The Psych Central Show: Candid Chat On Mental Health & Psychology

In this week’s Psych Central Show, our hosts Gabe and Vincent address the persistent and widespread myth that suicides increase during the holiday season. They discuss which seasons see the highest suicide rates, what month has the lowest rate, and what we as a society can do to educate ourselves about, and ultimately prevent, suicide. Vincent, a former suicide hotline counselor, covers some common warning signs that indicate possible suicidal thoughts and what a person can expect when calling a suicide hotline. The conversation includes a brief history of American automobile safety standards, as well as some surprising statistics about death in in the U.S. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this week’s Psych Central Show, Gabe Howard and Vincent M. Wales discuss the use of person-first language in mental health advocacy. Person-First refers to a form of etiquette that calls for language to be structured “person” first, “disability” second. For example: “people with diabetes” versus “diabetic.” It changes language to replace “to be” (mentally ill) with “to have” (mental illness). Our hosts discuss the relative merits and disadvantages of this supposedly empowering strategy. They question whether this is needed, whether it’s helping, or whether it is just one more way to stigmatize people who have been diagnosed with mental illness. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of The Psych Central Show, our hosts discuss how society sees different mental health diagnoses. Gabe Howard has bipolar disorder and Vincent M. Wales has persistent depressive disorder (also known as dysthymia). In addition to each discussing his diagnosis, they compare how the conditions are similar and how are they different, and what each thinks of the other’s diagnosis. Ultimately, they ask the question:  Is one worse than the other? And if so, in what ways? Listen to this excellent conversation that is sure to provide many points to consider when it comes to thinking about and reacting to people living with mental illness.   Show Webpage: PsychCentral.com/show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices