Angela Grey's Blog, page 8

Memoir Writing for Mental Health Overview

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I’ve written about journaling for mental health before; but this time let’s go over memoir writing in long format, possibly book style. I received an email and a Twitter DM about how to start a memoir. Here are some tips, prior to starting, during the writing phase, and after you finish.

Identify a strong opening pointFigure out you central hook relatable to readersStructure your memoir to maximize readabilityIncorporate dialogue and pacing to enhance intimacyApproach your writing with honesty and truthfulnessIdentify a strong closing point Build a successful author platformGet an agent’s attention vs. Get published 

First, you need to determine what theme or time frame the memoir will span such as your whole life, childhood and teen years, fears and courage, friendships, sibling rivalry, dance or theater, embarrassment, poverty, sexual trauma, music or literary influences, major historical event, military, cultural heritage, married life, artist vs. connoisseur, health scare in family, life miracles, career, affluence, pets life and death, natural disasters, life values, passions, sporting life, grudges and forgiveness, travel writing, grandkids, spirituality, bucket list, or retirement years. You’ll determine this in order to find a strong opening point.

When figuring out your central hook that is relatable to your future readers you’ll want to take into consideration that your memoir shouldn’t be one long diary or journal entry, instead it’s a well-crafted story about a crucial, often exceptionally difficult, time in your life. For example, I wrote one book about my childhood, another about my teen years, and a different one about my mental health disability.

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Then you’ll want to structure your writing to maximize readability. During NaNoWriMo which is National Novel Writing Month that happens every November, the writers identify themselves as pantsers (flying by the seat of one’s pants), planners (outlining extensively prior to beginning), or a hybrid plantser. In writing mine, I chose to be a pantser and let it flow a little more naturally. However, first time writers may want to have a roadmap of sorts, so the outline is a good security tool. I suggest Writer’s Block software which allows you to block out different timeframes or maybe working chapters then it formats it into an outline for you, the writer. There are other writing software out there such as Scrivener, Dabble, Novlr, Novelpad, Kahana, InkStacks, Campfire, and Save the Cat which is for iPad. Some are compatible with certain editing software such as Grammarly or ProWritingAid.

Incorporate dialogue and pacing to enhance intimacy with your reader. I’ve found it best to write the dialogue then use the text to speech function in word to hear the pacing and find out if the dialogue or writing comes across as choppy or not. And with a memoir you want to approach your writing with honesty and truthfulness for integrity of the memoir itself. You want to give your niche audience what they came for which is your accurate story. Then identify a strong closing point, possibly even a hook to the next chapter in another memoir with an altogether different timeframe. For example, if you’re writing about your childhood, give a teaser to your next book which may be about your teen years.

Personally, I use a book template in Microsoft Word alongside Writer’s Block and incorporating both Grammarly and ProWritingAid. Since, I know beforehand that I’ll be self-publishing, as well as the company which I’ll be working with to get my writing into book format, I use one of KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) templates that come in a number of sizes. You can always reformat the layout in Word to make a pdf or submission manuscript, if you choose to go the traditional publishing route, or if you’re submitting to a literary agent.

Read your work thoroughly, listen to it with text to speech function, reflect on what you wrote, and then revise it by cutting unnecessary explanations for vibrant passages, and getting to the heart of the matter: the reason you wrote it. Clarify the point of the story which is your conclusion. Go back to your synopsis or pull a quote from your writing and come up with a title.

When you’re done writing, and thoroughly self-editing then sending it out to an editor, and you’re self-publishing, there’s a cover creator tool on the KDP website. I prefer to work with SelfPubBookCovers which has premade covers that you edit yourself for anywhere between $69-$269.00. They also do custom covers as well for somewhere around $50-$100 more. I’ve chosen both cover only and created my back copy myself with the cover creator tool as well as front and back cover which is done nicely. Now that you’ve assembled your compelling narrative into book format, you can treasure your heirloom that upcoming generations can devour to learn about your legacy.

