From Both Sides of the Couch

A therapist reflects on her journey of mental illness and healing, and what lies ahead.

Andrea Rosenhaft LCSW-R

Anticipatory Anxiety and the Serenity Prayer

I think the more you want something, the more intense the anxiety. Also, there must be some inverse relationship with time, i.e., the greater the anxiety, the more time slows down.

me and my mom at my brother's birthday party

Quietly Passing Down an Eating Disorder

I don’t know why this question never occurred to me before. It’s a legitimate question, one that might occur to anyone in my situation.

Are 28 Medications Too Many?

I hear often that your PCP is supposed to be the “quarterback” of your medical team. Do I think she has time to sit in her office and call all my prescribing doctors?

Searching for a Solution to Suicide

Suicide is an epidemic that preceded the pandemic, and will likely endure even as we move toward a new normal.

I Always Knew I Was Resilient

 “I can tell you that what you’re looking for is already inside you.” —Anne Lammot

The Pandemic Makes It Harder to Cope With Eating Disorders

Isolation and secrecy make too comfortable a home for our eating disorders.

One of My Worst Fears Has Come True: I’m on Steroids

The pain in my chest was intense and breathing in and out was excruciating. 

First, Do No Harm

I have a decision to make that will negatively affect my health either way. Despite being prescribed multiple medications for my asthma, it’s still not well controlled.

There Is No Tidy Ending to My Eating Disorder

I can’t stuff over 30 years of an eating disorder into a neat package.

Welcome 2021: Massive Upheaval on So Many Levels

As the events in our nation’s capital unfolded on Wednesday, I was working from home. Pieces of what was happening appeared in the chat, courtesy of my co-workers.

Taking Resolve to a New Level for 2021

I resolve to work harder than ever to make my mental health organization a success. My dream is to make this venture self-sustaining so I can leave my current full-time job.

Periodically, Haunted by Remnants of My Stroke

Yesterday, Friday, was a difficult day at work. Before my stroke, I was working in the position as an “unofficial” team lead.  

Trapped Between Passion and Practicality

I wish I could focus on my passion full-time.

Kicking a Woman When She’s Down

 My depression has progressed and an incident at work this past Friday added to the feeling I’m falling further into a darkened abyss.

This Will Be a Short Post Because I’m Depressed

My brother must have heard the flat tone in my voice this past week because he invited me up to his house for a pancake brunch.

Two Days Among My Fellow Writers, Listening and Learning

While it wasn’t a resounding success in terms of getting a book deal, I wouldn’t call it an abysmal failure either.

We Can Support Mental Health by Listening

There is nothing as painful as suicidal depression. It permeates every millimeter of your body and there is no relief.

A Precarious State

I’m living in a space where my physical and mental health feel tentative every day.

The Waiting Game

As a writer, we talk a lot about the pain of rejection, but not about the agony of waiting for a decision. I submit essays to literary journals, then I wait. 

A Stroke of Luck

The bad news is I had a second stroke. The good news is they caught it in time.

September Is National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month

I keep returning to the summer of 2018, when we learned of the tragic suicides of celebrities Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain, just days apart.

And I Thought Last Week Was Bad

My last blog post was about the week before last being the week from hell.  I had no idea what was yet to come. OMG, three emergencies, over the course of four days.

The Wonderful Week from Hell

Overwhelmed in one part of my life, the other came together with awesomeness.

Psychosis Takes Up Residence and Leaves an Unpleasant Residue

I’m having these irrational thoughts that I know to be irrational, and yet, I am powerless to stop them.

Calling All Proud and Passionate Peers

Starting in August, I’m going to be doing some peer coaching.

These Past Two Weeks Were a Horror Show — and I Was a Mess

One thing after another left me the closest I came to falling apart in years.

The Art of Being Rejected

Although we are born with a certain temperament, it can be changed over time. I was born with a very sensitive temperament. Every comment was turned over and dissected in my mind.

Mental Illness Adds Value to Our Lives

Many people think of mental illness as detracting from their lives. Mine did at first. But in healing, I gained a resiliency I never had.

Insomnia or Passion?

I’m writing this post at 1:23 a.m. on July 4th. Happy Independence Day, and I mean that with the utmost sincerity. 

Cut It Out

I swore to myself I’m not going to weigh myself until this damn thing is out of me. I went to the ER a couple of weeks ago for severe abdominal pain.

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