Trigger warning: This post has references to attempted suicide and overdoses. If you have personal experience of this subject then you may find it triggering. 17 years ago today I took my final overdose. It was one of a number of attempts to commit suicide. But it was the one that changed my life forever. And it is a night that I will never forget. The Night That I Will Never Forget After the overdose, I was taken to the…
I’ve suffered from depression for 20 years now. During that time I have changed as a person. I am not the same girl that was diagnosed with depression in 1999. I have had to change to get better. To fight the devil that is depression. The stalker that is poor mental health. But I never expected that suffering from depression would teach me some valuable lessons about life. Lessons that I’m not always brilliant at following. Yet when I do…
When I was a young adult and I looked at people in their 30s or 40s, I always assumed that they had this game of life sussed. They were mature adults. Surely, they knew exactly what they were doing. Surely, they’d learnt the lessons of how to live a happy and contented life. I looked at them in awe and believed they all lived perfect lives. They seemed filled with wisdom and knowledge and a confidence I couldn’t imagine possessing.…
This week is Mental Health Awareness Week. It’s a week that is hugely important, as we still have such a long way to go before we’ve broken the stigma that surrounds mental ill health. Last year, I wrote a post for Mental Health Awareness Week claiming that I was going to start sharing my story of living with depression, beginning with my nervous breakdown and diagnosis. Yet, these posts never materialised. Writing your own tale of living with depression is…
There are times in life when you have an epiphany. When the stars align and a series of events occur. These events make you stop in your tracks. Look inside yourself and take a deep breath. All of a sudden something that has just been out of sight comes into view. And the world makes sense. Now… this minute… as I write this post … is one of those times. About Time & Deciding To Lead A Slow Life The…
I hold these truths to be self-evident that all mothers are created equal. Irrespective of the road you’ve travelled down to become a mother, you are endowed with certain undeniable rights, and these include not being judged, being supported and being allowed to parent as you see fit. That to secure these rights, you merely need to have the position of Mother. Whether your child was conceived naturally, through IVF, was adopted or fostered you are a mother and I’ve been…
“The true secret of happiness lies in taking a genuine interest in all the details of daily life.” William Morris The past few months have been tough. Yet I’ve entered 2018 with a new and positive outlook. I’ve set myself some goals and I’m looking forward to the year ahead. Like most people, I’m constantly in the pursuit of happiness. I want my life to be filled with experiences and moments that make me happy. But recently I’ve realised that happiness…
Sometimes when I write about my depression the words just flow. It’s as if they were always there just waiting to be written down in black and white. On other occasions, I want to write but the words aren’t forthcoming. They won’t flow. Words are created and deleted. Sentences are written and rewritten. Paragraphs are formed and unformed. I can start a post about one thing and then it becomes about something completely different. For example, when I sat down to…