September 1, 2011

Psychtember's Here!

 

It's Sept. 1, which means...that's right...it's PSYCHTEMBER TIME! If you didn't see my earlier explanation, Psychtember is a blog event I'm hosting for the whole month of September, focused on YA books dealing with mental health/psychological issues.

Helping out with guest posts and the like are the following book bloggers, many of whom have psychology backgrounds:

Books from Bleh to Basically Amazing
Small Review
Musings of a YA Reader
Brave New Adventure
All of Everything
Musings of a Reader Happy
A Backwards Story 
Confessions of a Bookaholic 

There will also be authors and mental health professionals dropping by with guest posts and interviews! And of course, there will be GIVEAWAYS too :D
The psychology symbol, in case you were wondering what was up with the funky "t" in my Psychtember button.
I was keen on psychology right from my very first class back in high school. It fascinated me to delve into the causes of human behaviour, so I kept right on going when I went to university. I ended up getting my B.A. in Psychology a few years ago, and I'm still intrigued by the field. Since a lot of YA books dealing with mental health issues don't get the same kind of attention and buzz as YA paranormal/dystopian/what-have-you, I thought up this event to try to change that. I'd love to share reviews of some of these lesser-read books, increase awareness of them — and mental health — and get more people thinking about these topics.

Just a small disclaimer I wanted to make right off the bat: I know that mental health issues can be a sensitive subject for some people, so I wanted to point out that my posts are never intended to offend. No, I am not a mental health professional, just someone with a Bachelor's degree in psychology and a passion for the field. I may get things wrong from time to time; if I do, you can always send me an e-mail about it! Also, I am not responsible for the content of the guest posts for the event — I don't like to censor so I have largely left the posts up to the writer's discretion.

My first guest blogger will be dropping by the blog later today, but I thought I'd start things out with a short survey...just to see how much you guys know about mental health before the event gets rolling! No, this is not a test. I'm just interested in seeing some general perceptions of these kinds of issues. And I tried to make it fun! :D

There are no "right" or "wrong" answers, and if you don't wish to answer a question, feel free to skip it.



I'm interested to see what the trends are in these responses, and hopefully I'll be able to show you guys the results with fun pie charts and things! :D

Also, I would like to note: if you or a friend/family member is experiencing psychological distress, I recommend seeking out a mental health professional. This event is not meant to replace that type of help. 

15 comments:

  1. Haha I love the quiz questions! My school psych department has sweaters that say "yes I'm a psychology major and no I can't read your mind" lol. Where do these assumptions come from?

    ReplyDelete
  2. YAY PSYCHTEMBER! Interesting survey, I wonder if my opinions and thoughts will change at the end of the month. I can't wait to read all these posts, thanks for organizing this, Danya! :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Did you say pie charts? <3 *love*

    Can't wait to see this event in action! Thank you for all the work you put into organizing everything!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I should tell you... in the survey I said I have a degree in a field but it is in Neuroscience, which wasn't listed but which I think should count. Sorry if it doesn't. :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. I'm glad to see everyone's excited about Psychtember!

    @L.L.: Thanks for letting me know - I've changed it to include neuroscience now! :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. LOL. Laura- I need that shirt! When I told people in college (and even now in grad school) that I was in psychology they would say "uh oh, are you going to mess with my mind?" LOL. Oh yeah, they teach us that in "Mind Control 101"!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Yay for Psychtember!! :D I'm excited to see the results of the survey!!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Just got back in holiday to read all the event posts so far! Yay for your awesome pie charts, it will be really fascinating to see the results :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. LOVE your word - Psychtember. My husband has rapid cycling bipolar disorder, so I'm very interested in mental health issues. I tend to write extremely tormented fictional characters and end up doing a lot of research, because I'm very keen on getting it right for any reader who may share a mental health issue with one of my fictional characters.

    ReplyDelete
  10. There is a blogger who has a meme called Manic Monday dedicated to mental health issues. The blogger is Shah Wharton and her blog addy is
    http://wordsinsync.blogspot.com/. You might want to get in touch with her. She's a professional only she's in either Abu Dabi or the UAE. Her husband's a pilot, she's English. She has lots of resources for bloggers and other bloggers with mental health issues that link up over there. Me included :)

    Heather

    ReplyDelete
  11. It's great to see these positive comments!

    @BURIED IN BOOKS: Thanks so much for mentioning that blog! I hadn't heard of it before but I will definitely have to check it out, and that meme as well :)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Great idea - I've filled in the quiz and also have a degree in Psychology (although I graduated in 1999) Yes - I'm ancient ;(

    Heather of BURIED IN BOOKS told me all about this fab blog and event (I've google+ it!!)I know I'm too old for this but had to take a look. Please link it up over at my blog (a mental health meme each Monday - http://wordsinsync.blogspot.com/2011/09/monday-madness-linky-plus-mind-shop-20.html) so others can get on board too.

    I'm your latest follower too.

    Shah.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Be interesting to see what the results are Danya! Best wishes, Elizabeth.

    ReplyDelete
  14. This is a wonderful idea! I, too, have a background in Psychology.

    ReplyDelete

I love comments, so post away!

Related Posts with Thumbnails