The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent increased awareness of systemic racism have left me, a white psychologist, at a loss for words. I wanted to write a post for other anti-racist allies who are also struggling to voice and act in increasingly anti-racist ways both personally and professionally.
As I was being discharged from the hospital after an 11-day stay, a friend texted me: “The hard part’s over!” In one sense she was correct – I’d completed the antibiotics for COVID, my sepsis was gone, and my pneumonia and kidney function were improving. But that was just the physical battle.
Body Dysphoric Disorder (BDD) is described as the disease of “self- perceived ugliness” or “self-imagined ugliness.” It is also seen as a distressing preoccupation with one or more physical non-existence “defects.” In the DSM-5, BDD is classified under Obsessive Compulsive and Related Disorders.
Overnight the world changed. Public health terms have become common phrases; we hear people talking about flattening the curve and social distancing. Scientists have become household names, with Dr.
I presented a complex case recently at the Anxiety and Depression Association of America that challenged my clinical skills, but more importantly, deeply affected the quality of life of the person I was treating.
On average, it takes 17 years for an evidence-based treatment to reach the community, and because of stigma, it may take an additional 10 years before a person suffering from mental illness actually receives treatment.
