Raising Awareness of BPD - Flipping the Script

Hello there @HenryX @BPDSurvivor @Shaz51 @BlueBay @Daisydreamer @Former-Member and all wonderful forumite friends! How is life going in your world of BPD and mental health?
I hope you are travelling well and that life is going okay for you.

I've got some great wonderful exciting news for all of you, at least in my opinion that is! I've secured a new rental property with my housemate that she found on Facebook on Tuesday and that we checked out yesterday and turned out to be perfect for us! The best news is we are going with the owner directly as he doesn't like property managers and the owner is really friendly. We met him at the property yesterday afternoon and we were there for a good 20 minutes talking with him joking around and making funny comments about the property and current events, not to mention asking us about our rental situation, with him telling us that he goes on gut feelings rather than opinions from real estate people. That means our current property manager can't say bad things about us as we have been truthful and honest to the owner about our situation which is great for us as this is something we thought might go against us if we had to deal with new real estate agents. The best news is we no longer have to hide our cat as I mentioned her and he's fine to have her in his property! Also, he wants us there long term (longer than a year) and he's fine with Centrelink payments as well which shows to me he's actually a great owner who trusts us. So, it's definitely a great day today for me!

Now, it's time for me to go and write a long overdue email to my psychologist with whom I've been putting off contacting over the past week for a reason I'm not entirely sure of. He wanted to hear some good news at my next appointment with him next weekend so I'm pretty sure getting a new rental property after being given a 90 day notice to vacate a week ago counts as good news. I certainly hope so!

I'm sorry for all the forumites that have mentioned me and that I haven't got back to responding to. I'll arrange to read the posts shortly and respond soon so thank you in advance for being patient with me.

Talk later!

Judi9877🥳👍🏻⭐️🍀

Hello @Judi9877

Really pleased to hear the news about new rental option. It appears that arrangement, all going well, will resolve at least a couple of issues at one time. Getting late {early 1.15 pm} so better consider going to bed for me.

Great news and I really hope that this is a positive turning point for you and your housemate.

With My Very Best Wishes

@HenryX

Hi Everyone!

Currently, I have two psychologists. One I see weekly, and the other every 2-3 weeks.

I've come to the stage in my BPD journey where I don't think I really need to see a psychologist so regularly anymore. I've made so many gains, and I can see how far I've come and how much change has occurred.

Another thing is, I'm totally ready for another med reduction. As I've mentioned before, I'm taking My med reduction extremely slowly so as not to rock to boat too much.

I'm so ready for bigger, better and greater things so would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone here for your unceasing support! I don't think I'd be here today if it weren't for my SANE family.

My friends, remember, BPD is not a life sentence. You CAN recover from it and live successfully in this life. There's great hope.

And for our carers, your beautiful BPD loved one is there beneath all the pain. Be there for them to help them find themselves. Yet please remember your own self-care.

I look forward to hearing everyone's journey. There's no right or wrong!

BPDSurvivor

@BlueBay @Andrab @Judi9877 @WIP @Nells @Shaz51 @Aniela @JJ4 @vashi @BPDrose @Luca33 @Sarah_850 @Olliesmum @asdfge @SunflowerMe @magical_journey @Tbo @sarvan @Snoopy56 @Ellan @sanity41 @Laylah @Flossy92 @Bow @BPDSurvivor @Jacaranda84 @LouisianaM @Andrab @Theodora @Et68 @26aqua @LostAngel @Healing_Journey @TG1108 @BPDCarer1 @DJ228 @Name84 @TomRiddle32 @Dec @PAX1741 @Netty78 @PlantLover @Hannahbanana98 @Kaitlynjade97 @LearningWaters@Janis_J @Hombre @Meggle @TideisTurning @Daisydreamer@cloudcore @Evanthia @Zoe7 @HenryX @ShiningStar @The-Hams @outlander @Determined @Appleblossom @Clawde @Sam3

@Faith-and-Hope @LostAngel @Sphinxly @Emelia8 @TAB @DrZoidberg

Hi @BPDSurvivor @HenryX @Shaz51 @BlueBay @Daisydreamer @Former-Member and everyone here. Well done on all of your journies with BPD and other mental health challenges that you may be experiencing. You are strong, brave and courageous so I applaud each of you for doing what you do best. Well done👍🏻.

