Success Stories

I love reading about success stories among sufferers of mental illness.  It all boils down to having a strong support system, I have grown to believe.  Obviously one needs good medical partnership.  But beyond that, family and friends need to offer support.  This can be the most frustrating part of dealing with mental illness because it's not an easy thing to find...

I talk a lot in therapy about building strong relationships and partnerships and finding that ideal support system.  It's frustrating.  I try very hard at maintaining relationships, but it's been a long time since I've found a peer in mental health or a loved one strong enough to stay by my side during the more debilitating moments of my bipolar disorder.  Sometimes the frustration of not having established a helpful network brings about a really deep, dark depression.  Walking around every day having a dark secret to bear can be rather cumbersome, especially because there are few places to unload its weight.  I keep trying.  I do I do I do.  But it sure ain't easy.  

I hope one day I can be a success story, too.  But as the woman who once checked me out in the ER said after pounding questions at me and looking at my pupils and also after someone injected me with their little truth serum or whatever moments prior:

"You're ok.  But you've got a long way to go."

Gee, thanks.  Way to pound hope and optimism into a person.  I'm not going to be OK until I find some friends.  Friends don't grow on trees, you know.  Unless someone can tell me where Bipolar Forest is so I can go build myself a treehouse and live among my people.