After or even during your writing, you’ll want to develop an author platform with reading groups, organizations like the National Association of Memoir Writers, and the socials (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, or YouTube) if you’re going to make videos of interview points or for marketing. It’s through Twitter and Goodreads that I find my beta readers. Search #WritingCommunity in Twitter for likeminded souls penning their thoughts in equally agonizing baby steps. Like I mentioned above, if you’re submitting to a publisher or literary agent, you’ll want to do that before you think about self-publishing, which can be an agonizing wait in itself.

Lastly, I titled this post an overview because I’ll post another one that is geared more for the pulp of the matter, the writing alone. I just wanted to respond to the question about how to write and publish a memoir in paperback, hardcover, or ebook form. Note: ACX-Audible has cost-effective ways to get your memoir on audiobook, too. Mine were around $800. Good luck in your writing!

Enjoyed this post? Why not check out my YA novels about mental illness, memoir writing, or even my Native American mystery series on Amazon, or follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Goodreads, LinkedIn, Bookbub , BookSprout, or AllAuthor.

Book review: Clean by Amy Reed

Simon Pulse, 2011

Clean by Amy Reed

This YA novel is told with a five-person narrative in addition to the patients’ detailed personal essays and compelling substance abuse questionnaires. While I both like to read and write from alternate viewpoints, I was concerned five would be too much but then remembered how much I enjoyed The Poisonwood Bible. That was also five perspectives being the mother and the four daughters caught up in the Belgian Congo in 1959. Well besides both being five viewpoints, they couldn’t be any more different. These five patients in a rehab center come together not on their own accord but end up enhancing the lives of the other characters, if only for a brief moment in time.

Olivia, Kelly, Christopher, Jason, and Eva have hit the rock bottom of addiction. The individual voices were unique, honest and intriguing and portrayed their distinct frame of minds as they confronted their pasts amidst forced introspection in this new group of strangers. The difficult, often gut-wrenching concepts of the danger of drugs and the necessity of help were well written, albeit occasionally choppy because of the format. But it was heartening to know that there is hope out there, so you don’t have to be alone once they stopped resisting treatment as is common with teens.

All in all, the characters were relatable in this fast-moving story about hope and guidance despite bad backgrounds and experiences. It was reminiscent of the 1985 teen movie, The Breakfast Club as to how the five teens were thrown together, not knowing they needed one another and ultimately touched each other’s lives amidst the harrowing nature of life’s circumstances and sometimes obstacles.

Until my next post, why not check out my YA novels about mental illness, my memoirs, or Native American mystery series on Amazon, or follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Goodreads, LinkedIn, Bookbub , or AllAuthor.

Book review: When We Collided by Emery Lord

Bloomsbury, 2016

In this intensely romantic and emotional rollercoaster of a story, Vivi is the type of girl who wants to live her life to the fullest and to record her passage through life, but she has a disease: bipolar disorder. Although she wants to live, the treatment leaves her to be miserable and so she stops taking her medications. Jonah is a boy who lost his father to a heart attack. He and his two older brothers have to take care of the house and their three little brothers. Jonah doesn’t really get to experience everything other kids his age do while Vivi does whatever she possibly can. Throughout the novel, the two characters learn a lot from each other and learn to engage in a lot of new things they usually wouldn’t.

This YA novel was filled with many moments of suspense and joy as it brought out so many different perceptions of each character and overall was just a very exciting read as its storyline is magnificent with its appreciated details that take you into Vivi and Jonah’s world. This well-written experience about accepting yourself and helping others while continuing to live on even though things might not be at their best right now and taking life rain and shine. It’s about how sometimes even our scars can help others and give a little bit of light to those we meet. This book shows how lives can be messy but beautiful while still leaving an impact on so many others, too.

Enjoyed this post? Why not check out my YA novels about mental illness or Native American mystery series on Amazon, or follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Goodreads, LinkedIn, Bookbub , or AllAuthor.

