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What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

BunniekinsSenior Contributor09 Apr 2019, 1:35 am AEST

What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

I have been thinking alot lately about how my mental illness has made positive changes to my life. It has opened my heart to other people who are suffering from a variety of mentall illness's. It has brought alot of positive people into my life who want to help me my mental health nurse, psychiatrist and of course there are my friends on Sane forums who mean the world to me.

My mi has opened my soul and made me more aware of my life's journey.

I was wondering what other people's experiences are in positive terms. greenpea xxx

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In response to: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

BunniekinsSenior Contributor20 May 2019, 2:09 pm AEST

Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

@Gazza75 🙂 I think it goes bipolar 1 you get mania and hear voices whilst bipolar ii is more of the depressive type. I got a bit of depression but mainly mania and hear hallucinate and have delusions :D. Why I am now shizoaffective disorder now I have no idea rofl!

In response to: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

Ali11Senior Contributor20 May 2019, 10:08 pm AEST

Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

Loving this thread @Bunniekins

In response to: Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

BunniekinsSenior Contributor21 May 2019, 3:09 am AEST

Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

@Ali11 Thanks Ali11 it is great to hear positive experiences from so many :Dxx

In response to: Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

CheerBearSenior Contributor21 May 2019, 6:45 am AEST

Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

I also really enjoyed reading this thread @Bunniekins ❤

I relate to your experiences @frog, where my mental health issues have taken and given, often in opposite ways.

The good for me is that my mental health challenges have led me to meeting some incredible people. Being on the forum is one of those paths my MH has taken me on that I'm thankful for, but it has also happened in places like waiting rooms, hospital, recovery centres and groups. I've heard and been witness to some amazing stories of resilience and survival, spent time with and learnt from super interesting (and often very fun and funny) characters, and shared some really special moments with people I otherwise probably wouldn't have met. I know I am a better person for spending this time with others.

Another path I am on and loving is my recent work adventure which is in a lived experience role. My MH journey has also given me empathy, understanding and compassion. It's allowed me plenty of time (too much sometimes!) to explore and understand myself and my place in the world too.

I think one of the things I like the most that my MH challenges has given me is motivation to be part of change. My not-so-great experiences with the system, support services, professionals etc have given me determination to do what I can to make a difference somewhere somehow. I'm always on a mission (or 10) now 😁

There's a lot of negative I could go to, and I sometimes do when I'm feeling down, but there are heaps of positives too. It's nice to stop and think about them.

In response to: Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

BunniekinsSenior Contributor21 May 2019, 6:54 am AEST

Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

@CheerBear beautifully put CheerBear :Dxxx

In response to: Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

Hope4meSenior Contributor21 May 2019, 8:01 am AEST

Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

Oh @Bunniekins! What a great way to start the day; reading these wonderful expressions of grace. 🕊 Thankyou...

And thanks also to:

@Gardener @frog @Queenie @Fredd50 @Meowmy @Gazza75 @Ali11 @CheerBear for sharing your thoughts.

For me, realising I was actually intelligent was a huge eye opener. I've seen this same trait in everyone who writes on the forums. (Posts above are perfect examples for sure) For some reason, those who suffer with MI tend to have high intellects. I don't have stats to turn to, but I'm sure they're out there somewhere.

Another plus was learning to lower my adrenaline levels. I'd lived in a state of hyper-vigilence all my life due to childhood trauma and didn't know any other way. Now, I live in moments of acceptance instead of dread, coping with a more calm demeanour.

One of the most difficult issues to overcome was accepting I'll never be the same person again. Coming to terms with this was extremely painful, but once I understood my limits, managing life became easier. It's not perfect, but way better than a few years ago.

An enjoyable aspect of recovery has been educating myself on trauma and its effect on the brain, then how that manafested in my life. This activity bought me closer to my truth more than anything. I can now pass on that information hoping others find solace in the words; "It's actually not my fault"

Your stories have been a welcome start to my day. They're lovely and express how amazing we truly are. Non suffers would do well to take a page from our books to face their own daily lives with gratefulness.

Warm thoughts;

Hope

In response to: Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

frogSenior Contributor21 May 2019, 8:41 pm AEST

Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

Thank you all for sharing your stories @Hope4me @Bunniekins @Gazza75 @CheerBear and everyone who has contributed. I can identify with things in each one and this is such a wonderful reminder of our common ground.

In response to: Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

BunniekinsSenior Contributor22 May 2019, 2:35 am AEST

Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

@frog Hi rog so true we do all share a common ground and more so how much our community cares for each other in so many ways. These positive posts are an extension of that xxxx

In response to: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

DogloverSenior Contributor04 June 2019, 7:34 pm AEST

Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

Hi all @Bunniekins @frog @Hope4me @CheerBear @Ali11 @Gazza75 @Meowmy @Queenie @Gardener (apologies if i have missed anyone).

Thanks @Bunniekins for this thread, its a great idea! And thanks @CheerBear for pointing me in this direction. I dont think im at the place yet to contribut to this thread but i rly appreciate all who have! Hopefully one day soon i will be able to look at the positives that hav come out of having a MI and be able to post here to be an encouragement to others as you all have been.

Thanks again everyone. 💜

In response to: Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

frogSenior Contributor04 June 2019, 9:04 pm AEST

Re: What my Mental Illness has done for me in a positive light

Hey @Doglover your kind words picked me up after a hard day. It has taken me a long time to see positives in my struggles, and there are days when I'm not able to see any. At my best I see all my experiences as part of a full life and try not to disect them too much. Take care, and sleep well tonight.

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