I write about people living with mental illness, the big ideas defining the field, and systems set up to provide care. I’m always looking for story ideas, so please reach out using the contact options below.
Sometimes I cover breaking news in the field, like legal challenges or investigations. I’ve looked at the theoretical foundations of the field of trauma and at P.T.S.D. in soldiers and police officers. As mental health professionals have begun to approach prolonged grief as a disorder, I looked at a group of adults who, as children, lost parents in the same horrific plane crash. Sometimes I look into stories in the news that touch on mental illness, like a romance writer who falsely reported her own suicide, or a theater director who lost his job for fabricating past achievements.
This is my second stint covering mental health full time, but in all my jobs I have written about trauma, loss and how people manage upheaval. I’ve worked for The Times for 16 years, serving as bureau chief in Moscow, Delhi and Boston, and as chief international correspondent in London. I grew up as a foreign service brat, moving every few years, mostly in Eastern Europe. When I stumbled into my college newspaper I realized I was home.
All Times journalists are committed to upholding the standards of integrity outlined in our Ethical Journalism Handbook.
Writing about mental illness means foregrounding private people, often asking them to speak about the most difficult parts of their lives. It’s important to me that they are able to tell their own stories, and add their voices to policy discussions. It also means writing about systems of care that are chronically under-resourced, often abandoning sick people to jail or life on the street. I regularly speak with people who need to remain anonymous to protect their safety, and I value and protect those relationships.
Email: [email protected]
Threads: @ellenbarrynyt_
WhatsApp: +1-322-207-1948
Signal: +1-322-207-1948
LinkedIn: Ellen Barry
Anonymous tips: nytimes.com/tips
Nineteen ways the app rewired our culture.
By Ashwin Seshagiri, Mike Dang, Anemona Hartocollis, Kashmir Hill, Becky Hughes, Santul Nerkar, Jordyn Holman, Michael M. Grynbaum, Ellen Barry, Vanessa Friedman, Dana G. Smith, Amanda Hess, Natasha Singer, David E. Sanger, Ben Sisario, Tiffany Hsu, Sapna Maheshwari and Brooks Barnes
A large study of “discordant twins,” in which only one suffered abuse or neglect, adds to evidence linking childhood trauma to adult illness.
By Ellen Barry
We look at promising, evidence-based efforts to prevent suicide.
By Ellen Barry
Pop stars are increasingly incorporating references to therapy and mental illness in their lyrics.
By Ellen Barry
Andrey Shevelyov would rather live on the street than take antipsychotic medication. Should it be his decision to make?
By Ellen Barry
An Oxford researcher measured the effect of popular workplace mental health interventions, and discovered little to none.
By Ellen Barry
The city’s $26 million contract with Talkspace makes mental health care very accessible. But some worry it is ‘a Band-Aid’ at a time of crisis.
By Ellen Barry and Christina Caron
Traumatic memories had their own neural mechanism, brain scans showed, which may help explain their vivid and intrusive nature.
By Ellen Barry
Gunshots are the top cause of death for children and teenagers in the U.S. Fatal or not, the wounds reverberate through communities and the health care system.
By Ellen Barry
At a time when teen suicide was seen as random and unpredictable, Dr. Shaffer, a psychiatrist, led investigations that proved that it was not.
By Ellen Barry
