Guianensis (or more accurately guianensis) is the specific epithet (fancy science term for the second part of the species’ scientific name) which is often given to organisms endemic to (or originally found in) the Guiana Shield region of Northern South America, where Guyana, my home country, is located. I thought this was fitting, since I’m one of them.
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Winds of Change [or “Balance, Nuance, & Context” or “Why I Study People Now”]
![Winds of Change [or “Balance, Nuance, & Context” or “Why I Study People Now”]](/web/20210227052825if_/https://code.visualstudio.com/assets/github-https-guianensis.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/screenshot-2022-01-24-210116.jpg?w=700&h=430&crop=1)
A man motions to a bush island on the edge of the savanna. It is one of those days like any other in the Rupununi, a vast region of savanna in Southern Guyana. Every day here feels like Sunday. People work at their own pace. It may seem lazy from the outside, but it makes sense in such a hot savanna that at the height of the day, many people choose to relax.
He has returned after many years, since leaving on the eve of our country’s independence from the United Kingdom many years ago. “I used to hear howler monkeys over there, but not any longer,” he says. He’s an old American, a foreigner, and the shift in time has made the change quite noticeable. Even still, it doesn’t escape those who live here. Conversations at night time, in a place where people still have conversations at night time without the need for phone screens, often lead to lines like “I remember when you used to these big herds of bush hogs all about.”
Continue reading “Winds of Change [or “Balance, Nuance, & Context” or “Why I Study People Now”]”[Writing about writing] Guianensis in 2022
![[Writing about writing] Guianensis in 2022](/web/20210227052825if_/https://code.visualstudio.com/assets/github-https-guianensis.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/pxl_20220110_140422820.jpg?w=700&h=430&crop=1)
Hi.
This blog is really important to me. It is what it’s always been – a space where I post anything I feel like writing about. I’m stepping away from mental health advocacy for a little as I take some time for myself. I will continue to write at times, when I feel like, but I’m taking time for me, so, that means, who knows what I’ll write about. It’s fun to think about.
I might write more about science, conservation, and my experiences with my work, or art, photography, and just general life. I’ll write when I feel like, as I’ve always done.
Continue reading “[Writing about writing] Guianensis in 2022”On Labels: Being defined and not being defined by them
Cover image: Meshach Pierre (Public Domain)
Acronyms:
GAD: Generalized Anxiety Disorder
MDD: Major Depressive Disorder
ADHD-C: Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder – Combined Presentation
Content warning: Suicide (briefly)
After I received the results of my comprehensive psychological evaluation done by the University of Florida’s Counselling and Wellness Center, I posted everywhere about it. I was insufferable. For a solid weekend, it was the only thing I wanted to talk about. After 6+ hours of testing, it was quantitatively (computerized and physical tests) and qualitatively (interviews and self-reported surveys) demonstrated that I had ADHD-C! This wasn’t really news – I had been diagnosed in early 2020 – but this time there was no room for doubt. I had ADHD-C whether I wanted to accept that or not. So naturally, in keeping with my commitment to be open about my mental health, I posted just about everywhere: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram… the usual suspects.
Continue reading “On Labels: Being defined and not being defined by them”How to Handle Mental Illness in the Long-term: A response
Cover image: The People Speak! (CC BY-NC 2.0)
Acronyms:
GAD: Generalized Anxiety Disorder
MDD: Major Depressive Disorder
ADHD-C: Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (Combined Presentation)
Mental health, the pandemic and Guyana: Reflections from the open space conversation (May 2021)
By: Meshach Pierre and Vidyaratha Kissoon
Reblogged by Vidyaratha Kissoon on his blog: Thoughts of a minibus traveller
The world continues to deal with the pandemic in different ways. In July 2020, we convened an online conversation about mental health in the pandemic and Guyana’s 2020 elections limbo. We were glad to host another conversation on the afternoon of 30th May, 2021. People joined us from Guyana and around the world.
Continue reading “Mental health, the pandemic and Guyana: Reflections from the open space conversation (May 2021)”On Anxiety: My Journey Within
Originally published in: Stabroek News
Q&A related to article also in Stabroek News
26 January 2020
Puede encontrar una traducción al español de este artículo aquí.
Trigger warning: suicide
When I was in high school, a dear friend of mine, Lisa, committed suicide. It was a shocking moment for me and my peers – one that I consider a defining point in life that affected (and changed) us all as individuals. An unexpected consequence of this tragic experience was just how confusing we were about what happened to our friend. I felt deeply confused in my grief, so much so that anger brewed inside of me, directed at the very person I was mourning, and at myself. I wondered how I’d failed to see this coming, only later realizing the signs I had missed, and the many things I could have done to prevent it – all just a little too late. There was also a pervasive disbelief surrounding the shock of the news about Lisa; it wouldn’t register that someone I knew was capable of something like this.
Continue reading “On Anxiety: My Journey Within”Sobre la ansiedad: mi viaje interior
Publicado por: Stabroek News
26 de enero del 2020
Traducido por: Elisa Sandoval
Aviso de contenido: Suicidó
Cuando estaba en el bachillerato, una querida amiga mía, Lisa, se suicidó. Fue un momento impactante para mí y mis compañeros, un momento que considero fue un punto decisivo en nuestras vidas. Uno que nos afectó (y cambió) a todos como individuos.
On the arts: a focus on the Guyana Visual Arts Competition 2019
Disclaimer: The Castellani House has changed its approach and allows photography (at least during the exhibition). I was therefore allowed to be a terrible guest and I’ll be using photos of people’s work* in this review. These are taken with a phone camera and they definitely look much better in person, so do go give the gallery a view!
*If anyone doesn’t want their work up here, do let me know and I’ll remove it.
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I ATEN’T DEAD
Continue reading “On the arts: a focus on the Guyana Visual Arts Competition 2019”
Lucy
“It’s inevitable when you buy the pet. You’re supposed to know it in the pet shop. It’s going to end badly. You are purchasing a small tragedy,” – George Carlin.
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Guianensis 
