http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm This is the Real Lives Blog from Mental Health America en-us Wed, 22 May 2013 00:40:30 -0400 Fri, 04 Sep 2009 14:29:00 -0400 BlogCFC http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss webmaster@mentalhealthameica.net webmaster@mentalhealthameica.net webmaster@mentalhealthameica.net http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm no http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2009/9/4/A-father-struggles-with-hard-times-and-unemployment by Tony in California My name is Anthony, and I was injured while serving in the Gulf of Oman. I served with VFA-97, on board the USS Kitty Hawk CV-63. The reason for this message is very complex, but I will try to summarize. You see, I was discharged from the Navy back in 1995 with a very small severance pay of $5000. Before deployment I met a young lady close to my base. We fell madly in love and couldn't get enough of each other. That was back in 1993. We got married and started our family. [More] Hospitalization Substance Abuse Uninsured Depression PTSD Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Panic Disorder Unemployment Suicidal Ideation Fri, 04 Sep 2009 14:29:00 -0400 http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2009/9/4/A-father-struggles-with-hard-times-and-unemployment http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2009/4/10/I-am-a-beautiful-talented-successful-woman-and-I-needed-help by Morgan in Illinois As far back as I can remember, mental illness has affected my life. My diagnosis, like many, is one of many disorders. I can remember the fights my parents had because my father, who suffered from bi-polar disorder, refused to seek help but self-medicated with drugs, alcohol, and countless women. My mother overcompensated by keeping an immaculate home and starving herself to meet the unattainable expectations of my father...always with a smile on her face. Even at 4-years old, I felt like there was something I should be doing differently, that it was my job to fix everything, and mostly, that it was all my fault in the first place. [More] Recovery Depression Hospitalization Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Family History Eating Disorder Fri, 10 Apr 2009 18:01:00 -0400 http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2009/4/10/I-am-a-beautiful-talented-successful-woman-and-I-needed-help http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2009/1/10/People-wiht-mental-illnes-CAN-recover-I-am-living-proof by Edna in Tennessee My name is Edna. I am a 47-year old single mother. My two children are grown, but have lived a life of confusion with my illnesses. I was a happy child, with a good life. However, in my teen years I started having bouts of sadness, depression, anxiety, and loneliness...even though I had a large family and many friends. [More] Abuse Social Anxiety Panic Disorder Divorce Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Unemployment Anxiety Depression Sat, 10 Jan 2009 01:34:00 -0400 http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2009/1/10/People-wiht-mental-illnes-CAN-recover-I-am-living-proof http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2009/1/10/Dedicated-to-making-the-world-a-better-place-for-people-with-mental-illnesses by Jennifer in Florida At the age of 12, I began to have trouble with depression. This became a chronic problem for me, which eventually resulted in a suicide attempt at age 15. At the same time, I was developing anorexia nervosa, which I struggled with for many years. I was hospitalized for my eating disorder at age 17. I had also developed an addiction to self-injury as a teenager, something that I was able to completely stop doing when I was in my twenties. [More] Hospitalization Substance Abuse Suicidal Ideation Eating Disorder Uninsured Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Homeless Unemployment Schizoaffective Disorder Sat, 10 Jan 2009 00:53:00 -0400 http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2009/1/10/Dedicated-to-making-the-world-a-better-place-for-people-with-mental-illnesses http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2009/1/10/If-something-is-weighing-you-down-build-a-bridge-to-help-you-get-over-it by Rayelle in Minnesota My mental illness has affected my life since I was around five years old. I grew up in a very violent and abusive home in Minnesota, as have a lot of my mentally ill friends. I have five siblings who grew up there with me and we all suffered the wrath of alcoholic parents who used us as punching bags. I was beaten regularly and even have memories of a sibling that was murdered in our kitchen, but no one ever talks about it or acknowledges it even happened. That caused a lot of anger and rage towards most of my direct family members, and I have cut most of them completely out of my life. That, I believe, was the healthiest thing I have ever done. [More] Anxiety Depression Eating Disorder ADHD Abuse Bipolar Disorder Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Panic Disorder Seasonal Affective Disorder Family History Sat, 10 Jan 2009 00:03:00 -0400 http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2009/1/10/If-something-is-weighing-you-down-build-a-bridge-to-help-you-get-over-it http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/15/Looking-for-others-who-understand-me-and-my-illness by Brandi in Ohio I can't remember a time when I wasn't depressed. As a child I always felt like I wasn't normal and that something was wrong with me but didn't know what. My parents didn't believe in mental illness or psychiatrists/therapy, so the feelings I was having just kept getting worse. When I was 16 I tried to commit suicide. [More] Panic Disorder Divorce Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Bipolar Disorder Anxiety Mon, 15 Dec 2008 01:11:00 -0400 http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/15/Looking-for-others-who-understand-me-and-my-illness http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/15/There-is-helpout-there-dont-ever-give-up by Sonya in Texas As an adult, I know now what was