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Maya Schumer! @mayaschumer.bsky.social · Aug 13

@acnporg.bsky.social brought @umarchatterjee.bsky.social
@deffinger.bsky.social & me together last year: After finding each other on X-as we are all public/open about our lived experience -we met+discussed the ideas for this Study Group! Looking forward to doing this work together@ #ACNP2026💥🧠❤️

Uma R. Chatterjee, M.S., MHPS @umarchatterjee.bsky.social · Aug 12

THRILLED to share @acnporg.bsky.social news x2!

1) Our study group “Centering Lived Experience in Psychiatric Neuroscience Research” @ericjnestler.bsky.social @mayaschumer.bsky.social @deffinger.bsky.social @viscidula.bsky.social @noelvest.bsky.social @cahill-lab.bsky.social=ACCEPTED! 🤩 #ACNP2026

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Reposted by Maya Schumer!

Scott Thompson, PhD @sthom003.bsky.social · Aug 12

So important to recognize the value and recognize the importance of lived experiences! Thank you to all the panelists for your courage and generosity!

Uma R. Chatterjee, M.S., MHPS @umarchatterjee.bsky.social · Aug 12

THRILLED to share @acnporg.bsky.social news x2!

1) Our study group “Centering Lived Experience in Psychiatric Neuroscience Research” @ericjnestler.bsky.social @mayaschumer.bsky.social @deffinger.bsky.social @viscidula.bsky.social @noelvest.bsky.social @cahill-lab.bsky.social=ACCEPTED! 🤩 #ACNP2026

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Reposted by Maya Schumer!

Uma R. Chatterjee, M.S., MHPS @umarchatterjee.bsky.social · Aug 12

THRILLED to share @acnporg.bsky.social news x2!

1) Our study group “Centering Lived Experience in Psychiatric Neuroscience Research” @ericjnestler.bsky.social @mayaschumer.bsky.social @deffinger.bsky.social @viscidula.bsky.social @noelvest.bsky.social @cahill-lab.bsky.social=ACCEPTED! 🤩 #ACNP2026

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Maya Schumer! @mayaschumer.bsky.social · May 26

@umarchatterjee.bsky.social

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Maya Schumer! @mayaschumer.bsky.social · May 26

@afspnational.bsky.social @isbd4.bsky.social @namicommunicate.bsky.social @onemindorg.bsky.social @bipolardiscoveries.org @stopthestigma.bsky.social @bipolaruk.bsky.social

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Maya Schumer! @mayaschumer.bsky.social · May 26

I recently—for the first time—spoke openly & honestly about my 11+year journey w/ #BipolarDisorder +chronic su!cidality on my friend @UmaRChatterjee podcast @AChatWithUma. Grateful to Uma for creating the opportunity for me to speak truth to stigma. Check out Part 1! (part 2 coming this week!)

Uma R. Chatterjee, M.S., MHPS @umarchatterjee.bsky.social · May 20

🧠 WHY IS MY BRAIN TRYING TO K!LL ME?: Living With Bipolar 1 Disorder & Chronic S#icidality with Dr. @mayaschumer.bsky.social (pt. 1) ☯️
Ep. 40 of A Chat with Uma out now! Listen here 👉🏾 creators.spotify.com/pod/show/uma...

#BipolarDisorder #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth #Neuroscience #LivedExperience 1/

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Reposted by Maya Schumer!

Uma R. Chatterjee, M.S., MHPS @umarchatterjee.bsky.social · May 20

If you’ve ever struggled with chronic s#icidality, felt the weight of stigma in academia, or questioned what makes life worth holding onto—this episode is for you. @mayaschumer.bsky.social’s powerful story is one of survival, honesty, & the power of turning pain into purpose. ❤️🙌🏾👏🏾 #BipolarDisorder

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Reposted by Maya Schumer!

