From “Girl, Interrupted” to “Girl in Pieces”: What I learned from reading three books about teen mental illness
How books on teens with mental illness help destigmatize and educate us.
Arts & Culture
Latest in Arts & Culture
‘The Factory of Maladies’: A Chilling First-Hand Account of Life in a Psych Ward
"The Factory of Maladies,” a memoir by Deborah Hartung, is a gripping account of being locked up in a San Francisco psychiatric ward.
Music Therapy in Puerto Rico Helps Youth Recover from Hurricane Trauma
Music therapy has helped children in the archipelago recover from natural disasters. But the work needs more support.
In Our Future, We Are Free: The Movement to Dismantle Youth Prisons in America
Over the past 20 years, one state after another has shuttered its youth prisons and stopped prosecuting kids as adults, slashing the number of children locked in cages by a stunning 75%. This new book tells the story of how a coalition of parents, activists, and prison officials brought a destructive institution to its knees.
‘How Are We Today’ Brings Conversations About Mental Health to the Family Living Room
Families and cartoon characters discuss mental health in a new PBS Kids show from Tyler Coe.
Michigan’s LGBTQ+ student clubs create affirming spaces inside public schools
Such alliances can provide LGBTQ+ students safe, welcoming places to connect
The ICE Chronicles: A Journey to the Twilight Zone
Introducing a new occasional series on ICE and mental health from MindSite News.
Migrant children struggle to express themselves in words. Enter art and play
Art and play therapy is helping migrant children in Mexico City process complex trauma.
Docile: Memoirs of a Not-So-Perfect Asian Girl
Hyeseung Song tackles head on the expectations she faced growing up and the journey she had to make to find her self-worth.
American Madness: Fighting for Patients in a Broken Mental Health System
As a psychoanalyst, Alice Feller had a close-up view of the deterioration of mental health care in California. Her new book seeks to change that.
The Connection Cure: Exploring the Physical and Mental Health Benefits of Movement, Nature, Art, Service and Belonging
More physicians are doing“social prescribing” to help their patients reap the physical and mental health gains from art and nature therapy, movement, volunteering and community ties.
“How Not to Kill Yourself”: A Writer’s Advice
Author Clancy Martin writes about his own struggles with attempted suicide and includes his best reframing advice-- live another day, and then another.
Watching Too Much True Crime TV Can Be Bad for Your Mental Health, Experts Say
Some women who consume hours of true crime shows and podcasts have reported suffering from hypervigilance or a reluctance to leave the house.
The Night Parade: A genre-bending memoir that helps reshape the cultural narrative on bipolar illness and grief
Jami Nakamura Lin has written a rich, exquisitely illustrated memoir that expands the cultural narrative on mental illness and grief.
How Allen Ginsberg’s Poems About Madness Helped Change Psychiatry: An Interview with Biographer Dr. Stevan Weine
Dr. Stevan Weine talks about his recent book on how poet Allen Ginsberg's writings helped change psychiatry for the better.
As ‘Succession’ Heads Toward the Emmys, Our Writer Looks Back at a Master Class in Dysfunctional Family Dynamics
The popular HBO series, which ended in 2023, examined intergenerational trauma along with the worst kind of horrible bosses and conniving colleagues.
The Mind and The Moon: A Review
What role should medications play in the treatment of psychosis and other types of severe mental illness?
Does “Shrinking” Have Any Real-Life Therapists? Nah, They’re Just Playing Them Onscreen
The comedy series "Shrinking" is a runaway hit, but many psychologists say its message about therapy is fatally flawed.
Twenty-five Years On, Author Hua Hsu Finds Solace in Writing About a College Friend’s Senseless Death
For Hsu, writing the memoir didn't diminish his grief, but it did allow him to convey how much his friend mattered and to offer him the ultimate honor: staying true.
Hua Hsu’s Tender Elegy to a Lost Friend Resonates
The memoir Stay True is a powerful tribute to a friendship cut short by tragedy and to writing as a tool for survival.
Surviving the Tiger Pit: How a Journalist’s Family Story Pushed Her to Report on a Failed Mental Health System
In a moving memoir, journalist Meg Kissinger tells the story of her own family's struggles with mental illness, and how those experiences fueled her passion to be an investigative reporter and storyteller.
