Western medicine isn’t perfect. In fact, there are a lot of issues with the medical care system. Having had a lot of problems with doctors, I’m personally a fan of self-healing instead. However, if you decide to work with a doctor during your healing journey, here’s what you need to know about doctors. Keep reading to learn why you should be patient with your doctor.
[Read more…] about 5 Reasons to Be Patient with Your DoctorArchives for March 2018
How to Deal with Grief After a Mental Health Diagnosis
This conversation took place in January 2014 with a psychiatrist I’d never seen before and had only met half an hour earlier when the consultation started. I don’t even remember his name. And he didn’t tell me that I’d experience grief after receiving my mental health diagnosis.
Doctor: “I think you have bipolar disorder.”
Me: “You think I have bipolar disorder, or you KNOW I have bipolar disorder?”
Doctor: “I’m pretty sure you have bipolar disorder.”
#truestory
I was so desperate for a diagnosis to explain my worsening symptoms, that I went with it and didn’t question the journey of trying seven different medications that led to hair loss, weight gain, regurgitating my insides, and other exciting adventures.
Maybe I should have questioned the list of side effects that was longer than the list of symptoms I was experiencing?
Side effects aside, in the first year after being diagnosed with bipolar disorder, I experienced the five stages of grief:
- Denial
- Anger
- Bargaining
- Depression
- Acceptance
No one in my family had died before, so I’d never experienced grief like this. Grief was new to me, unfamiliar, and terribly uncomfortable.
It went something like this…
[Read more…] about How to Deal with Grief After a Mental Health DiagnosisDealing with Suicidal Thoughts
Today is my 28th birthday and I’m lucky to be alive. I struggled with suicidal thoughts for many years, since childhood.
My late teens and early 20s were an especially dark time for me. When I was 18, I told my then-boyfriend now-husband that I was going to die by age 27. I felt really strongly that I wasn’t going to live past that point.
Thankfully, I was wrong. I’m alive and well and I’ve since recovered from my anxiety and depression. I’m now a spiritual mentor and life coach helping people stress less and achieve more. You can learn more about me and my work here.
This is a much darker piece than what I’d usually share, but I thought it was important to shed some light on the realities of suicidal ideation.
PLEASE NOTE, if you’re experiencing suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255 available 24 hours every day
***TRIGGER WARNING*** Suicide / Suicidal Thoughts
[Read more…] about Dealing with Suicidal Thoughts