Vital Voyage Blog

For some people, burnout does not lift after a weekend or vacation. Michael Newman examines prolonged emotional flatness, cognitive fatigue, loss of pleasure, and hidden depletion - and asks workplaces, healthcare systems, and families to take persistent symptoms seriously while ruling out overlapping conditions.

DSM-5-TR does not list polysubstance use disorder as a standalone diagnosis, yet the label remains common in some treatment settings. Sandy Rivers explains how one broad term can obscure specific substances, trauma, mental health needs, pain, and treatment options - and why person-centered assessment matters.

Before the meeting, medical test, presentation, or difficult conversation, the mind starts asking, 'What if?' Matthew Campbell explains how worst-case rehearsal, avoidance, and reassurance can strengthen anticipatory anxiety - and why useful preparation should eventually give way to the life happening now.

Five years ago, Danny Ellerd was homeless, severely ill, and injecting fentanyl and heroin. He shares how unexpected dignity, hospital care, detox, sober living, accountability, and ordinary daily choices began a recovery journey that led to family, service, two college degrees, and helping others find housing.