Written by people living it
Personal accounts of anxiety, panic attacks, insomnia, depression, ADHD and everything around them. No advice, no diagnosis — just what happened, and what it took.
Browse by subject
Lived something like this? You can share your story →
Loving someone who’s struggling, without trying to fix them
This one isn’t about my own mental health. It’s about someone else’s, and what it’s like standing next to it. […]
Diagnosed at 41, and it explained more than I expected
For most of my adult life I assumed I was just bad at being a grown-up. Specifically, bad at the […]
The flat months
For a long time I didn’t think what I had qualified as depression, because none of it looked like the […]
The 3 a.m. club
Falling asleep was never my problem. Staying asleep — that’s where it all goes wrong. Out cold by 11. Wide […]
I thought something was seriously wrong
First one happened on the 46 bus, if the exact number matters to anyone but me. Ordinary Tuesday. I wasn’t […]
Part 7 — Moving Forward
For a while, I believed that understanding anxiety would be enough. If I could learn what it was, understand where […]
Part 6 — The Therapy I Didn’t Believe In
My wife was the person who finally pushed me toward something I had been resisting: psychotherapy. At the time, therapy […]
Part 5 — I Can Handle This On My Own
Once I finally had words for what was happening to me, I made what felt like a very reasonable decision. […]
Part 4 — When Home Became My Only Safe Place
After those first panic attacks, the next fifteen days were very simple. I didn’t leave the house. I didn’t go […]
A note on every story here: these are individual personal experiences, not medical advice. What worked for one person may not work for you, and nothing on this page replaces consultation with a qualified professional. Full notice.
Have a story of your own?
You don’t need to write well, and it doesn’t need an ending. Submissions are read by a moderator before publication, and you choose the name that appears on it.