What Is Required to Get a Mental Health Diagnosis?

Usually, as happened with me, the first step is an appointment with your general practitioner (GP) or family practice physician who looks to rule out physical conditions and instead looks for some generalized behaviors and symptoms that can help to determine whether it is time to investigate further and get a diagnosis from a professional such as a psychiatrist.

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According to the Mayo Clinic, mental symptoms your GP looks for include:

ConfusionMemory lossCognitive or learning dysfunctionExtreme changes in moodDepressionManiaIncreased or excessive anxietyAnger, aggression, or outburstsHallucinationsSuicidal thoughtsDelusionsObsessionsCompulsions

There are also behavior changes that a family member’s input may aid in the diagnosis such as:

Social withdrawalSecrecy or hiding other behaviorsSubstance use or abuseHyperactivityInability to keep up or perform typically in work, school, or other personal responsibilitiesPersistent disobedienceChanges in sleepingEating pattern changesExtreme risk-taking behaviors

Mental health disorders are common and very treatable. According to Mental Health America, about 1 in 5 American adults and up to 20% of children will have a diagnosable mental health disorder in a year. Most often, the mental illness worsens if left untreated, and can lead to co-occurring conditions like addiction (drug and alcohol abuse) and physical discomfort (i.e., headaches, gastrointestinal issues, or aches and pains).

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Once you receive the diagnosis, it’s time to form your mental health care team. For example, certain people prefer individual treatment with a psychiatrist and a psychologist while other may want to add a support group to the mix. Family is encouraged to help keep you geared toward your treatment plan whether that’s medication or counseling therapy. Then the treatment team monitors you for a specified length of time to discern whether the diagnosis is accurate or was temporary due to an event such as a death of a loved one or a chronic illness.

Amazon.com: Angela Ellen Grey: Books, Biography, Blog, Audiobooks, Kindle(opens in a new tab)

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Book review for Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Harper Perennial, 2008, c1990

I first read this book in a University of Minnesota class for continuing education students and was happily surprised. This book helps you become a better person. Mihaly challenges you to get out of the lull that you droll through every day and to see the “moment” for what it really is: a poignant opportunity to improve. And on top of that, once we get into the habit of self-challenging and achieving goals, then the process becomes seamless and almost “Flow’s” naturally. This book gave some insights on how to cultivate the flow experience. It is not exactly a how-to book, but it does give some suggestions.

source: Ethan Banks via Pexels

Flow is talked about as a tool to enrich lives and make the most out of work-life, free time, or learning, which is why it was a necessary read for returning college students not used to the rigorous studies that lay ahead of them. This state of “flow,” or optimal experience—a state that is hard to describe but basically encompasses measured, precise concentration on an intellectually or physically satisfying task.

It is very comfortable to read and not too scientific and the author tries to stay objective. I laughed a few times in a kind of it’s funny because it’s true sort of way. The only downside of the book I would mention again is that it isn’t a how-to book, I got so excited by the notion of flow and optimal experience I wanted a formula but that is almost impossible because of the fluid nature of being in flow and everyone’s individual preferences, goals, and abilities.

Enjoyed this post? Why not check out my YA novels about mental illness, memoir writing, or Native American mystery series on Amazon, or follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Goodreads, LinkedIn, Bookbub , BookSprout, or AllAuthor.

My Reason for Starting This Blog

I started this blog to reach out and connect to people with similar challenges in a healthy and positive way. The blog has personal history, ideas on lessening the severity of some symptoms, insight, goals, and therapies for those with similar diagnoses or those with family members or friends that are curious on how to communicate or help their loved one.

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It’s fulfilling and therapeutic to open up about my past, present, and future goals. I’ve enjoyed the messages that I’ve received from likeminded individuals through my books’ contact information. Some of the things that helped me aided them as well. That makes it all worth it.

