When I arrived at the psychiatrist’s office I was jumpy and in tears. I was scared. I didn’t want the stigma of being hospitalized for mental illness but I knew I was in crisis. I explained to the doctor all the things I had been too scared to tell anyone else ever. I spilled the [...]
You don't have to be mentally ill to suffer the stigma associated with mental illness. I know all about it. My mother became psychotic when I was a teenager. She may never have known how the world saw her – or me – after that. But I did. You can imagine what it was like, [...]
My name is Jim Russell. I have been in law enforcement in Florida for over 21 years. I have a mental illness. I have major depressive disorder. Those things are not supposed to go together. A police officer is supposed to be perceived to be in control at all times, and must in all circumstances, [...]
I was diagnosed with depression at the age of 13. During this time I used to self harm, cut, and starve myself to be thin which led to anorexia nervosa. At the age of 14 I became familiar with the idea of ‘suicide’ from a movie and ever since then I’ve always enjoyed researching and [...]
You can look at depression in many ways: seen as a negative to most people, especially when they are being forced to endure it. To live with the daily turbulence that rumbles within their own head. A turbulence that does not engage with the other people surrounding you but can engage these people internally within [...]
Every day I wake up and I am drowning. Each moment of happiness that Ihave is so rare and fleeting that I almost don't know what I amfeeling.My cycle: I start something new, I succeed, I imbed myself in thatlife, and then everything unravels. I fall apart. Relationships andfriendships crumble in the blink of an [...]
Broken Souls Molested by the utmost disgraceful thoughts. Subjugated by authority who thought they knew best. Disparaged by contemporaries. These are a few characteristics of a broken soul. Nay, perhaps these were just the characteristics of my broken soul, for one man’s problem is another man’s pleasure. Regardless, broken souls are everywhere, although I have [...]
When I was twelve, my parents and I moved to Orcas Island. They had heard about a new, small Christian school in a secluded island town and wanted me to attend. Just like that, I was in a strange new place where I knew nobody but my parents. Still, somehow, I was hopeful and excited [...]
As I look back on my life, my battle with mental health started young. My father was killed when I was six years old, triggering the life-long battle I would be fighting with others and myself. Throughout grade school, my teachers deemed me a “mature child,” probably because my childhood was ripped away from me [...]
Have you ever tried to describe air to a toddler? “You can’t sense it with sight, touch, smell, hear or taste but I guarantee you it’s there!” I get the same look when I share with people my mental health diagnoses. You can watch the gears in people’s minds slowly turning, eyes twitching and feverishly [...]