Self care, wellbeing, mindfulness, depression, anxiety. All words the general public are accustomed to hearing. They are part of the mental health conversation and have become integral to increasing understanding of mental illness. What about psychosis, schizophrenia, PTSD? These are terms that still make people feel uncomfortable and on edge. People still believe that if you […]
Falling Through The Gap
I’ve lived with mental illness for more than half my life. Even so, it’s only been in the past few years where I’ve felt able to talk openly about bipolar, psychosis and bulimia. It’s everyones responsibility to help people like me find their voice. We shouldn’t have to feel brave for speaking up, we must […]
Is Mental Illness Your BFF?
Mental illness can overwhelm us at times. It can dictate our decisions, affect our relationships and stop us from doing the things we enjoy. Sometimes mental illness becomes more than just an illness, it becomes our life. Or to put it another way, our best friend. It’s an obsession we don’t want. An obsession with […]
A Life Lived Vividly Series: ‘I Thought The Voices Were Normal’ Realising I Had Psychosis
I suffer from bipolar disorder, well known for it’s symptoms of mania and depression. What many people don’t realise is that some sufferers also experience psychosis. These could include delusions, auditory, visual and tactile hallucinations. For me, I hear voices. This happens during periods of extreme moods, so when I’m manic or severely depressed. I […]
What Does ‘Recovery’ Mean?
The word recovery means very different things to different people. The word is problematic and can ultimately be damaging. When people talk about recovery it marginalises those that can’t. Some people use the word to describe the process and not an actual milestone. Some see it as having a positive outlook, that they see as […]
What Nobody Tells You About Mania
As I’ve said before there is more to mania than just feeling good. It’s a complicated symptom of bipolar. When someone asks me “What’s it like to be manic?” I have to really think about it. There’s so much to it, I can’t sum it up in a couple of sentences. It goes through many stages, […]
A Life Lived Vividly Series – Psychotic Doesn’t Equal Dangerous
Evil Nasty Freak Bitch Jealous Dangerous These are all words that people relate to psychosis. We all need to stop using it as a derogatory term. So often I hear people described as psychotic when they’re being cruel, or acting unpredictably. Recently I saw someone on twitter describing an ex as a ‘psychotic nazi.’ Politicians, especially […]
The Problem With “I’m Fine!” When Really We’re Not
We all do it. We say this even when we’re not ok. Someone casually asks, “Hey, how are you?” and we say, “I’m fine!” and that’s it. Why do we do this? To be polite. We don’t want to make the other person feel awkward or embarrassed. Sometimes it’s something people ask how you […]
“Why Are You Walking On Eggshells?” How I Began To Recognise Manic Anger
I saw my parents today. They came over to my flat and I made them coffee. We had a catch up and giggled at my Mum attempting to play video games. We moved on to how well I’ve been coping recently. They told me they were so happy to see me stable and well. […]
Mind Media Awards 2018 – Shortlisted, ME?!
Last night I was checking my emails and a message popped up. It said ‘Mind Media Award Shortlist’ I was fully expecting a resounding, “Thank you, but unfortunately..” response, which is pretty much the story of my life. Then I clicked in and it said, “Congratulations!” I screamed out loud. Jumped up and down in […]