Breaking the silence

Poll: Who will you vote for?

APOLOGIES if this has been done to death, but I'm interested in who readers of this blog, other UK parent bloggers and anyone else who wants to share, will vote for come May 6.

You can answer the questions above anonymously. If you want to explain more about choosing the "other" option, please do so in the comments, but please note I'd prefer if you could put your name to your comment.

Thanks. Maybe this will fall as flat as my attempt at Bombay potatoes, who knows.

* Mental health services need cash not cuts.

How has mental illness affected your friendships?

THERE have been many times in my life when my behaviour has left a lot to be desired.

Some of these, I can blame on depression.

Looking back, I can see that my unrecognised illness sometimes made me hell to be around.

Many lovely friends were there for me, through thick and thin.

Others weren't.

Understanding schizophrenia: YouTube video explains symptoms

WHEN I started this blog, I never realised where it could take me. One aspect I didn't anticipate was how much I would learn and how my own preconceptions would be challenged.

Thanks to our contributors I now have a greater understanding of various conditions. Most of all, I feel I have learned about schizophrenia and moved on from wrong assumptions previously forged by a media intent on sensationalising its effects.

With this is mind, I wanted to find a video on YouTube to share here which explains clearly and compassionately what schizophrenia is and what it means for its sufferers.

The above video has been helpful in this respect. I hope it may answer questions from readers too.

Paranoia and post-natal depression

THIS post was sent to us by an anonymous writer who wanted to share their experiences of feeling paranoia and the effect it had on relationships with family members. Many thanks to them for their courage in sharing their experience with us. 

Now, over to our anonymous writer:

THIS was me - a year and a half ago:

I am fat.

No, I am a fat, useless person who has no-one who I can trust. And I am a terrible mother. My children will one day stand before me and tell me that I am a useless fat mother who they hate. I know it. They are babies now, oh yeah, they don't have a choice, but one day, you mark my words, no matter what anyone says, they will hate me. No matter what HE says.  

'It wasn't my day to go...most of all I have hope'

 

Photo from Ashley Rose on Flickr.

LAST November Sian posted this account of post natal depression on her blog. She received an amazing response through comments, tweets and messages. With her permission, I'm reproducing her story here, to show others what a remarkable lady she is and why if you are in the grips of this terrible illness you don't have to think it will always be like this.

MINE is not a standard birth story but it is one that I have been trying to write for the last 15 years, unable to know where to begin.

For the people who know me now, as a wife, mother and successful businesswoman my words may be even harder to take in but after 15 years of procrastinating here is the story of my birth.
The morning of Thursday 5th May 1994 began like every other day except that was the day I was going to die.

A schizophrenic mother writes: "I'm just like you"

THIS anonymous post offers an eye-opening view of schizophrenia, an often misunderstood - and misrepresented - condition. Thank you to the lady who has written this for allowing us to highlight her beautifully written story.

I'M a mother of three, with a wonderful husband, a nice house to live in, a great job, a bunch of  good friends. But wait, that's not all. I fit with ease in a size eight and look about ten years younger than I really am. Do you envy me yet? In that case, you're not alone, as a lot of people do.

Let me tell you one more thing, before you make your mind up. I've got schizophrenia. Does that still sound like the kind of life you'd want for yourself? I guess not, but it's my reality. A reality I try my hardest to hide from not just my friends and colleagues, but even from my own loved ones.

Photo by papazimouris on flickr

Debt and mental health: 'Ignoring things will make it worse'

By Linda Jones

DO you have an unopened bill or six hidden away in a drawer?

Don't we all.

But please do all you can to stop things escalating. It's easier said than done of course, but there is help available.

I recently contributed a feature on bankruptcy to Able magazine and wanted to include the experience of someone whose mental health had suffered because of the debt they were in.

I'm reproducing this article here in case it is of any interest.

Essentials magazine: Health insight - 'the secret we need to talk about'

THIS month in Essentials magazine four women tell their stories of experiences of mental distress and explain why they feel we should all be more open.

I'm one of them.

My headline reads: "At last it made sense, I wasn't mad or weak - I was ill."

I'm featured discussing past episodes of depression alongside Sasha talking about post-natal depression, Barbara who details her OCD and Siobhan who explains how she has been affected by bipolar disorder.

The photo shoot was hilarious and full of fun. It's not a day I will forget in a hurry thanks to the warmth of the Essentials team and the laughs I shared with the inspirational women featured, not least Barbara who had me in stitches. I'm also delighted that the piece, the brainchild of journalist Alison Palmer, includes a plug for  this blog.

If you get chance, I hope you can check the feature out.

Wanted: Mental health blogs

IN the far right column of this blog, scroll down a bit and you will see a pretty sparse list of mental health blogs.

Here are some blogs, however recently I discovered them, that have drawn me back:

Pole to Polar: Secret Life of a Manic Depressive

Cage without a key

Reluctant Memsahib

Schizophrenia, a carer's journal

Mental Nurse

But I want to update the list in the hope of helping find more.

Please leave the name of your blog, if you would like to be included, or any others that you would like to recommend in the comments on this post.

Thank you.

Rich, famous and depressed: Desperate measure or PR strategy?

THIS week in Psychology Today, journalist and blogger Anthea Rowe raised the question: Depression: The New Black?

She reflects on how genuine celebrities' suffering may be and says revelations about mental illness may be a PR strategy as various high profile figures discuss their depression. Are people in the entertainment industry publicising - or even exaggerating - their condition in an attempt to sell their latest album, show or fitness DVD?

Perhaps naively, as I commented on the fantastic Reluctant Memsahib blog, I can't help feeling that if we castigate celebrities for speaking up, we may be creating some sort of pecking order about whose illness we feel we can believe in.

Photo by Catzi on Flickr