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By finding articles and researching studies to write my own articles, I learn more about my diagnosis, symptoms, and treatment for my disorders and those of loved ones such as depression, anxiety, OCD, PTSD, eating disorders, self-harm, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder, among others.

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Some people who read this mental health blog are concerned individuals who want to reach out and connect with the mental health community to understand what their children, family members, friends, or acquaintances experience. Some of the earliest posts on this blog are from a few years ago when I started it. My mental health took a downturn for a brief time, and I became distracted. This time around, I’m in a better place and have learned more than I knew before and continue to take part in therapies to lessen the illness. I welcome those new readers and thank those that have written to me about the topics I share here and those in my books.

Enjoyed this post? Why not check out my YA novels about mental illness, memoir writing, or even my Native American mystery series on Amazon, or follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Goodreads, LinkedIn, Bookbub, BookSprout, or AllAuthor.

Schizophrenia’s Lifelong Treatments

Schizophrenia is a severe mental illness where contact with reality and insight are impaired, an example of psychosis. Symptoms of schizophrenia include psychotic symptoms such as hallucinations, delusions, and thought disorder (unusual ways of thinking), as well as reduced expression of emotions, reduced motivation to accomplish goals, difficulty in social relationships, motor impairment, and cognitive impairment. 

Schizophrenia is a severe, long-term mental health condition that requires lifelong treatment, even when symptoms subside. Treatment with medications and psychosocial therapy can help manage the condition. In some cases, hospitalization may be needed.

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Medications are the cornerstone of schizophrenia treatment, and antipsychotic medications like Seroquel, Risperdal, Lithium, or Haldol are the most commonly prescribed drugs. 

First generation antipsychotic medications, meaning discovered in the 1950s, formed one of the greatest breakthroughs in psychiatry. However, first-generation antipsychotics have frequent and potentially significant neurological side effects, including the possibility of developing a movement disorder (tardive dyskinesia) that may or may not be reversible. Fortunately, for me it was in my case. Newer, second-generation medications are often preferred because they pose a lower risk of serious side effects than do first-generation antipsychotics.

Newer mood stabilizers are also used to treat the condition, as is in my case. Mood stabilizers work for me because the hallucinations and delusions vary based on my mood. For example, on New Year’s Day of this year, I was admitted to the emergency room for breathing problems and an upper respiratory infection that was not COVID but was severe enough to scare me. And with the added stressor of loved ones not being allowed into the room with me, the voices were incredibly terrifying. So, my mood being down, the voices were predominantly negative, suggesting that I take my own life. The following three weeks found no relief since I was put on prednisone, a glucocorticoid, which amplifies feelings and/or conditions. In my case that was the negative voices.

On the other hand, I’m typically even-keeled, and some say optimistic a good portion of the time. So, the limited voices correspond to my mood and reveal themselves to be cathartic, even encouraging, but mainly limited in their ferocity thanks to the mood stabilizer, Abilify, which I’m on maximum dosage. After a few more months of this leveling off, I’ll go back down to a moderate dose. But, after many years of being overly optimistic about my condition, I’ve come to the realization that I’ll be on a mood stabilizer, if not anti-psychotic, the rest of my life.

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In addition to medication, there is the ongoing psychosocial therapy. That too, will be lifelong, hopefully not as often as I’m currently required to see the therapist. So, like the 3.5 million others battling this mental illness and the 100,000 new diagnoses each year, I will continue to press onward and upward so that I’m not in the 3.5 times more likely who ultimately take their lives. Schizophrenia isn’t a death sentence and many of us with it choose to say we battle it as opposed to suffer from it.

The most difficult thing to deal with, for many, isn’t the disease itself but the stigma surrounding it; but, for me, that’s probably in part to my social anxiety disorder, which is a comorbidity. Schizophrenia is most often seen in patients that have an underlying or overlapping condition such as depression, anxiety, PTSD, OCD, and panic disorder, which makes it difficult to diagnose and why so many suffer without the therapies, whether medication or psychotherapy, that assists them in battling the condition.  