I'm pleased to report to I completed my psychologists challenge he set for me this period which was to go shopping in a shopping centre and have fun spending some money. Well, put it this way. Yes, I went shopping, including to a shopping centre and I walked Target with my housemate to collect some items. Did I enjoy it? No. In fact, when my housemate wanted to do more shopping in the shopping centre, I went back to my car in the car park and worked on a knitting project as I was fed up with people and crowds. I also went to Spotlight to purchase some yarn on sale for my Self Care Squares blanket. Did I enjoy the shopping experience of crowds, queues at the registers and waiting to be served? No. I did like picking out my yarns though, including getting a ball even more reduced than the sale price so that bit was good, I guess. I think I'm even more over shopping now than I ever was before COVID-19 came and no longer see the task as fun and enjoyable. Not that shopping for me ever was really fun as I'm not a person who needs lots of shops around her for fun and entertainment, like some people do. It's like the whole Melbourne and shopping thing that people from interstate seem to think Melbourne is for when they visit. People like to visit Chadstone which may seem great and exciting and wonderful and all, but to me, it's a large shopping centre full of 2 types of shops- expensive (think Tiffany & Co, Gucci, Ted Baker, etc, ) and normal shops (think Kmart, Target and the food courts and movies) with me sticking to the latter, despite loving Tiffany &Co but not being able to afford it! I've grown up with Chadstone and have seen the shopping centre extend time after time with more shops so now Chadstone is a place I rarely go to, despite having it less than a hours drive away from where I live. So, that's my take on shopping! At least I attempted and completed the challenge which is a good thing and something I can tell my psychologist about when I speak to him on Saturday at our appointment so that's something I guess!

@HenryX thanks for taking the time to respond to my issues about my sister and my relationship with her. I'm glad I'm not the only person who has sibling issues! I guess I should just accept that she's not going to change her behaviours and attitudes towards me and my lifestyle and be done with it. The reality is, the only person who has to be happy with my life is me and I shouldn't care what others think. It's just hard at times to think that people can't respect me and my limitations that my mental illnesses have put on my life and expect me to live a life that is up to their standards. I'm not perfect and I know this but I'd like to think that I'm making the most of my life and trying to make a difference to even just one person by being alive. I know I feel valued on the wonderful Sane Australia forums and that's often what makes getting up in the morning easy for me when things have been tough mentally for me. Knowing that my forumite friends care about me and that I might just be making a small difference to one of them is a great feeling to have and one that I treasure very much. My sister doesn't get this feeling I believe as she doesn't volunteer so she doesn't understand what it's like to help people without getting paid for it and feel valued like I do here on the forums. I guess it's just how I see the world knowing that volunteering is work because you do actually perform duties that a normal paid job would do except I'm doing it for the enjoyment of helping people with mental health issues and having the added fun of learning from others and making friends at the same time, even if it is in the digital age of technology and virtual reality. It's hard to make people see sense at times and I'm over trying to do that with my sister and this element of my life.

@BPDSurvivor Well done on what you've achieved with your BPD journey. Seeing 2 psychologists sounds busy and confusing for myself but it's obviously working for you so that's great. As for meds, that's a personal choice and I know that I'm glad I had my hospital admission as at least my meds got reviewed and I think I'm now better for it. I'm glad you're working through that topic safely and with professional advice and guidance which is great to hear. I do know that I've got to revisit my journal entries of the whole psychosis episode and subsequent hospital and PARCS admissions as I'd like to see how far I've come mentally from they point, including my emails to my psychologist in that part of my life as I know I've certainly changed and for the better I hope. I'll get around to it when things slow down, hopefully at the end of the month when the moving is over and so is uni for the year!

Okay. Time for me to go and chill. Have a great night!

Take care and stay safe!

Judi9877☺️💐

Ohhhh! Good point @Judi9877 . I'd better make it clear that my choice to reduce my meds has been consulted with professionals.

Taking meds doesnt make you 'weaker' or 'bad'.

For my particular circumstance, I can work towards reducing my meds. I absolutely acknowledge that for others, esp those with comorbidities, do require medication. No judgement there 😉

Thank you for your update @Judi9877 ! I find Chadstone too overwhelming and stimulating. I only go there for Legoland lol. I love that place!

Otherwise, I prefer my local small shops. And I try go when there is the least amount of ppl! No wonder you went to sit in the car!

BPDSurvivor

Hi everyone, I'm inspired to post here after only reading through the forum since I joined this year.

