A Beginner’s Guide to Mental Health & Mental Illness – Part 1

Performant Mental Health, The Series

We’re so glad you’re here. 💛

Anxiety. Depression. Stress. Uncertainty. Sleeplessness. Isolation.

Mental health and mental illness are tough subjects to talk about, especially in the midst of a global pandemic. Like the emotionally charged debate about how to pronounce GIF¹ (“gif” or “jif”?) there is much debate about mental health, what it is, and how to improve it — not the least of which is how to talk about it. And it’s far more serious than a silly pronunciation debacle.

Performant Mental Health is a five-part series designed to ignite greater awareness of mental health issues at home and at work, encourage more candid conversation on the topic, reduce the stigma associated with mental illness, and improve mental performance at home and at work. Written for everyday people by everyday people.

We, your authors, are everyday people just like you. We’ve been impacted directly or indirectly by mental illness, misperceptions, and misinformation. Yet we’re fortunate to have had experiences that uniquely position us to write this series. For example, we have years of professional experience in some of the most demanding corporate tech environments, behavioral and mental health…