Suicide leads to over 44,000 deaths each year in the U.S. Stigma against people with mental illness is a major contributor to this unacceptably high mortality rate. Kitty uses heartbreaking true stories and scientific facts to help the audience understand ways to challenge their thinking and join the fight to reduce stigma and shame. Kitty Westin, a licensed psychologist, founded the Anna Westin Foundation (now known as The Emily Program Foundation) following the death from anorexia of her daughter, Anna, in 2000. Soon after Anna’s death the foundation opened Minnesota’s first residential treatment program for eating disorders; The Anna Westin House. Kitty is an advocate for people affected by eating disorders and has become a nationally and internationally recognized authority on the impact mental illness has on individuals, their families and the community. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

Learn common warning signs of a possible mental health condition in youth and young adults.

This video explains some of the things you can try when you feel overwhelmed by your thoughts. After the video, take a few moments to observe your thoughts with curiosity, paying attention to how each one makes you feel. Paying attention to your thoughts and sorting through them takes practice and patience. For more information, visit: https://teens.aboutkidshealth.ca/mentalhealth Subscribe to the AboutKidsHealth YouTube channel: http://ow.ly/CzrN50ClHN3 This video is provided for general information only. It does not replace a diagnosis or medical advice from a healthcare professional who has examined your child and understands their unique needs. Please speak with your doctor to check if the content is suitable for your situation. #MentalHealth #PositiveThinking #Mindfulness Follow us on: Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/aboutkidshealth Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/aboutkidshealth Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/aboutkidshealth TRANSCRIPT Every day, we have thousands of thoughts, emotions, urges, memories and feelings. From the time we wake up in the morning, all throughout the day, to when we lay down to sleep at night. No matter who we are, we all have thoughts swirling around in our heads. We even think and feel in our dreams. Often, we don’t realize how many thoughts we are having, and we get lost in them. Sometimes, we’re not even aware that we’re thinking. We seem to be swimming in a sea of our own thoughts. When we are surrounded by our thoughts, it’s easy to get caught up in them and react automatically, sometimes in ways we don’t even mean to react. We might hold onto some thoughts, even when we don’t want to, and it can feel like our thoughts are overwhelming. But thoughts are not facts, and they are not always true, even if they seem to be. Next time you feel caught up in your thoughts, try paying attention to them with curiosity, and not judgment. It doesn’t matter if they are true or false, right or wrong; just notice them. How fast or slow are they? Are they are all very different from each other? Or perhaps you are having the same ones over and over again. Maybe they’re even focused on one theme. Some of these thoughts may be unwanted. But instead of reacting to them, notice what happens to your body sensations and your emotions when you have these thoughts. Perhaps you will notice if they are bringing you closer to or further away from what is important to you or the goals you have for yourself. Observing your thoughts is a skill that takes practice, like playing an instrument. Sometimes it'll be easy for you to be able to notice and respond to your thoughts. Other times, you might have to work really hard to get some distance from them. You might even have to keep letting go of the same unwanted thought over and over again. But don’t give up. Keep trying. Like waves in the ocean, thoughts are always passing through our minds, and can affect how we feel and what we do. But they are not “us”, and we are not our thoughts. Learning to be aware of our thoughts can allow us to respond with more choice instead of reacting in ways we may regret. Observing our thoughts gives us some distance to see how our thoughts make us feel. We can then choose to act in ways that bring us closer to the things and the people that are important to us. Remember, you are not your thoughts. Try observing your thoughts with curiosity. Try it right now.

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/what-is-depression-helen-m-farrell Depression is the leading cause of disability in the world; in the United States, close to ten percent of adults struggle with the disease. But because it’s a mental illness, it can be a lot harder to understand than, say, high cholesterol. Helen M. Farrell examines the symptoms and treatments of depression, and gives some tips for how you might help a friend who is suffering. Lesson by Helen M. Farrell, animation by Artrake Studio.

This video explains why pushing away unwanted thoughts, feelings and sensations can often make a situation worse. Use it when you are finding it hard to focus on the people and things that are important to you, or if you are spending too much energy avoiding your unwanted thoughts or feelings. After the video, take a moment to let all of your thoughts, feelings and sensations be with you, without pushing any of them away. For more information, visit: https://teens.aboutkidshealth.ca/mentalhealth Subscribe to the AboutKidsHealth YouTube channel: http://ow.ly/CzrN50ClHN3 This video is provided for general information only. It does not replace a diagnosis or medical advice from a healthcare professional who has examined your child and understands their unique needs. Please speak with your doctor to check if the content is suitable for your situation. #MentalHealth #Mindfulness #Meditation Follow us on: Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/aboutkidshealth Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/aboutkidshealth Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/aboutkidshealth VIDEO TRANSCRIPT A full and meaningful life comes with a range of emotions and physical sensations: happiness, excitement, strength, but also fear, disappointment and pain. Like most people, you might prefer to avoid unwanted thoughts, feelings and physical sensations, especially if they are intense or overwhelming. Imagine your unwanted feelings as a beach ball that doesn’t go away. You might try different things to pretend the ball doesn’t exist. But when you throw it away, it bounces back. And when you move away from it, it follows you. Maybe you try to get rid of this beach ball by pushing it under water. You manage to keep it out of sight, but if you let go, the beach ball shoots right back up to the surface. So, you decide to keep holding the beach ball underwater. It’s a lot of hard work. Think about how much energy it takes to keep the ball down, and what you might be missing without realizing it. What would happen if you let the beach ball just be there? Or maybe even tried sitting with the beach ball for a while? Instead of actively ignoring the ball, or pushing it underwater, what if you chose to direct your energy instead towards activities and people that are important to you, whether the ball is there or not? Allowing unwanted thoughts, feelings or physical sensations to be there doesn’t mean you have to like them. It means that you are choosing to devote your energy towards the people and things that are important to you. Say your friends want to play a game, but you're feeling anxious or have pain in your stomach. Maybe you can’t play the full game with your friends, but you can still keep score or cheer them on! Sometimes it’s fun to just be around your friends, even if you can’t participate. Some unwanted thoughts, feelings and physical sensations may never fully go away. But you don’t have to devote your energy to suppressing or avoiding them. You can still be involved in activities, even if you need to pace yourself or take breaks now and then. Unwanted experiences are part of life for all of us, no matter who we are. It might take some effort and creativity, but even the smallest steps towards allowing your unwanted emotions and physical sensations to just be there can help you do the things that matter to you and let you live a fuller and more meaningful life.

