by Cierra in Colorado
I have been fearful, sad, and anxious as far back into my life as I can remember. It created social problems, family problems, and isolation/loneliness. The first time I started thinking about suicide, I was 10 years old. I didn't know anyone in the whole world that felt that way.
by Jodi in Ohio
My name is Jodi. I live in Ohio and I have been married to my husband, Matt for 13 years, and I have two wonderful children, Alex, age 9 and Meghan age 7. Here is my story: It was Thursday, September 23rd, 1999. I had very high expectations of the birth of my son. I dreamt of a perfect natural birth with no medication, and no complications. I went to childbirth education classes and I knew what was supposed to happen. I had no idea what was in store for me. Several hours after my water broke, there was still no progress. So the resident doctor gave me Pitocin to speed things up. An hour later I was in a lot of pain.
by Kathleen in Florida
I was molested sexually by my father, who murdered my mother when I was four and my brother was five. Yes, we witnessed it, but I just remembered all the details in the past two years. The molestation continued all my life. I was forced to choose between my father or a physically abusive boy friend at the age of 13.
by Louise in Nevada
I was in high school when I first remember thinking that killing myself would solve my problems. Back then, I had never heard of depression or even knew mental illness was anything other than what was shown in the movies.
by Lisa in Maryland
I was nine years old when PTSD began to affect my life. I always thought the way I reacted to situations was just my personality or a character flaw. I was 40 years old when a therapist put a name to what I was feeling. I had seen two other therapists in my life but never really opened up until the third one. I look back at the failed relationships, disappointment, never feeling like I've connected with anyone, and never trusting anyone. It is obvious now after 30 years, PTSD was ruling me.
by Kerri in Wisconsin
I was emotionally, physically and sexually abused by my ex-husband, who I had two children by. The abuse dragged on for seven years, ending in 1995 when he was finally charged with sexual assault, false imprisonment, domestic violence, and battery. I've been struggling with PTSD. I have a low self-esteem, bipolar and depression.
by Tamoa in Virgnia
I am just turning 35 years old and have lived with mental illness all my life. I remember asking my mother when I was little, "was I retarded like my uncle'" who is now 60 and has the mentality of a ten-year-old. I was crying all the time and could not sleep at night because I was afraid of things coming out from the bed or closets that I was actually seeing. My parents didn't think anything of it at the time. As I got older it became progressively worse.
by Linda in Pennsylvania
Due to my mental disorders (plural) I've been unemployed since 2001, except for a brief period last year when I attempted but was unable to work full-time. Right now I'm looking for volunteer work so that I can build up my stamina for working so that eventually I will be employable again.
by Stacy in New York
I am 22 years old. I have been fighting this battle successfully since I was 14. I have attempted to quit many times. I believe God has been trying to tell me something by keeping me here. I fight against the depression every day and win. Thank God for big miracles. It isn't easy. I try to eat 3 to 4 balanced meals a day. I try to sleep regularly. It is hard. Just when life is tough enough, something else comes along to test my abilities to stay sane.
by Laura in Florida
My Name is Laura, and I have had this awful disorder since I was a young child. At the time, my family had no idea what was wrong with me, I was just different. I did not have many friends and wanted to be by myself all the time. As I got older, I was in and out of facilities in Central Florida. They treated me like a dog, and that is the complete truth. I did not realize how they hurt you instead of helping you. I lost almost 20 years of my life and did not really realizing what was going on around me.
