MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS MONTH: Let's Talk About It (October 2024)

@tyme I think, I am on a journey to become a Bog Witch 🧙🏼

G

Hello @Meowmy , @Clawde , @Cleo2 😊

@Former-Member

That’s such a good point. The peer connections that I have made here have alleviated a lot of my feelings of loneliness. I only wish that people would stay online later at night because I am in Western Australia

Sorry @tyme 6pm here in the West.

My brain 🧠 stopped reading before I got to the question.

What is the role of peer support and connection in terms of your mental health recovery?

The role of peer support and connection in terms of my mental health recovery, is that I need someone that has had the same experience as me and come out the other side.

Unless you have experienced narcissistic abuse, you cannot understand the residual damage.

G

Thank you for sharing @Glisten @Oaktree @Shaz51 @Former-Member 🙂

Very remarkable.

@Former-Member , I like how you termed it the 4 E's. I've never heard of that before.

@Oaktree @Glisten @Shaz51 , it's good to know it helps you feel less alone.

@Oaktree I’m asleep by 8:30pm.

Most days I’m up between 4:30-6:30

@Glisten

It’s all your fault that I am lonely at night then lol

Absolutely @Oaktree because I am determined to make you go to sleep early lol

What is the role of peer support and connection in terms of your mental health recovery?

I started attending the local SafeHaven a couple of years ago, and this is where I became aware of the benefits of peer support. I have attended that SafeHaven semi-regularly for a while to stay emotionally afloat. I appreciate talking to the the peer workers there because you can chat about issues without it being too clinical. After a while of going there, they started telling me about opportunities to get involved in advocacy. And in fact one of the flyers they gave me was for the SANE Peer Guide Program. I applied to the program and was accepted and I have been here ever since. I really enjoy hanging out with people on the forums. And the Peer Guide Program was amazing, I have gone from being unemployable to having a potential path for employment as a peer worker. I also started studying my Certificate IV in Mental Health Peer Work. And I have been applying for jobs. So the role of peer work has not only been integral to my recovery, it's also my potential future career.

I suffer from depression and anxiety . I live alone. I was technically homeless when saw ads on tv in 2015 , quitting jobs, hanging out in motels.

I had been there before, but this time it felt different, worse, like hopeless.

I ended up going back to a place that was easy for me, if not ideal in the long run. After a few months I got myself a rental house and decided here was as good a place as anywhere to be and was mostly employed, even in work was mostly horrible. it makes you feel better having money and being able to pay bills.

Anyway. fast forward 9 years, I have moved, rental went a few years ago, health took a downturn, moved interstate to small country town and got small old house with inheritance. And am still talking to some of the people was talking to in 2015 , okay not all the time, but still say 'hello' and I think of them encouraging me all those years ago.

Its not always smooth sailing, esp if things not going well for other people talking to. But its mostly respectful and no-judgemental and you can pretty much not have to sugar coat things too much with saying you spent a day or two in bed, say, and feel the better for it or you cant handle seeing such and such etc the GP is a useless*^(% so and so

or I feel like I have achieved saying had a shower and tidied kitchen up. People understand.