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My Depression Recovery Story
My name is Mike Logan Stubbs. I’m a 28-year-old from England. I suffer from depression and mental health issues which I believe have haunted me for nearly six years now.
My depression got so bad four months ago, I attempted to take my own life and was hospitalized.
I felt like no matter what I did, I would always feel this way (depressed). I can get so low, like the flick of a switch, when my depression is at its worst and unfortunately cannot control it.
When I got out of hospital, with the support of my family, I made it my mission to get better — and the best way to express my emotions is through music. Through music I feel like a “normal” person and feel it is my best therapy.
My experience with depression and fighting it inspired me to raise awareness through music. Listening to other bands and artists also helps me, especially when the lyrics are meaningful! My favorite artists and inspiration range from Metallica, Phil Collins and even classical music. The experience of attempting suicide inspired me to not only help myself, but to help others who feel the same as me.
My Journey to Recovery
My father was a drug addict, paranoid schizophrenic, dealer and hoarder.
Growing up was traumatic to say the least, I ended up moving out at age 15.
Currently I am 28, a father to be, high school teacher and martial arts instructor.
My whole life I have been dealing with depression, anxiety and other mental health concerns.
I found that the best therapy came from writing my story, first in the form of poetry then in a book. Even if you only write for your self, please do it. It will help!
Offering Hope Hang In There
I’m MERLIN.I have been dealing with mental health issues for many years, more than 25+ .I have taken all different kinds of of meds and have tried to stop taking meds more than 8 times and have ended up in the hospital.a mental health hospital can be a scary place but the people are trained and are there to assist you with your recovery.Since dealing with mental health issues over 25+ years I have decided to turn the tables on MENTAL HEALTH and train to be a PEER SUPPORT ADVOCATE.i want to help other people dealing with mental health issues and let them know that there is light at the end of the road and what they are going through is only temporary.i want to share my faith and help educate,inpire,coach and be an example to others.medication and counseling
Aspiring Mental Health Professional
I suffer from a dual diagnosis of alcoholism and depression. I am now in recovery for alcoholism and am being treated for depression with an antidepressant and therapy to deal with life long issues. I now work in the mental health field and am going to school to be a mental health counselor. I very much feel that I have much to offer others who suffer from addiction and mental health issues, although honestly, some days feel I am worse off than those with whom I am working. I struggle daily with thoughts low self esteem and worthlessness and relapsing into alcohol usage! However, I realize that this will be a daily challenge for possibly the rest of my life. I want to encourage and inspire others who are also in recovery for addiction and mental illness to find help and support. There is hope for you if you just take the first steps.
Mental Health Awareness Month
This year has been the year I’ve really worked on my recovery and my overall mental health. From a very young age I was depressed, fascinated with death and constantly anxious. I developed major body image issues as a child that turned into an eating disorder. I grew up with a biological father who was an addict, alcoholic, abusive and mentally ill with Bipolar Disorder.
Psychotic Depression and Life Regained
I suffered intensely from psychotic depression. I didn’t know it had a name, even though I’ve had mdd and bipolar disorder. The pain and immersion into a hellish world where you are convinced the only way out is suicide, is beyond comprehension.
It has been a year in making to full recovery. Being so traumatic, I was grateful just to be alive; however, I never dreampt I would have peace, contentment, and joy.
Psychotic depression is one step before death. If this happens to you or a loved one, pull out the big guns:antidepressants, antipychotics, AND ect. Dont be concerned about memory loss, and the anti-ect rhetoric. Choose life and happiness. Weight gain from antipychotics? Rather be alive or dead?
There is life and full recovery after psychotic depression.
Coming out with Mental Health Issues – Career Suicide?
Coming out in the traditional sense of being Gay, Lesbian, Bi, Trans, etc., in the work place has its own set of fears and potential consequences. Coming out that you have a Mental Health challenge, such as major depression, anxiety, panic attacks, PTSD, or other challenge is equally accompanied with a host of fear because of many deep rooted stigmas. Regardless of the current laws and ordinances against discrimination in the workplace any of us who have been around the block a few times know that it is all too real for many of us. The lived experiences of coming out, in many cases can be disastrous, loss of professional status, promotions, loss of jobs, livelihood, housing, relationships, family, leading to more stress and exacerbating existing mental conditions. Other stigmas may also play a factor and further compound the pile on effect, kick them when they are down, crowd mentality.
Tammy’s Recovery Story
June 3, 2014
Thank you for your interest in my recovery story. I have been in mental health treatment for the past thirty-three years. It began at age eight when I was sexually molested by a close relative. I did not tell anyone out of shame and guilt for ten years. I became anorexic immediately following the assault, which turned into bulimia, severe depression and anxiety through my teenage years. My parents would not allow hospitalization or medication because of their ignorance and the stigma involved. Suicide was constantly on my mind. My parents did allow for weekly psychotherapy treatments.
At seventeen, I suffered a major mental breakdown and was limited in my high school attendance. I disclosed facts about the abuse during therapy, but no charges were filed, once again due to the perceived stigma. At eighteen, I took myself to the psychiatrist and received my first prescription for an anti-depressant. Lack of effectiveness and side effects caused me to spend the next fifteen years trying different medicine combinations.
Acceptance Was My Key To Full Recovery.
My name is Eileen. I am a 60-year-old happily married woman with one daughter and a successful career. I suffered from mental health disorders starting in my early twenties with panic attacks, Pre and Postpartum Depression, followed by on and off moderate depression throughout my thirties, and a major depressive episode at age 41 when I finally hit rock bottom. I have had good mental health since I was about 43 years old. I credit this good health to many things; support from family and friends, the right medication, seeing a good therapist, (by good I mean one that fits your needs), taking care of my physical health and yes, faith that the universe basically has my back. But for me, even with all the resources I had, full recovery was not possible until I accepted two big facts of life. Fact one, I Cannot Control everything that happens in my life. Fact two, I am an Imperfect Human Being who happens to be predisposed to mental illness. The acceptance of these two facts did not happen overnight and so recovery did not happen overnight. But it did happen. Recovery will be different for you, but it CAN happen for you too if you PERSEVERE. You MUST persevere to truly know how wonderful life can be.
My Recovery from Depression
I surprised myself (and my family and friends) by recovering in the last few years from an at times serious depression of about 20 years.
I knew our family had a bio-chemical pre-disposition towards depression. When I was a junior in high school my mother was hospitalized for depression. She was at the National Institutes for Mental Health in a program that was one of the first trials for using medication for bi-polar disorder. She recovered in time for my high school graduation in 1969 – and definitely recovered her mental health for the rest of her life. And for years afterwards she continued taking her lithium, going to her support group and talked openly about her mental illness, and helped many others.
Later on, one of my older brothers had several occurrences of bi-polar disorder, and even for awhile both my twin brother (who is ‘intellectually challenged’) and myself were on the same medications for anxiety and depression. Neither of us are now on any psychotropic medications – and while my older brother and my mother were diagnosed as bi-polar, myself and my twin brother were not. (The oldest brother in our family never has had any problems with depression.)
Family:
As I mentioned, I have a twin brother who is severely intellectually disabled and is non-verbal. My mother was very active in the field of mental retardation. Richy looked normal at birth with big eyes and a big head, but when I was starting to talk and he wasn’t my parents took him for tests. Although he has no other physical problems, he was diagnosed with “severe brain damage.” He went to a different nursery school than me and to live-away schools in the country but came home for vacations. But there were times when someone would say to me: “Oh, you are the lucky one!” which sometimes gave me “survivor guilt.”