wrong with me as a teenager, which is wonderful in a way because I thought I was loosing my mind. Was I a weirdo and no one else was like me in the world? No, I found out that I have severe panic and anxiety attacks, along with depression. [More] Panic Disorder Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Bipolar Disorder Anxiety Mon, 15 Dec 2008 01:01:00 -0400 http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/15/There-is-helpout-there-dont-ever-give-up http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/15/Sharing-my-knowledge-helps-reap-emotional-mental-and-physical-strength-and-lightens-load by Yolanda in Florida At the age of 21, my doctor delivered devastating news and diagnosed me as suffering from bi-polar disorder. In my early teens, I experienced episodes of pure misery, which could quickly turn into extreme jubilation. In those early years though, I only understood the depression side of the disorder. After all, how could extreme exuberance be connected with an illness? [More] ADHD Social Anxiety Hospitalization Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Family History Anxiety Bipolar Disorder Mon, 15 Dec 2008 00:24:00 -0400 http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/15/Sharing-my-knowledge-helps-reap-emotional-mental-and-physical-strength-and-lightens-load http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/14/Outreaching-to-other-mental-health-consumers-a-cry-for-quality-care 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. [More] Schizophrenia PTSD Hospitalization Self-Injury Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Bipolar Disorder Anxiety Sun, 14 Dec 2008 23:24:00 -0400 http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/14/Outreaching-to-other-mental-health-consumers-a-cry-for-quality-care http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/9/Despite-the-obstacles-I-stay-positive by Jim in New Jersey I was born and raised in Philadelphia. I then moved to Florida with my wife and three children. By the 2001, I had been married for ten years. I wrestled with an obsession for many years. [More] Recovery Depression Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Bipolar Disorder Tue, 09 Dec 2008 19:02:00 -0400 http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/9/Despite-the-obstacles-I-stay-positive http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/9/Grateful-for-the-life-I-now-have by Bonnie in Pennsylvania I have lived a life that I would not want anyone to live. At the age of 13, I went on my first diet even though I was not overweight. This was when my life began spiraling out of control. It took about four years to get a diagnosis and that diagnosis was anorexia nervosa. I went from 110 pounds to 90 pounds to 69 pounds over an eight-year period. [More] PTSD Borderline Personality Disorder Recovery Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Eating Disorder Anxiety Tue, 09 Dec 2008 18:31:00 -0400 http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/9/Grateful-for-the-life-I-now-have http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/9/Long-road-leads-to-balance-and-unconditional-selflove by Angela in Alaska My depression started while I was young. I was a child born from an alcoholic, so I had missing endorphins (I found this out after doing research on depression. When I was 13 years old, I was medicated for severe depression after my father, who had abandoned my family when I was four, died. [More] Hospitalization Anxiety Divorce Recovery Social Anxiety Bipolar Disorder PTSD Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Panic Disorder Family History Tue, 09 Dec 2008 13:37:00 -0400 http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/9/Long-road-leads-to-balance-and-unconditional-selflove http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/9/Make-recovery-more-than-a-drug-fill-it-with-positive-people-and-activities by Harry in Indiana Hello everyone! I am Harry. I am 24. I have an awful headache. I have been suffering from mental illness since 10 and didn't seek treatment until 15. It began in the fall of 1993. I had a weekend that I describe as being sad. The world turned flat. I became obsessed with beings coming for me in the night. [More] Social Anxiety Hospitalization Homeless Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Family History Panic Disorder Tue, 09 Dec 2008 13:20:00 -0400 http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/9/Make-recovery-more-than-a-drug-fill-it-with-positive-people-and-activities http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/6/Grndmothers-shares-her-experiences-of-living-with-mental-illness by Joan in Wisconsin Early in my childhood, I was sexually abused and threatened to stay quiet. I have often wondered if those events had not occurred would I have had a normal life, even though mental illness is prevalent in my maternal gene pool. As my young life progressed, secrets came out and people were hurt. [More] Hospitalization Anxiety Divorce Family History Abuse Alcoholism Depression PTSD Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Substance Abuse Sat, 06 Dec 2008 21:27:00 -0400 http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/6/Grndmothers-shares-her-experiences-of-living-with-mental-illness http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/6/Breast-Cancer-and-Depression-Survivor-manages-lifelong-OCD by Annaco in Colorado My obsessive compulsive disorder started at age 11. I became school phobic. I would come home from school and lie in bed so my mind would not keep going over and over things. Then, going to bed wouldn't take the obsessions away, and I was into obsessions and rituals. I then started experiencing depression. I never laughed. I was always scared. At 19, I couldn't drive because I would think, "What if I drove off of the highway?" [More] Recovery Depression Hospitalization Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Anxiety Sat, 06 Dec 2008 20:56:00 -0400 http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/reallives/index.cfm/2008/12/6/Breast-Cancer-and-Depression-Survivor-manages-lifelong-OCD