YOU ARE NOT ALONE - A companion online community discussion board for The Mental Illness Happy Hour podcast with Paul Gilmartin

I know how you feel. Everything is a struggle and you wonder how much longer you'll be able to muster the energy to keep fashioning that delicate facade before it cracks for ever. I don't know if I have the energy to maintain a normal life, and I've stripped away so many layers that I have almost no...

No problem. I know how difficult it is to confront these things. Keep us updated on how things go

Your post really resonated with me, as I am going through similar issues around food. The act of eating has become an exhausting ritual filled with shame and guilt. Your self-awareness on the subject is really encouraging, and I would urge you to contact an ED organisation that can help you overcome...

This is off-topic, but there's an Australian stand-up called Luke McGregor who has social anxiety disorder. He does some really funny and honest material on the subject that is worth seeking out. He'd be a great guest for the podcast, actually.

Hello Corey, I relate to what you're going through, as I'm going through a similar thing myself. I've spent most of the last few weeks alone. I've been dividing my days between sitting alone in my room trying to do some writing and going for long walks on my own. I feel like I'm on the outside looki...

The ability to endure endless hours of solitude is certainly one a writer needs, but I've learned that there also needs to be some engagement with the world. Like you, I find it so difficult to maintain that engagement. I get lost in my mind and there doesn't seem to be much room for anyone else. I ...

I know exactly how you feel. I have terrible trouble sustaining conversations, let alone friendships, with people; with the result that I am alone most of the time. I wish there were a space where people who struggle with these issues could gather in person without the usual social pressures. I rece...

Hello, Oak, thanks for your response and your kind words. Yes, I finally summoned the courage to leave the relationship five months ago. I had to move back in with my parents. I get on well with my parents, but I often feel like I've been evicted from my life. I struggle to talk to my parents about ...

I'm a man in his early thirties who has always had issues with food, but I'd never considered the fact that I may have an eating disorder until recently. I discussed these issues with my therapist, and she suggested that food may be at the heart of many of my problems - I have suffered from depressi...