City Calls on Philadelphia to Take Online Pledge to “Check in” on those who Have the Holiday Blues

2017-12-12T04:20:21-05:00December 12th, 2017|Holidays, Stress|

PHILADELPHIA – Starting today and throughout the holiday season, the city’s behavioral health department will be calling on Philadelphians to take a quick online pledge to “check in” on family and friends who are suffering from the holiday blues for reasons that range from losing a loved one to losing a job. Anyone can take the pledge, which encourages individuals to also be mindful of their own holiday wellness, at https://www.dbhids2021.wpengine.com/en/mind-your-holidays through January 1, 2018. While the holiday season can be a joyous time of celebration, cheer and family fun [...]

Optimism: An Awesome Antidote to Stress

2021-01-02T20:39:10-05:00December 1st, 2017|Anxiety, Self-Help, Stress|

Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms: to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way. Victor Frankl Have you noticed those upbeat people in your environment who never seem to let anything get them down? They seem to manage life’s stresses and challenges with a smile on their face and a skip in their step. No matter what lemons life seems to throw at them, they are still able to make lemonade. What is [...]

How My Brother’s Mental Illness Affected Me

2021-07-31T13:04:09-04:00November 15th, 2017|Lived Experience, Mental Health, Training|

By Jeff Shair, Mental Health Advocate My brother Paul was diagnosed with schizophrenia, like myself. Yet because Paul was 10 years older than me, the illness was viewed quite differently when his symptoms first appeared. That was back in the early 1960’s. In those days, some psychiatrists believed that the disease was caused by the individual having a weak will. For instance, when my parents took me to Paul’s psychiatrist at 9-years-old, a time during which I was struggling emotionally, they asked the doctor in front of me “Will Jeff [...]

Becoming Conscious of Social Media’s Influence

2021-01-02T20:11:03-05:00October 3rd, 2017|Family & Youth|

When I was bored, I would click on Facebook. When I felt lonely, I would click on Instagram. When I was stuck even in the smallest time frames, I would go on social media scrolling through posts and news. When I realized I spent an average of three hours per day on my phone on social media, I knew something had to change. 

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