Author Archives: Laura Kaponer

Originally published at https://www.blufftonsun.com/more-than-a-bad-habit-eating-disorders-are-destructive/ on Dec 14, 2021.

Eating disorders are an indiscriminate assassin relentless in pursuit with an arsenal of tactics to get the job done. Furthermore, eating disorders do not discriminate between age, assigned gender, sexual orientation, …

Originally published at https://www.blufftonsun.com/battling-food-morality-part-of-dealing-with-eating-disorders/ on Feb 16, 2021

Food morality has become a widely accepted concept among diet culture. Foods get placed in the opposing camps of “good” or “bad” with direct consequences based on the specific choices we make.…

Originally published at https://www.blufftonsun.com/standard-of-beauty-needs-to-change-not-our-bodies/ on Mar 15, 2021

For most of my life I believed I wasn’t beautiful. This was the narrative I was given until it became internalized as my absolute truth. 

I would never be the face on …

Originally published https://www.blufftonsun.com/caregivers-need-support-as-much-as-those-being-cared-for/ on Apr 20,2021

Support systems create the foundation of any recovery. The more diversified the support system, the stronger the foundation. At the heart of some support systems are caregivers.

“In my world, caregivers are typically family …

Originally published at https://www.blufftonsun.com/state-mental-health-program-seeks-to-start-conversations/ on May 17, 2021

An inpatient mental health stay placed the first stone on the path that would forever change Maria Beth Smith’s recovery journey.

Smith first became familiar with National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) …

Originally published at https://www.blufftonsun.com/expanded-mental-health-services-needed-for-lgbtq-community/ on Jun 15, 2021

In June 2019, the first Lowcountry Pride Celebration was held in Bluffton. Pride is about creating awareness and celebration in the LGBTQ+ (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Questioning plus others) community. 

Stories of …

Originally published at https://www.blufftonsun.com/to-break-cycle-of-suicide-we-must-start-a-conversation/ on Jul 20, 2021

“I am a family member of an individual who died by suicide,” said Maria Beth Smith of Summerville. “My son David, who was on the spectrum (autism) and extremely high functioning, did …

Originally Published at https://www.blufftonsun.com/the-bridge-of-understanding-mental-physical-disability/ on Aug 17, 2021

As a person with invisible mental disabilities, can I relate to someone with visible physical disabilities?

I definitely don’t believe in a disability hierarchy. There is no disability more valid or deserving …

Originally published at https://www.blufftonsun.com/by-speaking-up-about-mental-illness-recovery-can-begin/ on Sep 13, 2021.

According to Mental Health America, 1 in 5 Americans will have a diagnosable mental illness within a given year.

This means 1 in 5 of your neighbors, loved ones and community. You …