Valarie J Ward

If you or a loved one are struggling to manage your mental health, there are many resources available to get you feeling better. Depending on the diagnosis, you and your care team might consider lifestyle changes, therapy, and/or medication.
However, medication for your mental illness can be complicated. Some medications come with unfortunate side effects that leave one wondering whether they’re worth taking. Many medications won’t work for your particular genome, which makes the process of f...

Something strange happened to me this morning: I saw a headline about Jordan Peterson, and I actually (for once) agreed with him. He talked in his Irish Times interview (towards the end; the rest of the article mostly just says he’s ‘not that bad’) about the usefulness of self-help books:
‘Because I’m a clinical psychologist I have a soft spot in my heart for self-help books. They’re often quite helpful to people, and I think about them as introductory ethical philosophy. You know, academic a...

If you’re suffering with poor mental health, or know someone who is, you’re not alone. The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) reports that 1 in 5 adults and 1 in 6 children in the U.S. experience a mental health disorder or mental illness each year.

It’s also important to remember that you can get better with the right treatment plan. While there is no “cure” for most mental illnesses, many people are able to make a successful recovery.

We’ve put together some resources from people wh...

Abuse, neglect, and exposure to unhealthy conditions in the home are the reality for too many of our children. And too often, the adults in their lives respond with unhelpful diagnoses, therapy that addresses the behavior instead of the root, and ineffective support which leaves them vulnerable to all manner of future problems.
Here’s a little more about the problem of child trauma in the United States and what we can do about it.
Types of Trauma
Abuse and Neglect
According to the National Ch...

The poorest citizens in our country, often living in impoverished communities, are plagued by mental illnesses including substance abuse. We often see this as a problem that begins with an addiction that ruins a person’s finances and leads to poor mental health.
However, living in an impoverished area can expose a person to constantly stressful situations that can lead to the onset of PTSD and an increased risk of substance abuse. Those living in poverty can sometimes feel trapped in this cyc...

Capitalism and Mental Illness
The current state of capitalism is in turmoil, according to independent op-eds, political pundits, and even the United Nations; a group of scientists has recently warned the UN that capitalism will fail because it focuses on short-term profits, not long-term benefits.
Mental illnesses, including addiction, exemplify this problem. The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) quantifies some of our challenges:
9.8 million adults in the US “experiences a serious m...

U.S. veterans have prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice – losing their lives in the defense of our country. While this dedication should be lauded, too many veterans are coming back to lives of mental anguish and despair. And too often, our veterans are experiencing mental illness, abusing substances, and even taking their lives when they return from abroad.
How many veterans are affected by mental disorders, including addiction? What are the consequences of a lack of treatment in these ar...

When Sigmund Freud changed the field of psychology in the early 1900s, he introduced the stereotypical relationship between patient and “shrink”: the patient lies on his back on a couch or bed while the therapist listens, takes notes, and then tells the patient how all their problems stem back to mom and dad.
It’s an oversimplified view of what happens in therapy, but Freud–for better or worse–changed much of what we know about how to raise our children, and how to heal from the traumas of ou...

When recovering from a substance use disorder, there are triggers hiding behind every corner–scents, sounds, locations, people, holidays, and perhaps even your own cell phone.
Research about whether social media or the Internet are a type of behavioral addiction provides mixed results. Social media use is associated with depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem–but it can be difficult to tell whether this is because those with poor mental health are more likely to turn to social media for val...

If you’ve been waiting for a sign to take a vacation, here it is!
For those working in “helper” professions like mental health, substance abuse, and general healthcare, it’s easy to feel the emotional toll of giving all of our time and energy to helping other people. This compounds when we have obligations with friends, family, and around the home; when is it time to help the helpers?
These feelings can often lead to burnout or its younger sister, compassion fatigue. One of the best ways to f...

How early is too early to start talking to your children about substance use and abuse? It’s probably earlier than you think; a research review from the journal Alcohol and Alcoholism found that 9 in 10 European adolescents had their first drink before the age of 15. Many parents seem to think it’s OK for kids to try a sip of alcohol early, but studies show that the earlier a child starts using alcohol or cannabis, the more likely they are to develop a substance abuse disorder later in life.
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Did you know that 9 in 10 European adolescents started drinking before the age of 15? Children start drinking earlier than you might think. It’s important to note that there are no exceptions to North Carolina’s underage drinking policy; that is, it’s not even OK for you to give your kids a sip of alcohol before their twenty-first birthday.
In addition to the legal risks, studies show that children who start using alcohol early are at a heightened risk for developing Alcohol Use Disorder. In ...

Habits are important
Abraham Maslow lists “homeostasis” (consistency in your life) as a fundamental human need in his hierarchy of human needs
In episode one of her podcast, “Happier”, Gretchen Rubin talks about the one-coin loophole. Just as we make wealth one coin at a time, we build habits one day at a time, and we need to be consistent.
November is National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), where participants aim to write 50,000 words in one month. The way you win? By writing every single ...

Sorry to disappoint you, but if you didn’t catch the sarcasm in the headline of this article, you’ve been clickbaited.
Why? Because I need to talk to the people who read these articles, and the people who write them.
There is no one-size-fits-all cure to your mental health condition. (If there were, I, with my BA in English, would certainly not have it.) Medication helps some people. Talk therapy helps others. Self-therapy can be helpful, too.
And for some people, simple changes to environmen...