look fine" and other such ridiculousness. Marla writes about a wide variety of topics related to illness and just life in general, much of the time using humor, which is so refreshing for people like me who often try to find something to laugh about in otherwise sh*ty situations.... such as having a life long condition that there's not a cure for. Marla is honestly one of the most awesome people I've ever met, and just for that, check out her blog! 

And I promise, I'm not just promoting these blogs because they happen to be written by friends - in fact I didn't even know Ashley until we connected because of our mutual involvement in mental health awareness. I just have pretty amazing friends who inspire me on a regular basis and I want to share their inspiring work with my readers.

Organizations/Advocacy:

• Mental Health America:  This site centers around advocacy and education. They provide ways in which people can take action, as well as information about what is going on in legislation as it pertains to mental health. 

• NAMI: The National Alliance on Mental Illness offers a wide range of information on mental health, including advocacy information, education, and a peer support center. There are local chapters around the country, and these are a great way to get involved, as well as resources for local events and programs.

• DBSA: Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance is a chapter-based, peer support organization. It also offers training opportunities for those wanting to become peer counselors, as well as wellness tools, information on mental health conditions, research study results, and advocacy.  

• Partners for Mental Health:  This Canadian organization is possibly the best I've found for mental health advocacy and awareness. They run numerous campaigns, often organized by volunteers, to teach communities about mental health, and work on erasing the stigma that so often accompanies it. Furthermore, they make their messages fresh, and even fun - something that's tough to come by in the mental health world. Their current campaign is "Not Myself Today", which is centered on mental health in the work place. I actually had the opportunity to do a guest blog for this, which in a great example of synchronicity, is featured on Ashley's blog (discussed above). 

This will most likely be a "Part 1" blog, as there are so many other resources I'd like to share - apps, for instance. I'm sure I'll come up with other websites, and blogs, and organizations, and have to revisit this topic. For now, I hope you'll take a look at these sites and that they are able to help you. Happy browsing!