Enjoyed this post? Why not check out my YA novels or Native American mystery series on Amazon, or follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Goodreads, LinkedIn, Bookbub , or AllAuthor.

Book review: The Place Between Breaths by An Na

Atheneum, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division, 2018

This little, cerebral thriller of a book packs a punch. However, there’s a few things to consider before you read it. It is a book about mental health and schizophrenia. It is not a fluffy cuddly book. This one bites, and confuses. The author has South Korean origins, meaning that the Eastern influences are heavy in the writing style of the book. And why do I say both things before I even review the book? Because if you’re expecting a perfectly “coherent” fluffy book, this book is not it and it definitely isn’t a Western view of the world even if it is set in the US.

Throughout the novel we get to know Grace, who saw her mother deteriorate in the grips of schizophrenia, and then ultimately disappear from her life. Her mother has never been found, which has led Grace’s father on a desperate quest to find a cure for this debilitating illness. Grace interns at the lab where her father works. He is a headhunter, bringing in the top scientists from around the world to join forces in search of the key that will unlock a cure for Grace’s mother—the love of his life—if only they could find her.

This is a non-linear novel that uses the seasons of the year to anchor you in the story. Na is a master of imagery and it felt to me that her arresting descriptions of the weather coincided with Grace’s moods and mental state. I could be reading too much into it, but nothing in this book felt accidental.

In addition to jumping back and forth between the seasons and around in the story, the reader is also left to parse between reality and delusion. This made for an intriguing and gut-wrenching, but unenjoyable read. Though, I would argue that “enjoyable” was not the goal, and for this I was glad.

Though a novel, this did not read like an attempt to make schizophrenia into entertainment. This felt like a deft effort to bring understanding to an illness that continues to be misunderstood, despite decades of research. The portrayal of this mental illness and how it breaks the mind apart from the inside out was honest and elegant. It does not glorify the disease but rather exposes it in all its gruesome tragedy.

It was definitely worth the read, and I believe an important work for helping people understand what schizophrenia looks like from the inside out. It’s a confusing illness, and to wrap up the story with a neat little bow would have been disingenuous. In the end, I appreciated the beauty and tragedy, and clarity and confusion Na wove together to create this novel. There are a lot of twists and intriguing bits in the story where at first you aren’t sure but as the story progresses you begin to realize how much Grace is fighting and what “enemy” she’s fighting. In my opinion it was a clever book with the way it sets things and how it leaves you guessing

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Book review: Haldol and Hyacinths by Melody Moezzi

A Bipolar Life

Avery, A member of Penguin Group, 2013

“People tend to look unfavorably upon the mentally ill, especially those of us who’ve been hospitalized. Losing your mind is indeed traumatizing but doing so in front of a supposedly sane audience is mortifying. It’s not like getting cancer. No one rallies around you or shaves her head in solidarity or brings you sweets. “Normals” (or “normies,” as some of us “crazies” affectionately refer to them) feel uneasy around those of us who’ve lost a grip on reality. Perhaps they’re afraid we might attack them or drool on them or, worse yet, suck them into our alternate universe where slitting your wrists and talking to phantoms seem perfectly rational.” ― Melody Moezzi

Haldol and Hyacinths, is a powerful, funny, and moving narrative that pays tribute to the healing power of hope and humor, by writer Melody Moezzi, an Iranian American and Muslim, who speaks out against the stigma surrounding bipolar disorder. She certainly doesn’t fit the highly inaccurate stereotype of someone with mental illness.

“A lot of ways, when you are labeled with something like manic depression or schizophrenia. That label carries so much weight and you take it on as part of your identity in a way that can be really harmful.” Moezzi said.

She isn’t disabled or violent or contagious. Melody is an attorney with a Master’s degree in Public Health. She is an award-winning author who has made many national and international media appearances. Many people who suffer from mental illnesses are highly educated, high functioning individuals.

