Loved it! So important to read all the different perspectives. I've purchased this for our high school collection and it's very popular!

This book was exactly what I needed. I myself suffer from anxiety, depession, and adhd. This book makes you feel like you arent alone

I love this book. I enjoyed all the different stories and how each one was different. The struggles that people go through are as different as, how different we look to each other. One person tall while the other person is short. One person's struggles are different for the person next to you.

I found some of the stories I like more than the others, some I related to better than others but each story is important. Even though this book does cover many, many much need topics it still made me giggle with funny, witty lines. Cleave writers with power stories.

I can't say how much I am thankful for this book! It's great seeing these lovely popular authors share personal stories that can help inspire this generation and hopefully break the stigma on mental illness. As someone who also suffers from mental illness, this was an inspiring!

A book that doesn't shy away from the difficult challenges of mental illness young people face.

I really liked the format and the different voices and coping styles.

The authors bear their souls to help others dealing with personal struggles!
Thirty-one authors share their experiences in dealing with mental illness within the pages of this book. Maureen Johnson discusses her anxiety and how meditation and slowing down her schedule helped and continues to help her. I like her comparison of anxiety being a stupid monster that doesn’t know anything. Robison Wells discusses mental illness treatments and the mental illnesses he lives with. Lauren Oliver relates her depression to mental stutters; we may all trip up at one time or another. Jennifer L. Armentrout talks about her suicide attempt and suicidal thoughts. Amy Reed shares her experiences with addiction and depression. Aprilynne Pike explains her compulsive behavior. Rachel M. Wilson’s dilemma of OCD and ADHD combined is shared. Dan Wells remembers his grandparents and the dementia and Alzheimer’s they dealt with. Amber Benson shares the gift of therapy and how she believes there’s no difference between having mental health problems or physical health problems; they both need help. E. K. Anderson unravels in poetic form. Sarah Fine is an author and a clinical psychologist. Kelly Fiore-Stultz speaks of addiction and family members. Ellen Hopkins shares her grandson’s story. Scott Neumyer tells all while relaying his message about personal anxiety. Crissa-Jean Chappell discusses her OCD. Francesca Lia Block shares the story of her friend with manic depression. Tara Kelly talks about her anxiety, ADHD and OCD. Kimberly McCreight is an anxious worrier and became a heavy drinker. Megan Kelley Hall has dealt with traumatic health issues her entire life, along with depression. Hannah Moskowitz discusses how mental illnesses are different for everyone. Karen Mahoney tells her story of chronic anxiety and Trichotillomania; she pulls out her eyelashes. Tom Pollock has suicidal thoughts and suffers from bulimia. Cyn Balog tells her experience with body dysmorphic disorder. Melissa Marr talks about her PTSD. Wendy Toliver talks with her sixteen-year-old son about his anxiety, depression and OCD. Cindy L. Rodriguez talks about being a Latina with depression. Candace Ganger describes her anxiety. Sara Zarr shares her experiences of worthlessness. Cynthia Hand talks about her brother’s suicide. Francisco X. Stork talks about loneliness and bipolar disorder. Jessica Burkhart shares her addiction to Xanax. This collection of honest stories will help many people understand and deal with their struggles. With much appreciation for the wisdom and bravery the authors have to share their personal experiences with their readers, I give a standing ovation and 5 stars!

Well done and timely collection of short stories by authors who suffer, or love someone who suffers, from mental illness.

I can see how someone unfamiliar with the particulars of mental illness could feel overwhelmed reading this title. The authors take a variety of tones when writing about their individual situations but all are honest and give details that might make some readers uncomfortable. I do not think this should be a deterrent, however.

Overall I found the book encouraging. The emphasis is on inclusion and recovery so readers don't feel isolated with their conditions. The authors write their stories so that their audience can see the possibilities for living with mental illness and can better define what exactly mental illness is. I really enjoyed reading about each author's singular experience. The take away for me was hope. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this book.

I loved the way this book was curated and the content it provided. Some aspects were triggering, but it was also v important

These authors did a wonderful job telling their stories. The essays are moving and relatable. I can't stop mentioning this book to people. We need more of it out in the world helping those who would otherwise remain silent.