Revisiting #DisabledJoy Five Years Later: How a Hashtag of Pride Continues to Resonate
This festive hashtag has become the go-to place for disabled people to affirm and celebrate their lives.
‘The Factory of Maladies’: A Chilling First-Hand Account of Life in a Psych Ward
"The Factory of Maladies,” a memoir by Deborah Hartung, is a gripping account of being locked up in a San Francisco psychiatric ward.
Music Therapy in Puerto Rico Helps Youth Recover from Hurricane Trauma
Music therapy has helped children in the archipelago recover from natural disasters. But the work needs more support.
In Our Future, We Are Free: The Movement to Dismantle Youth Prisons in America
Over the past 20 years, one state after another has shuttered its youth prisons and stopped prosecuting kids as adults, slashing the number of children locked in cages by a stunning 75%. This new book tells the story of how a coalition of parents, activists, and prison officials brought a destructive institution to its knees.
‘How Are We Today’ Brings Conversations About Mental Health to the Family Living Room
Families and cartoon characters discuss mental health in a new PBS Kids show from Tyler Coe.
Michigan’s LGBTQ+ student clubs create affirming spaces inside public schools
Such alliances can provide LGBTQ+ students safe, welcoming places to connect
The ICE Chronicles: A Journey to the Twilight Zone
Introducing a new occasional series on ICE and mental health from MindSite News.
Migrant children struggle to express themselves in words. Enter art and play
Art and play therapy is helping migrant children in Mexico City process complex trauma.
Docile: Memoirs of a Not-So-Perfect Asian Girl
Hyeseung Song tackles head on the expectations she faced growing up and the journey she had to make to find her self-worth.
American Madness: Fighting for Patients in a Broken Mental Health System
As a psychoanalyst, Alice Feller had a close-up view of the deterioration of mental health care in California. Her new book seeks to change that.
The Connection Cure: Exploring the Physical and Mental Health Benefits of Movement, Nature, Art, Service and Belonging
More physicians are doing“social prescribing” to help their patients reap the physical and mental health gains from art and nature therapy, movement, volunteering and community ties.
“How Not to Kill Yourself”: A Writer’s Advice
Author Clancy Martin writes about his own struggles with attempted suicide and includes his best reframing advice-- live another day, and then another.
Watching Too Much True Crime TV Can Be Bad for Your Mental Health, Experts Say
Some women who consume hours of true crime shows and podcasts have reported suffering from hypervigilance or a reluctance to leave the house.
The Night Parade: A genre-bending memoir that helps reshape the cultural narrative on bipolar illness and grief
Jami Nakamura Lin has written a rich, exquisitely illustrated memoir that expands the cultural narrative on mental illness and grief.
How Allen Ginsberg’s Poems About Madness Helped Change Psychiatry: An Interview with Biographer Dr. Stevan Weine
Dr. Stevan Weine talks about his recent book on how poet Allen Ginsberg's writings helped change psychiatry for the better.
As ‘Succession’ Heads Toward the Emmys, Our Writer Looks Back at a Master Class in Dysfunctional Family Dynamics
The popular HBO series, which ended in 2023, examined intergenerational trauma along with the worst kind of horrible bosses and conniving colleagues.
The Mind and The Moon: A Review
What role should medications play in the treatment of psychosis and other types of severe mental illness?
Does “Shrinking” Have Any Real-Life Therapists? Nah, They’re Just Playing Them Onscreen
The comedy series "Shrinking" is a runaway hit, but many psychologists say its message about therapy is fatally flawed.
Twenty-five Years On, Author Hua Hsu Finds Solace in Writing About a College Friend’s Senseless Death
For Hsu, writing the memoir didn't diminish his grief, but it did allow him to convey how much his friend mattered and to offer him the ultimate honor: staying true.
Hua Hsu’s Tender Elegy to a Lost Friend Resonates
The memoir Stay True is a powerful tribute to a friendship cut short by tragedy and to writing as a tool for survival.
Surviving the Tiger Pit: How a Journalist’s Family Story Pushed Her to Report on a Failed Mental Health System
In a moving memoir, journalist Meg Kissinger tells the story of her own family's struggles with mental illness, and how those experiences fueled her passion to be an investigative reporter and storyteller.
Revisiting #DisabledJoy Five Years Later: How a Hashtag of Pride Continues to Resonate
This festive hashtag has become the go-to place for disabled people to affirm and celebrate their lives.
