“As someone battling mental illness who is often alone in her thoughts and without close friendships, it has been years since I’ve really felt ‘seen.’ One day, I will tell her she gave me a reason to keep going.”
‘My niece emerged with a paper. ‘Here, Aunt Melissa, it’s for you.’ My eyes filled with tears. She gave me a reason to keep going.’: Woman battling mental illness realizes ‘love knows no boundaries’ after emotional surprise
‘I sat on the floor, my head in a toilet. My sister said, ‘I’m not doing this anymore.’ My favorite person was done. That was enough for me.’: Woman details sobriety and mental health journey
“As a child, I was scared of everything. I felt on edge about everything. When the effects of cheap vodka flooded over me, all of my fears washed away. I finally felt like I was enough. I felt invincible, and I loved it.”
‘If you had autism, you’d be a unicorn.’ My social life was thriving, but I was a mess on the inside. I hated not being myself.’: Woman shares autism diagnosis journey, ‘My differences are a gift’
“I was told I was special or unique. I was the center of attention, and not in a good way. From the clothes I wore to the things I said, everything was wrong. I couldn’t fit in with the ‘normal’ people.”
‘We think you have depression.’ I felt like a freak. What would people say? I thought no one could ‘fix’ me.’: Woman becomes mental health advocate, ‘This is my purpose’
“I started skipping classes. My family called me, but I ignored them. I didn’t actually know what depression was. All I knew about it were the cheesy commercials advertising anti-depressants. I felt ashamed of myself.”
‘I’ve been drowning for so long.’ I washed my hands until they bled and cleaned obsessively. My brain played tricks on me.’: Nurse becomes mental health advocate, ‘You’re NOT alone’
“My family and friends told me, ‘Calm down. Everybody gets stressed.’ I watched my parents Lysol my whole car, shaking on the ground and unable to move. Being on the other side of healthcare as the patient everyone assumed was ‘crazy’ felt absolutely surreal.”
‘If you keep eating, we’ll have to buy you maternity clothes.’ I felt disgusted. Everything I hated about myself was because of food.’: Woman raises eating disorder awareness, ‘Don’t turn a blind eye’
“I scrambled to anchor myself and settled on the one thing I could control. Food. The high I felt stepping on those scales, malnourished, with fragile wrists, was like no other to me. It was an addiction.”
‘Your condition is dangerous.’ Blood came pouring out. I couldn’t live another day like this.’: Woman reveals ‘highs and lows’ of Crohn’s Disease, ‘I’m ready to take on what’s next’
“I ran to the bathroom thirty times a day, losing blood each time. I broke down and sobbed. I felt defeated by this disease. I was only a shadow of myself.”
‘I smashed the window while holding my son. ‘Go buy essential oils,’ the nurse told me. I was pushed aside.’: Mom of 2 advocates for postpartum depression, ‘There’s no need to suffer in silence’
“If you feel like this again, call and I’ll talk you off the ledge.’ I was ashamed to admit I was having thoughts of harming myself. It triggered something I have never experienced: intense rage.”
‘I was shut upstairs, locked away. ‘There must be something wrong with me.’ Sex was learned from books. I felt unsafe.’: Woman leaves past life, walks 500 miles, ‘I let others love me’
“At 12, my grandmother looked me in the eye and said, ‘If you want to go to the gym, I’ll pay. I think you need it.’ I was the girl who drank 25 shots in a row and took her clothes off in a room full of people. I felt dead inside.”
‘Something’s wrong.’ She’d stop breathing. We’d have a blue baby in our arms. The whirlwind had just begun.’: Baby diagnosed with ‘ultra rare’ Gould Syndrome, ‘She lives a joy-filled life’
“It’s probably not a big deal.’ The team was stumped. They decided to do an ultrasound just for good measure. Our world was shattered in that moment.”
