Mental Health Awareness

16/06/2022

I have a secret I suffer from mental health issues as well and I've been so afraid to tell people about it. It started along time ago when my dad passed away I started to change then I hit rock bottom when my sister passed away. I became distant from my family and friends. Didn't want to be around people. I use to make up reasons why I couldn't go out. I felt like I was drowning and I didn't know how to get out. I pushed my love ones away to the point where they knew something was going on but I just said I'm fine but I was dying on the inside. The voice in my head was getting louder and I tried to block it out. But it wouldn't leave me alone. It's like it had control telling me that I was worthless and you would be better if not being here anymore.

I stopped eating for a while I hurt myself I just wanted the world to swallow me up. I use to be happy and fun to be around but over time I just became a ghost. I hated the way I looked hated the sound of my own voice. I just stopped talking. I wished I the strength to over come it.

I look back on it know and think man I wished I had told someone how I was feeling and not out my love ones thew all the hurt and pain.i just wanted to let you know that it ok. That your not alone there are people out there going thew the same thing so please don't judge them just sit there and listen to them.

13/06/2022

13/06/2022

I started to see a change in how I was thinking, feeling and acting. I started to feel the need for attention, good or bad, I was extremely insecure and I had no self-confidence. I became consumed by what other people thought of me. I also felt unfulfilled; I felt like I was always searching for more — but I didn’t know what I was searching for or why.

The negative thoughts only got louder. Once that switch flipped, there was no return to my “normal” childhood. I obsessed over my weight and appearance, didn’t eat properly, over-exercised and misused medications for weight loss. It became all I thought about; I felt so in control but so out of control at the same time.

Eventually, my family noticed how my new habits were taking over my life. I struggled to complete everyday tasks. I was missing and failing school. I was sleeping majority of the days, crying a lot. I was sad and in such a dark place every single day. But why? I was popular and pretty, I came from a great family, I was involved in cheerleading and dancing and I had tons of friends. I had everything, so how could I feel so sad?

A few long months into my sophomore year of high school, I was diagnosed with an eating disorder, depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder. By that April, I was admitted into my first inpatient treatment center. I thought that treatment would magically fix everything; I was going to be back to my happy, healthy self in 30 days! I worked my way through the treatment program, calling my parents every day and begging them to come get me because I was “better.” I was eating the meals, so everything was fine, right?

Treatment did not turn out to be the easy fix I’d hoped for; it was a challenging experience. I lost all connection to the real world, and my days became structured schedules of therapy, specific bathroom times and designated eating times. I will always remember the first thing they told me in treatment: “It’s not about the food.” How could it not be? It was the only

13/06/2022

Kathleen’s Story: This is how it feels to live with a panic disorder

Kathleen Munro, a Youth Network Ambassador, shares her experience learning about her panic attacks

I woke up around 3:00 a.m. on a red eye.

Still half asleep, I suddenly noticed how cold I was. Shaking actually. I noticed my hands were trembling. I tucked myself in under my sweater and tried to take some deep breaths. It didn’t help. I looked down to find my legs shaking terribly as well. Not wanting to disturb the man sitting next to me, I got up and locked myself in the bathroom.

I thought I was having a seizure.

I was flying alone that night. My boyfriend—who I had been travelling with for the past two weeks—had stayed in Colombia to visit his parents for a while longer. I was crying. I felt like I had lost all control of my body and I was embarrassed about asking a stranger to help me when I had no idea what was going on myself.

When I finally left the stall, a flight attendant passed me in the aisle and noticed me trembling. She asked me if she should call a doctor. I agreed. Thus, began a very public triage of my seemingly inexplicable symptoms.

This is what it’s like living with anxiety.

You see, at the time, I had no idea that what I was actually experiencing was a panic attack. Towards the end of our trip I had been sick with food poisoning that had lasted days. I figured that the most logical explanation was that I’d picked up some tropical bug or was perhaps I was just severely dehydrated.

The countless tests and medical examinations I had upon arrival proved that theory wrong. But my “mystery illness” stayed with me.

07/06/2022

“Sometimes you climb out of bed in the morning and you think, I’m not going to make it, but you laugh inside — remembering all the times you’ve felt that way.” — Charles Bukowski

07/06/2022

Depression is more than simply feeling unhappy or fed up for a few days.

07/06/2022

Is anyone here suffering from ADHD
How did you find out you're ?

31/05/2022

Symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder

Physical and mental symptoms of GAD include:

perceiving situations as more threatening than they are

difficulty in letting go of worries

difficulty concentrating

difficulty sleeping

difficulty with uncertain situations

irritability, nervousness, overthinking, and difficulty relaxing

fatigue and exhaustion

muscle tension

repeated stomachaches, diarrhea, or other gastrointestinal issues

sweaty palms

feeling shaky or weak

rapid heartbeat

dry mouth

being easily startled

neurological symptoms, such as numbness or tingling in different parts of your body.

31/05/2022

"Vulnerability sounds like truth and feels like courage. Truth and courage aren’t always comfortable, but they're never weakness."

31/05/2022

"I think it’s really important to take the stigma away from mental health… My brain and my heart are really important to me. I don’t know why I wouldn’t seek help to have those things be as healthy as my teeth."

31/05/2022

"There is a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in." ― Leonard Cohen

31/05/2022

"You don’t have to control your thoughts. You just have to stop letting them control you." — Dan Millman

07/04/2022

Depersonalization/Derealization Disorder

The separation from oneself, one’s surroundings, or both describes the altered state of depersonalization/derealization disorder. Patients who have this disorder feel they are observing themselves from outside their own body. They may also believe that things aren’t real, as though their surroundings are distorted or time is speeding up or slowing down.

07/04/2022

What is fibromyalgia?
Fibromyalgia is a condition that causes pain all over the body (also referred to as widespread pain), sleep problems, fatigue, and often emotional and mental distress. People with fibromyalgia may be more sensitive to pain than people without fibromyalgia. This is called abnormal pain perception processing.

01/04/2022

Has anyone ever been in a situation where all of the sudden a conversation happens where you have to fake being "ok and happy". Even if your not ok and holding back your tears. I was just told news that I have to "get along" with someone I want nothing to do with. If I don't agree. I will be lossing someone I love. I have 4 days and that person will be here. My life will change forever. I fear for the worst.

How can/do I control my emotions and stop the anxiety from building up? Or the depression from coming? I can't/don't have any reason to give this person a chance. How do I fake "getting along" with that person (to please the other person in my life)? FML!!!!

27/03/2022