I started my blog as a means to develop my seemingly rapid and disconnected thoughts into a communicable, organized form. I also find writing is a useful exercise for building emotional resilience in sharing these thoughts with the public. I find it frightening to be so exposed, yet also exciting to see what kind of response I get from people. Plus, it’s revealing to look backward to reflect on what topics I’ve written about over time as my story unfolds.
Blog
Using Technology to Facilitate Self-Directed Learning – my interview on the Learning by Living podcast
I was recently invited to appear on Gina Riley and Kevin Stuverson’s podcast, Learning by Living. I discuss my work with the Peer Unschooling Network and a mobile application I am releasing soon called “LEAVE SCHOOL: what teachers can’t tell you.” (Note that in the interview, I refer to the app as being called “Curricu-Dumb”…
Finding common ground between our movements: psychiatric survivors and the broader disability community
This essay was included in the November 22, 2019 newsletter for MindFreedom International, a non-profit organization that fights for human rights in mental health. I was recently invited by my new friend Tom Olin to attend an event in Washington, DC titled ‘Humanity of Connection: A Celebration of Leadership and Empowerment within the Disability Community’. …
My Cool Project Bucket List
Recently, I ran a workshop for a group of teens where we went through a brainstorming process for generating project ideas. I thought it’d be fun to share a list of my own dream projects, all of which I hope to complete before I die. I guess that makes this my “project bucket list”. As…
State of the Startup: July 2018
Note to reader: this was written in July of 2018 and was supposed to be published in July of 2019… I never published it due to my discomfort with certain parts of the article, so I’m posting it now on June 3, 2021. State of the Startup: July 2018 This is the third installment…
Introducing: Voices for Choices
Two summers ago, I watched as a good friend of mine in North Carolina was involuntarily committed to a psychiatric hospital. Though he posed zero risk to himself or others, he was handcuffed, forcibly drugged, and locked in a psychiatric hospital for weeks against his will. I had experienced four involuntary commitments in my life,…
Psychiatrists React: Live at the 2019 Annual Meeting of the APA #protestAPA2019
I traveled to S.F. for the Annual Meeting and brought the videos submitted to the ProtestAPA.com website. This is the outcome:
My interview with the Alliance for Self-Directed Education
Thanks to Alex Khost at the Alliance for Self-Directed Education for interviewing me for their online magazine, Tipping Points! In the interview, I speak a lot about the crossover between issues in our education system and mental health system as they related to human rights and self-direction. Hope you enjoy! Transcript Available at ASDE’s website: …
Reflecting on 5 Years of Stand-Up Comedy
This was originally written on April 20, 2018. I set a fuse on it to publish exactly one year later to avoid the discomfort of publishing my personal thoughts and feelings in real-time. March 29, 2018 is the five year anniversary of the first time I performed stand-up at Winston’s Open Mic in Ocean Beach,…
Announcing the 2019 Virtual Protest of the American Psychiatric Association
For more information or to get involved, visit ProtestAPA.com. TRANSCRIPT: My name is Jim Flannery and today, I invite psychiatric survivors, ex-patients, and peers around the world to participate in this year’s Virtual Protest of the American Psychiatric Association’s Annual Meeting. You can participate by creating a 3 minute video sharing your personal story of…
I discovered that 7Cups.com is “hacking” their own website to trick depressed people into using their service.
To share my recent discovery about 7cups.com, I have to first reveal two personal things I’m often ashamed of and shy about broadcasting: sometimes I get quite melancholy and part of my income comes from freelance digital marketing. While the comic in me wants to suggest that #1 is a consequence of #2, they are…
State of the Startup: July 2017
Just like in my 2016 State of the Startup post, I put a time fuse on this post. This article was written one year ago. Simply put, it’s really hard to publish about these kind of personal things “in the moment” but I want to share them because I think it may benefit others. So…
My speech from the American Psychiatric Association Protest
To watch all the speeches from the APA protest, visit ProtestAPA.com. For details on my feelings about the protest, you can watch my two previous videos: – What I Wish You Knew About Mental Health – Why I’m Protesting the American Psychiatric Association My Speech from the APA Protest When I was trying to plan…
2018 American Psychiatric Association Virtual COUNTER-Conference
2018 Virtual Counter-Conference of the American Psychiatric Association Opposing force, coercion, and lies in psychiatry. I am a firm believer in scientific research and am no stranger to involuntary psychiatric treatment. I strongly oppose the psychiatric system and its use of lies, force, and coercion. As part of the 2018 APA Worldwide Protest, I organized…
Want to be notified about my latest writings?
It's easy!
Just enter your email address and click subscribe!