I’ve known for quite some time that I had some form of ADD/ADHD. My long-time therapist pinged it right away, as well. However, my psych insisted we were wrong and that was the end of that! The symptoms were just my bipolar and anxiety, said he. (BAH!) So I didn’t get the “official” diagnosis untilContinue reading “Lessons from a therapist for ADD”
Author Archives: loribarett
Routine
Routine keeps me grounded. It helps keep my anxiety at bay. It helps keep me focused. Routine is essential to me. My routine got all kinds of messed up this week! And I’m not coping. First: My therapist switched the time of our monthly sessions on me with no advance notice. (Advance notice being atContinue reading “Routine”
Ooops
I gave myself a grade 2 calf strain yesterday. … By getting off a bus. I am in so much stupid amounts of pain! And frustration. And anger. And depression. I’m so tired of my body falling apart on me, at just 41 years old. A friend (one I’m in awe of, to be honest!)Continue reading “Ooops”
Love. Joy. Happiness.
As we enter October, which is always one of my toughest months, I want to start off by saying something simple, but positive. I love. I experience joy. I seek happiness. There is nothing that keeps me going more than reminding myself of those three things. “Joy comes from the heart. It is not relativeContinue reading “Love. Joy. Happiness.”
Celebrity voices
We are surrounded by public figures acting (or being pushed into the role) as role-models for their fans. Actors, singers, athletes… celebrities have a platform that we don’t. And when they use their platforms to bring things into the open, it helps everyone see “we aren’t alone.” Here are some of the celebrities I couldContinue reading “Celebrity voices”
A mental health disorder is not the end
When I got my bipolar diagnosis at 21 years old I thought, “that’s it.” The only people I knew back then who had bipolar struggled through life. Most of them couldn’t keep a job. They had to be on disability benefits. They couldn’t live independently. They struggled with relationships. I had three friends who hadContinue reading “A mental health disorder is not the end”
Suicide Prevention
September is recognized annually as National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. Suicidal ideation refers to thinking about, considering, or planning suicide. A suicide attempt is a non-fatal, self-directed, potentially injurious behavior with intent to die as a result of the behavior. A suicide attempt might not result in injury. Suicide is defined as death caused byContinue reading “Suicide Prevention”
National Suicide Prevention Week
September 5-11, 2021https://afsp.org/national-suicide-prevention-week I will have a lot more to talk about on this topic later this week. But I want to say this today. Suicide is hard to talk about, but I do want to always make people aware that it is not and should not be a taboo subject. We are currently withinContinue reading “National Suicide Prevention Week”
Three months in
From the creation of this website I stated that writing a blog is hard. Particularly when the subject matter grows more intensely personal as time passes. But I’m doing it. It’s getting easier, week by week, to let go of my fears and open up about aspects of living with a mental illness that IContinue reading “Three months in”
On this day… painful memories
Five years ago today I came within a hairsbreadth of killing myself. I’ve had thoughts of suicide since, but never so close to following through. Because that day? It nearly happened. I was alone in a hotel room in New York. I had a plan. I knew what to do. I’d decided to do itContinue reading “On this day… painful memories”
With a little help from my friends…
“What can I do to help?” “Have you tried doing x/y/z?” My friends are coming from a place of love and concern and genuine care for how I am doing. But those question are huge triggers for me. How can I tell people who are only trying to help that what they’re doing is onlyContinue reading “With a little help from my friends…”
A much needed vacation
With summer hitting a horrific heat wave, a new semester starting at the University where I work and knowing that we’ll be going into the office for work in just another week for the first time since March 2020, and the stress of a dangerous new variant of covid – I’ve been feeling a lotContinue reading “A much needed vacation”
“What meds are you on?”
“What meds are you on?” I am pretty sure that every person with a mental illness has had THIS CONVERSATION at least once when they sit down with another person with a mental illness. By the time that conversation comes about we’ve all learned that there is no one magic pill to cure mental illness.Continue reading ““What meds are you on?””
Keys to a strong support network
None of us are perfect. Even when we know what we ought to do, we don’t always follow the rules. It’s when we know the rules, but consistently ignore them, that things start to fall apart. This is most important when it comes to the people in our lives. When a person has a mentalContinue reading “Keys to a strong support network”
My difficulties in recognizing hypomanic red flags
The symptoms of mania are identifiable as being a serious change from the way a person normally thinks and acts. feeling overly upbeat, jumpy, or wired. having a decreased need for sleep talking very fast, often with racing thoughts feeling extremely restless or impulsive becoming easily distracted exaggerated sense of well-being and self-confidence (euphoria) engagingContinue reading “My difficulties in recognizing hypomanic red flags”