Technically I suppose I am not suffering from depression, but just about every other classification has been used for me at one time or another with the usual being Paranoid Schizophrenic and because of my manic episodes/beliefs I do become suicidal, but have not been very successful in my attempts over the last 25 years of my illness! However, I try and fit in with the general community and am heavily involved with several darts leagues, run several web-sites and do voluntary work with computers for Age Concern and my local library. How I got accepted with my background I do not know, but I love the work and feel I am putting something into the community that pays for my expensive fortnightly Risperidone depot injections. I have not "Worked" for 15 years (On benefit of course with my mothers assistance) and as you can probably tell I am very mixed about how people accept me. In my own small way I am increasing the general publics awareness of how people with mental health issues can be accepted into the community as I make no secrets of my health issues in the darting fraternity as you will see from "Big ALs Darts Site." I have even tried to write my own biograhpy, "Schizophrenia, My Life Story" and had it published, but haven't sold many copies, except locally. Terry Pratchett is publicising "Dementia" and doing a brilliant job of gaining the attention of the Government with it's proposed new initiatives, as I say I hope I am doing my bit with Schizophrenia and wish the creator of this web-site all the best with drawing attention to another great tabboo of depression.
Hi there, firstly I'd like to thank you for joining my site and hopefully help break alot of the Taboos associated with mental illness. It doesnt matter what sub category you come under, whether it be manic depression or schizophrenia and many other guizes, the end results form the same big Stigma. I still find it funny when I tell people I've had agitated depression all my adult life, and they say " Wow, but you always look so happy!!"
If only things were that straight forward, hey!!
I really commend you for writing your own biography, I should imagine it can be very cleansing to get it all out in black and white. Will have to check out the new Terry Pratchett book, too!!
Lastly thank you for your warm wishes and sharing your story with us. Hope for your continued support. x
Listening And Celebrating Recovery Event.
We all know that the Government is trying to remove some of the stigma attached to mental illness, so I suppose that is why my local mental hospital recently held what they called a “Listening and Celebrating Recovery Day.” The consultant formally invited several long-term patients, including myself, to attend. Naturally many declined as people with mental health issues don’t generally like the “socialising” type of event. However, half a dozen of us plucked up the courage to turn up on the day with our carers in tow and found some 10-15 medical staff were also there.
The idea behind the event seemed a little mixed as the invite stated that it would be informal and requested that we bring “Samples of our work,” (presumably to show each other what we were still capable of.) However, as everybody arrived we saw all the chairs had been placed in a big circle ready for us to be interrogated!
Two or three patients had brought some of their “work” along, as well as myself, and were given tables to display it on. Naturally I showed some of the books that I have written and put my computer on another to show my web-sites. One older lady put on a rather splendid display of some large paintings and small painted gift cards that she had made. Like me she hadn’t taken up her craft until after her condition had developed.
While everybody was milling about before the “discussion session” started, my CPN brought over a young lady with her father to chat and to see my books. This girl had written a college thesis, on her mental health condition and treatment, that she was interested in getting published. (Later on the consultant praised the standard of her research for the piece.) My CPN told me that several others hadn’t been able to come including one young man who was in the middle of his PHD course.
I don’t know if it is true, but the public impression of people with mental illness is that they are not usually very well educated, come from a poorer background and not much use for anything. It would have been quite an eye opener for people who think like that to have been there that day and seen what a small group of long-term mental health patients were capable of.
It may be a misconception on my part, but I understand that a lot of mental health workers become such because of some association with mental health problems in the past, whether they are their own, those a family member or those of a friend. Indeed I know of a young lady who is trying to set up a web-site based socialising group in a town near to where I live. The young lady obtained her university degree with her thesis on mental health issues and has had her own mental health issues since being a teenager. (SSH Link) So for anybody out there who thinks that developing mental illness is the end of the road, it is not, it is merely a road junction and the start of a new part of the journey of life.
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