I always find it hard to rate anthologies. I have never read one where I loved every story included but I liked the majority of the stories inside this one. I thought the editor did a great job of finding a wide variety of stories to cover a wide variety of issues, conditions, and just facets of life. I truly think everyone could find someone or something in this book to relate too. I think mental health needs to be talked about more in YA, especially when teens may not have the support they need to recognize that something is wrong or have a safe space to ask for help. They need to know that they're not alone and that nothing is wrong with them, they're just wired a little differently or have a chemical imbalance. They're still people who are worth whatever they set their minds to, whether that's love, a specific career, or a sport they love.

Posted to Goodreads: For a more in-depth review watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDyRK...

A powerful collection of essay about mental illness from the perspective of people who have personally experienced or have a loved on who has experienced mental illness. Standout essays included those written by Jennifer L. Armentrout, Melissa Marr, Maureen Johnson, and Cindy L. Rodriguez.

Anthologies are so hard for me to rate. Overall, this was an ok read for me. It didn't blow me away but there were good pieces in here.

I received an ARC of the book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

In this collection of essays, several authors give insight into how mental illness has impacted their lives. While some essays focus on their personal struggle with mental illness, others express the impacts of friends and family with mental illness. This work created a well-rounded look at the ripple effect of mental illness within our lives and in society. Authors explain their journey to mental health and provide concrete explanations of what works for them currently. There is a strong focus on using prescription drugs to achieve health, this may turn some off, but I believe that it is all part of the process.

I don't necessarily know if this work will appeal to the teen reader, especially because many of the life issues discussed in this book are more relevant to adults. I think this book would be perfect for a new adult reader, who has more autonomy in their life and can better relate to the work, husband, kid, issues brought up through these essays.

Extremely important messages in this book! Know that you are not alone when reading these stories. We're all human. We all have issues, some of us more than others. Some of us have a hard time coping. Knowing that we are not alone is helpful.

This book does hurt and hits close to home, especially if you or someone you love suffers from mental illness but it is extremely relatable. That’s what made it so well done. It was wonderful to hear real stories from authors I admire and go “wow...so I’m not the only one.” This book is definitely something many people should have in their arsenal and I would especially recommend it to those who want to try to understand what their loved ones are going through.

This book is so important. It showcases people struggling not through the eyes of fiction, but through real life, and it gives hope where many might think there isn't any. 31 authors tell true stories about their lives and their struggles with mental illness. They encourage people to seek help if they have symptoms and explain why it can happen to anyone and there is no use pretending it's not happening to you. They educate on what mental illness has looked like in their life to make it easier to see and expose the stigma and why there shouldn't be one at all.

It takes a lot to come out of the mental illness closet. Our country has the worst stigma when it comes to people whose minds don't operate at 100%. I know this because I am in a constant battle with anxiety, depression, and especially OCD. At times I feel completely overwhelmed and want to give up, but having a solid medication and a supportive family of my own creation (friends are the family you choose) makes it a worthwhile fight. These authors laid their stories out unapologetically and uncensored and that is a brave step. I think this belongs in a teen nonfiction collection because it will let teens know that there's nothing to be ashamed of when it comes to mental illness.

There is so much honesty and heaviness in this book that every repetition (of which there feels like many) gets to be overwhelming very quickly.

This was such an honest, truthful look at mental illness from a variety of perspectives. Seeing how different people experience mental illnesses (that society tends to lump together as a singular experience) in such different ways was eye opening.

I liked how no one prescribed a “right way” to live with mental illness, even subtly. Each essay expressed that the writer was sharing what worked for them, not what would work for every person. I think, especially in a book aimed at teenagers, that it was so crucial to show that each person struggles and survives in their own unique way, even when they may share a particular diagnosis.

As someone who personally lives with depression, reading the views of those who don’t personally deal with mental illness but have watched someone else struggle was enlightening. I always worry about how my struggles affect my loved ones, so this showed me some of the issues they may be dealing with as well.

Overall, I think this would be amazing for a teenager who is struggling to feel “normal” (whatever that is) and not so alone. Not all of the stories are wrapped up in a “happily ever after” which is so truthful. Still, all of them are encouraging that you can continue to live, and live well, with mental illness.

This title does a beautiful job of illustrating how mental illness affects everyone differently and makes clear that there is no single treatment that will be right for all. These essays are raw and powerful, but might be triggering for readers who suffer from the illnesses presented. Yet, each author implores readers to get help (professional help) and ultimately presents an “it can get better” mentality. An excellent resource for high school libraries.