On the day after Halloween in 2015, I found myself in a vacant lot alone and terrified after a nearly successful suicide attempt. Left sad, confused, angry and just plain exhausted from years of denying that I had a problem, that was the day that ultimately ended up saving my life. For years, I kept [...]
When I was three years old, my parents divorced. My mother, suffering from bipolar disorder and not knowing how she could raise a child on her own, attempted suicide. I have vivid memories of her return from the hospital: she was so sedated that she could not pick me up. With the dissolution of my [...]
Support System I struggled from the time I was fourteen to the time I was twenty-two, with something I could not name. Doctors called it a lot of things from depression to allergies, and none of the diagnoses were correct. I felt that I was fighting an invisible demon, who refused to let me go. [...]
The Call of the Void "You know when you have so much stuff to do, but thinking about it makes you stressed out, and then that stress keeps you from doing anything? Well you have anxiety, you know what I'm talking about right?" My coworker asked me while leaning against the beige wall of my [...]
Some People Just Suck Carefully maneuvering to grab the third plane of the day, I reached the line to board. Dressed in royal blue, the gate agent made his first announcement. "Anyone who needs assistance, extra time, or has a disability may board now. I approached the front of the line. "Pardon me." I said [...]
For many years of my life I lived with and suffered from depression. I had an inability to open up about my emotions and the trauma I had experienced early on in life. At thirteen I was in a life changing car accident. An accident that forever made me different but at thirteen no one [...]
Part 1: My mental illness journey is a long and circuitous one. It began as soon as I could tell the difference between sad and happy. It now continues today, although I am fortunate and proud to be in recovery. My father was an abusive person, both to my mother and myself. We always [...]
No matter who we are, no matter the color of our skin, the religion we practice, the socioeconomic status we live in or our sexual preference, we are all living in a stigma. From the day each and every one of us are born we are signed up for a stigma that we never asked [...]
So, I was given the suggestion to write for Stigma Fighters from a contributor – who happens to be one of my closest friends. I have bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety and I happen to hallucinate because of an accident. I am medicated, but sometimes the meds do not work. My coping mechanisms, one of which [...]
Have you ever had someone say something hurtful to you and it stick with you all day long? It's hard enough dealing with one person saying hurtful things to you, but to deal with yourself is a totally different matter. That's what my depression is. It's the voices of my two worst enemies berating me [...]
