Time again for our Website of the Week, when we showcase interesting and innovative online destinations.
This week, our Website of the Week is a free mental health resource where you can get information, help and support, plus answers to your questions about psychological issues.
"PsychCentral.com is a mental health website where we discuss information about mental health concerns like depression and anxiety, and the information we offer includes things like symptoms of these kinds of disorders as well as treatments of them," says John Grohol, founder of PsychCentral.com.
The site includes a virtual encyclopedia of conditions facing adults and children, from anxiety to Tourette's. They've got information about medicines used to treat mental disorders, online psychological tests to help focus on symptoms, and news about the latest research - explained in plain language. And while the site includes serious topics such as depression and schizophrenia, it goes beyond what you might consider matters of mental illness.
"We also have a great deal of resources about kind of everyday living concerns, such as parenting and relationships, and how do you deal with stress. We cover a whole bunch of other topics in addition to mental disorders themselves, because they're all interrelated and they all have to do with your mental health. We are big advocates of helping people find that kind of information."
PsychCentral.com also features online chats and a place to post your specific question, where it will be answered by a trained expert. But for many people, what may be most helpful are the 140 online support groups in PsychCentral's forums.
"You talk to other people who have the similar kind of concern as you do," Grohol says.
"And other people will respond and say, 'Here's what's helped for me. Maybe you'll find this helpful. And here's some resources that you can go and read.' So it really acts as a mutual aid kind of place where people share with one another, and through that sharing, they benefit.
Find information about mental health issues plus online support groups at PsychCentral.com, or get the link to this and more than 200 other Websites of the Week, from our site, voanews.com.
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