Uma R. Chatterjee, M.S., MHPS @umarchatterjee.bsky.social · May 20

In Pt. 1, @mayaschumer.bsky.social shares her full experience across 3 decades:
☯️ Growing up w/ a father with Bipolar 1
☯️Her own journey from Bipolar 2 → 1
☯️ Hospitalizations
☯️ Lithium
☯️ Chronic s#icidality
☯️ #MetabolicPsychiatry
☯️ IV k3tam!ne
☯️ TMS
☯️ Redefining “stability”
Read full topics below ⬇️

(00:14:00) Artist → neuroscientist plot-twist
(00:17:46) Creativity, bipolar, & the Kaye Redfield Jamison spark
(00:20:26) How & why we met on X/Twitter, defying the norms of academia, & building a movement together (00:26:30) Ableism in research spaces & how we fight back (00:31:34) Childhood in bipolar's shadow: therapy at three &
"casserole syndrome"
(00:38:42) Stigma lessons, dignity, & mourning a living ghost (00:43:02) College crash: color-coding moods → diagnosis at
20
(00:46:30) Types | & Il, mixed states, spectrum-& living every corner of it
(00:53:00) Compliance # acceptance: owning the illness vs. just taking meds
(01:05:52) Losing sleep, losing friendships, & the 24/7 second job of self-monitoring
(01:17:46) Seasonal mood whiplash & March-mania defenses
(01:22:54) Keto, & lithium 2.0
(01:34:12) Daily IV ketamine, accelerated TMS, & pluralism
(01:44:30) A brutally honest convo about chronic suicidality
(01:52:00) Redefining stability, building lived-experience science

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Reposted by Maya Schumer!

Uma R. Chatterjee, M.S., MHPS @umarchatterjee.bsky.social · May 20

On Ep. 40 of A Chat with Uma, I talk to Dr. @mayaschumer.bsky.social —a psychiatric neuroscientist who studies & lives with #bipolardisorder. Maya earned her PhD in neurosci at Pitt Med & is now a postdoc at @mcleanhospital.bsky.social @harvardmed.bsky.social modeling the dynamic nature of BD. 1/

On episode 40 of A Chat with Uma, I sit down with my o friend Dr. Maya Schumer-a psychiatric neuroscientist who studies bipolar disorder, the very illness she lives with. She shares her full experience across 3 decades: growing up with a father with bipolar 1 disorder, how her own bipolar 2 diagnosis morphed into bipolar 1, several hospitalizations, her relationship with lithium, chronic suicidality, metabolic psychiatry, IV ketamine, TMS, & redefining "stability." If you've ever struggled with chronic suicidality, felt the weight of stigma in academia, or questioned what makes life worth holding onto-this conversation is for you. Maya's story is one of survival, honesty, & the power of turning pain into purpose.
Dr. Maya Schumer is a psychiatric neuroscientist & postdoctoral researcher who studies—& has lived experience with-Bipolar Disorder.

Maya received her PhD in neuroscience from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine in 2023, where she used task-based functional neuroimaging & coordinate-based meta-analysis to identify reproducible & replicable neural network markers of bipolar disorder risk. Currently, Maya is a postdoctoral fellow at McLean Hospital, an affiliate of Harvard Medical School.
Mentored by Dr. Dost Öngür, Maya examines resting-state functional connectivity patterns & neural network dynamics across different stages & mood states in bipolar disorder, with an overall goal to model its dynamic nature.

Maya's passion for research is informed by her own lived experience. In her role as a researcher with lived experience, she aims to address & dismantle the stigma surrounding serious mental illnesses (SMIs), make academia & research environments more inclusive & accommodating for those with disabilities; & advocate for meaningful co-production between individuals with lived experience & scientists.

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Reposted by Maya Schumer!

Uma R. Chatterjee, M.S., MHPS @umarchatterjee.bsky.social · May 20

🧠 WHY IS MY BRAIN TRYING TO K!LL ME?: Living With Bipolar 1 Disorder & Chronic S#icidality with Dr. @mayaschumer.bsky.social (pt. 1) ☯️
Ep. 40 of A Chat with Uma out now! Listen here 👉🏾 creators.spotify.com/pod/show/uma...

#BipolarDisorder #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth #Neuroscience #LivedExperience 1/

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