After a mental health crisis early this year (ptsd), I've recently been diagnosed bpd at 51 years of age. Your shares have helped me so much! I'm struggling with the ways I fit or don't fit the 'criteria' - which seems to be refreshing my depression and anxiety - but here in the forum I've found parts of my own story.

I'm overwhelmed really.

Maybe someone here can relate to feeling relieved and repulsed at the same time? I've struggled to control my 'monster' all my life, and am still paying the price.

Anyway, I'm all jumbled up so I'll stop here, but still to say thankyou for including me here and I hope one day I'll have some clarity and have some hope to pass on too.

Welcome, welcome and welcome @Kbomb !

When you spoke about the 'monster', it reminded me of the beauty and the beast nature of BPD. That 'beast' that fires up, lashes out, yells, screams and refuses to be held down - that was me.

Im so happy that you have found us. The BPD journey can be a long, exhausting, lonely one. Here, we share our challenges and triumphs. We ask questions and exchange experiences. Experience makes us the experts in the field - for than any therapist.

For the better part of me, I've finally 'grown up' emotionally which means I have many fewer emotional challenges. But let me share my emotional outburst from yesterday....

At work, I've been working on a project for weeks now. This involved visiting clients, matching clients to appropriate supports, setting up meeting times etc... then out of the blue, I got a call telling me that it is not someone else's job. When I checked the database I was working on, it got renamed so that I was NOT permitted to make any changes even though I did all the hard ground work. I was furious! Not to mention, it was getting late in the evening which makes me more susceptible to outbursts. I texted my supervisor and blahed it all out. After cooling down, I regretted sending those messages. I think the renaming of the document triggered me because I felt I was 'left out' (rejected and abandoned) as part of the project. This made my emotional self take over so I was beyond reasoning.

Today, I'm just leaving it behind and moving forward. I don't want to get dragged back into an emotional state.

So as much as I've 'recovered', I still have these challenges.

Its a chsllenging journey, but totally worth it. Today, I'm preparing 'thank you' gifts for my ex-therapists and writing them a letter to show them my journey since I last saw them (a year ago). If I were a therapist, I would want to know how my past clients were going after treatment. Hence I'm doing this - to show them that their work is worth while.

Sorry about blabbing. I've just got so much to share.

BPDSurvivor

@BlueBay @Andrab @Judi9877 @WIP @Nells @Shaz51 @Aniela @JJ4 @vashi @BPDrose @Luca33 @Sarah_850 @Olliesmum @asdfge @SunflowerMe @magical_journey @Tbo @sarvan @Snoopy56 @Ellan @sanity41 @Laylah @Flossy92 @Bow @BPDSurvivor @Jacaranda84 @LouisianaM @Andrab @Theodora @Et68 @26aqua @LostAngel @Healing_Journey @TG1108 @BPDCarer1 @DJ228 @Name84 @TomRiddle32 @Dec @PAX1741 @Netty78 @PlantLover @Hannahbanana98 @Kaitlynjade97 @LearningWaters@Janis_J @Hombre @Meggle @TideisTurning @Daisydreamer@cloudcore @Evanthia @Zoe7 @HenryX @ShiningStar @The-Hams @outlander @Determined @Appleblossom @Clawde @Sam3

@Faith-and-Hope @LostAngel @Sphinxly @Emelia8 @TAB @DrZoidberg

@BPDSurvivor thank you thank you thank you

for welcoming me, including me and sharing some realisitic recovery with me.

I needed to hear it today.

It's a tricky time with services wrapped up this week and the extra pressures around this time of year - its time I used these forums.

I'm so happy to hear @Kbomb .

Another thing I should share is that I'm used these forums as part of my recovery.

Naturally, I struggle with verbal communication especially when I'm upset. I use these forums to reflect on my thoughts and behaviour as I share it with others. This then helps me to articulate it better which in turn helps me to talk about it with my treating team.

Maybe this will help you too?

If you have any questions, please ask. I will be more than happy to answer to the best of my ability.

Take care my fellow friend,

BPDSurvivor

Hi there,

I am new to these forums and have also recently even diagnosed with BPD. While initially the diagnosis was quite overwhelming, after doing some more reading and chatting with my psychologist about it, it has provided some clarity around the struggles I have had over the past 20+ years.

It may sound strange but it's been almost comforting reading through the posts here and reading about people experiencing such similar things. Thank you to everyone here for being so open and honest about your experiences with BPD.