Tag: mental illness

Sister of My Soul

Jacqueline Cioffa

Excuse me, do I know you? I vaguely remember your face We were friends once, the very best friends We were tight, so very close Secrets were shared, tears cried, belly laughs burned and drunken nights felt never ending Even faded rock star blue jeans with holes in the knees Read more

Jacqueline Cioffa

A retired, international model, and celebrity makeup artist. Co-Author of Model Citi Zen, the guide. Founder of http://modelcitizenmakeup.blogspot.com/. Author of numerous prose pieces in various literary magazines. Most recently published in Little Episodes Brainstorms the anthology, among esteemed artists Sadie Frost, Melvin Burgess and Todd Swift.

Bitches Brew

Julie Anderson

Her mind is confused. Her thoughts bubble up from unconscious literature, written in dreams. Her ideals, a compilation of conflicting truths. Her heart pumps red, squeezing drops through the constricting black membrane of rage. She drinks from the well of insanity, smiling to hide the riddle inside. She remembers, a movie Read more

Julie Anderson

Julie Anderson is the Creator and Publisher of Feminine Collective. Julie was inspired to create this safe place for women to share their secrets, desires, triumphs and pain as the antithesis of what mainstream media offers women today. In her column Pursuit of Perfection, she explores the importance of rectifying the balance of inner and outer beauty through essays, poems and articles on self-esteem, shame, family, and self- acceptance.

Loneliness

Natasha Alexander

There are different sides to loneliness. Like a lover, with two faces. Sometimes it creeps up while you driving in a silent car. Other times you feel it when you walk through a park, Noises everywhere around you, but none of them belong to you. A lot of times loneliness Read more

Natasha Alexander

Writer, always Wife and Mother first. Perfect is overrated, I am flawed and yet loved. Now that I don’t chase perfection, I can chase my dreams. I have completed a "Write a Novel" course in 2015 through S.A. Writers’ College and passed with a distinction. I also completed the Copy-Editing and Proof-reading course through them in March 2016. My first Manuscript of 60 000 words has been written and currently seeking a publisher. I have been writing poetry since I was 14 and the reason/inspiration behind all my writing is a stand against women abuse. It is a cause that I hold close to heart. Something that started as an outlet for feelings too ghastly to speak about has turned into my passion.

Here Inside the Mirror

Beatriz L. Seelaender

There comes an age when screwing up is not cute anymore. You know that, because people are constantly telling you. It’s not cute anymore, Raleigh. My name is Raleigh, by the way; Raleigh of Boston, Massachusetts. Although to be fair, my mother is from Raleigh the actual city, so it Read more

Beatriz L. Seelaender

Beatriz L. Seelaender was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 1998. In 2016, she published her first novel "De Volta ao Vazio" (a good translation would be "Emptiness, Revisited"), in Brazilian Portuguese. Seelaender's work in English has been featured in websites such as the Manifest-Station, and she currently studies Literature and Languages in the University of Sao Paulo.

In Between the Rain

Jacqueline Cioffa

Have I been good enough, Mother? Oh how I miss the days when your skin was smooth, and bronzed How your smile beamed when you saw my little face Remember when you let me stay up late, way, way past bedtime To watch scary movies curled up on the cozy Read more

Jacqueline Cioffa

A retired, international model, and celebrity makeup artist. Co-Author of Model Citi Zen, the guide. Founder of http://modelcitizenmakeup.blogspot.com/. Author of numerous prose pieces in various literary magazines. Most recently published in Little Episodes Brainstorms the anthology, among esteemed artists Sadie Frost, Melvin Burgess and Todd Swift.

Misplaced Words

Stephanie Ortez

Silence after silence sets my mood. I circled the roots of life stumbling again only to be resurrected by a brand new day hoping the sunlight will amend my woes. A rare sweet hot December air fills the room, rare indeed. Enter the chilling sensation of the routine, because without Read more

Stephanie Ortez

Stephanie is a highly caffeinated mother of two wonderful boys. She is hopelessly addicted to non-fiction books and literature that moves her to tears. She is an admissions advisor for George Washington University online where she assists homeschooled students internationally. Stephanie lives with Bipolar Disorder, PTSD, and Generalized Anxiety Disorder. She is a passionate mental health advocate, member of Stigma Fighters. Her writing has been featured on The Elephant Journal, The Mighty, The Organic Coffee Haphazardly and Feminine Collective.

I Do

Kundai Muringi

I Do.. take me to the altar I’ll surrender my soul there. Quiet the achings that scream in songs. Do not listen to their story. They’ll drive you to the rapids, to beat you against the rocks and let you sink…..down down to where the others are. They will make Read more

Kundai Muringi

Kundai Muringi is a Zimbabwean, who loves nature, words, and soul. Her heart is in humanitarian work, having previously worked with female domestic violence survivors. Currently, she is volunteering with a support group for perinatal mental health, in Port Elizabeth- South Africa, raising awareness about conditions that are still terribly sidelined. She enjoys spending time with her amazing husband and their three beautiful children. Kundai best expresses her creative thoughts and ardent views in poetry.

The Two-Faced Friend

Anna Kaye-Rogers

“We’re not even friends anymore” The two-faced bitch, says, and I’m not sure who exactly she means. I am certainly trying, so hard, to stay friends with her, even when I can feel her bad decisions crushing down on me. She has yet to realize that you are who you Read more

Anna Kaye-Rogers

Previous work has been published in Illinois Valley Community College River Currents 2015. Studies English, Creative Writing, and Professional Communications at Northern Illinois University. Currently raising one human and three animal girls with the help of a wonderful boyfriend.