For Moezzi, and only after years of mania and depression, was she successfully diagnosed in 2008 and subsequently, found access to the right treatment plan and medication.  Bipolar disorder can be wrought with hallucinations, delusions, extremes highs or lows in mood, and impulsivity. In her case, such impulses led to a suicide attempt. But after years of improper diagnoses, medications, and humiliating, dehumanizing inpatient psychiatric hospitalizations, medication, therapy, and having a partner that helped her focus on her full self she managed her illness and found her calling to tell her powerful story. It took a lot of bravery, and humor, for Melody to share her story.  She is quick to point out the importance of speaking, writing, and living authentically.

It was exciting, interesting, and excellent glimpse into the life and mind of an extraordinary young woman with an unfortunate mental disorder.

Enjoyed this post? Why not check out my YA novels or Native American mystery series on Amazon, or follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Goodreads, LinkedIn, Bookbub , or AllAuthor.

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Facts & How it Affects Me

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OCD is characterized by intrusive, troubling thoughts (obsessions), and repetitive, ritualistic behaviors (compulsions) which are time-consuming, significantly impair functioning and/or cause distress. The average onset of OCD is 19 years old and occurs slightly more often in females than in males. It affects 1 in 40 adults and 1 in 100 children.

When an obsession occurs, it almost always corresponds with a significant increase in anxiety and distress. Subsequent compulsions serve to reduce this associated anxiety/distress.

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Common obsessions include:

contamination fearsworries about harm to self or othersneed for symmetry, exactness and orderreligious/moralistic concernsforbidden thoughts (can be sexual or aggressive)a need to seek reassurance or confess

Common compulsions include:

cleaning/washing checkingcountingrepeatingstraighteningroutinized behaviorsconfessingprayingseeking reassurancetouchingtapping or rubbingavoidance

Many people with OCD recognize that it isn’t rational but continue to need to act on their obsessions with their corresponding compulsions and may spend lengthy amounts of time, like several hours daily, performing senseless rituals. OCD can be chronic and interfere with a person’s schoolwork, job, family, or social activities. Proper treatment with medication or cognitive-behavioral therapy can help sufferers regain control over the illness and feel relief from the symptoms.

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My onset was also at 19 years old despite occasional cutting (of my thighs) as a younger teenager. The bulk of my OCD began when with dealing with an alcoholic spouse. I’d start worrying about a fire in the apartment and what the police or firefighters would walk into, so I repetitively cleaned, straightened, and reorganized many times so they wouldn’t think low of me. At 21 years old, when my daughter was born, I worried something bad would happen to her; so I began touching a set of feng-shui coins tied in a red ribbon that I’d nailed to the entry door trim. Then I established the handwashing routine where I’d scrub roughly for eighteen minutes. After that the tapping the table eight times began.

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When I returned to college at age twenty-six, I’d avoid certain hallways and walk unnecessarily around campus as opposed to direct paths. When I had to take the quick routes for social reasons, I’d ask for reassurance that nothing bad would occur. Two years later, after I filed for divorce, I sought help so others wouldn’t see my compulsions. The psychiatrist prescribed SSRIs which eased a good deal of the more embarrassing situations.

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Now, I take Zoloft (serotonin) and Wellbutrin (dopamine) for the chemical imbalances in my brain. Those are an immense help. Now the social disturbances are almost non-existent unless an event occurs that stresses me beyond normal levels, such as my daughter receiving radiation therapy or immunotherapy. The only thing that I compulsively perform is touching the coins when I leave or enter. The reasoning behind that is that nothing will happen to my loved ones. I realize it’s irrational, but I can’t quite handle that obsession and compulsion yet.

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My point is that help is available. You may not be cured, but a combination of medications and cognitive-behavioral therapy may treat it to the point of others not observing your behaviors, especially in confined spaces like classes, meetings, or elevators.

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