Major depression is an illness and not a weakness or failure. This video shows you how depression develops in the brain. I also talk about how long depression lasts. Depression is more than sadness or a temporary funk. Since it's beyond your control, you can't simply stop being depressed. I discuss the kindling effect and how it can make your depression worse. I also discuss depression statistics in the United States. According to the last statistics, recovery from depression typically begins within 3 months of onset for two in five individuals with major depression and within 1 year for four in five individuals. 40% of people start to recover within 3 months of the onset of symptoms. 80% within a year The length of a depressive episode is in the range of 5–6 months, with approximately 20% of episodes becoming chronic (i.e., lasting beyond 2 years). Estimates of recurrence range from ~ 50% within the first year to up to 85% during a lifetime. WANT TO START IN THERAPY? Here’s a convenient and affordable option https://Betterhelp.com/drmarks For a monthly fee, you get a REAL licensed therapist with whom you can meet weekly by phone, video or chat. You can also send daily messages. You have access to webinars on various topics. The unlimited texting feature allows you to type out your concerns or questions and get a well thought out response from your therapist. Some of them will help you set goals, give you worksheets, etc. If you use this link you will get a 10% discount on your first month. https://betterhelp.com/drmarks This is an option I've researched. I get a referral commission if you sign up. Want to know more about mental health and self-improvement? On this channel I discuss topics such as bipolar disorder, major depression, anxiety disorders, attention deficit disorder (ADHD), relationships and personal development/self-improvement. I upload weekly. If you don’t want to miss a video, click here to subscribe. https://goo.gl/DFfT33 Disclaimer: All of the information on this channel is for educational purposes and not intended to be specific/personal medical advice from me to you. Watching the videos or getting answers to comments/question, does not establish a doctor-patient relationship. If you have your own doctor, perhaps these videos can help prepare you for your discussion with your doctor.

Discover what we know— and don’t know— about the symptoms, causes, and treatments of schizophrenia. -- Schizophrenia was first identified more than a century ago, but we still don’t know its exact causes. It remains one of the most misunderstood and stigmatized illnesses today. So what do we actually know about its symptoms, causes, and treatments? Anees Bahji investigates. Lesson by Anees Bahji, directed by Artrake Studio. Animator's website: https://www.artrake.com/ Sign up for our newsletter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdNewsletter Support us on Patreon: http://bit.ly/TEDEdPatreon Follow us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/TEDEdFacebook Find us on Twitter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdTwitter Peep us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/TEDEdInstagram View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/what-is-schizophrenia-anees-bahji Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Tony, Michelle, Katie and Josh Pedretti, Vaibhav Mirjolkar, Thomas Bahrman, Allan Hayes, Aidan Forero, Uday Kishore, Mikhail Shkirev, Devesh Kumar, Sunny Patel, Anuj Tomar, Lowell Fleming, David Petrovič, Hoai Nam Tran, Stina Boberg, Alexandrina Danifeld, Kack-Kyun Kim, Travis Wehrman, haventfiguredout, Caitlin de Falco, Ken, zjweele13, Anna-Pitschna Kunz, Edla Paniguel, Elena Crescia, Thomas Mungavan, Alejandro Cachoua, Jaron Blackburn, Yoga Trapeze Wanderlust, Sandy Nasser, Venkat Venkatakrishnan, Nicolle Fieldsend-Roxborough, John Saveland, Jason Garcia, Robson Martinho, Martin Lau, Senjo Limbu, Joe Huang, SungGyeong Bae, Christian Kurch, Begum Tutuncu, David Matthew Ezroj, Sweetmilkcoco , Raphaël LAURENT, Joe Meyers, Farah Abdelwahab, Brian Richards, Divina Grace Dar Santos, Jessie McGuire, Abdullah Altuwaijri and Sarah Burns.

Cecilia McGough puts a face to schizophrenia and helps empower college students through the upcoming non-profit Students With Schizophrenia. Students With Schizophrenia: http://sites.psu.edu/studentswithschizophrenia/ I Am Not A Monster: SCHIZOPHRENIA: http://sites.psu.edu/ceciliamcgough/ Cecilia McGough is an astronomer, activist, and writer as a Penn State Schreyer Honors College scholar pursuing a major in Astronomy & Astrophysics. Cecilia is the founder and current president of the Penn State Pulsar Search Collaboratory. She has been participating in pulsar research continuously since December of 2009, co-discovering pulsar J1930-1852 with the widest orbit ever observed around another neutron star, competing in the International Space Olympics held in Russia, and co-authoring her research in the Astrophysics Journal. Cecilia is a mental health activist in fighting against the negative stigma towards mental illness. She is the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of the soon to launch non-profit Students With Schizophrenia which is the only non-profit in the United States focused on empowering college students with schizophrenia. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx