Happy #worldsmentalhealthday everyone. I have lived with severe, chronic Major Depressive Disorder and anxiety for 25+ years. More recently, I have experienced PTSD symptoms from trauma.
Sometimes my mental health symptoms are absolutely debilitating, other times they are manageable, and sometimes I even feel amazing. Most days it’s some combination.
Doctors call me “high functioning” because I manage to get a lot of stuff done, but it also masks my suffering to those outside my inner circle & gives people the impression that I have my shit together & am “happy” most of the time.
Work is a coping mechanism for me which, like anything else, can be done to excess. I treat my mental illness with multiple medications, regular visits to a psychiatrist, Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) Dialectical Behavior Therapy (truth: DBT has saved my life more than once),
rigorous self care, meditation & asking for help. It has taken me years & years to be out & open about my mental health; I’ve suffered tremendous shame & isolation over it. Everyday, I need to remind myself: my brain is wired differently, I am not broken. Neither are you.
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