Mental Illness. "cringe". How is it possible that we, as humans, can openly discuss cancer, diabetes, MS, etc., but when we hear mental illness, the room goes silent. Mental illness is as important to know about as the aforementioned illness'.
As we write, we will only write about what WE know. This means we will not write about bipolar, schizophrenia, or PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). We have NOT lived or suffered from these terrible mental illness'. We will write about depression and anxiety, for these are the two mental illness' we as a family have been living with -- and surviving -- at the same time.
The hope of this blog is to be the voices rising to get the knowledge that is needed to have a deeper understanding of mental illness. Not just from the sufferers' point of view, but from the caretaker's view, and the view of children who have lived through the hell of not having a parent mentally, and at times, physically present.
There are four of us in our little family. I (Abby) am the sufferer. My husband (Ryan) has been the caretaker of not only me, but our home and family. Last our two children, Joanie (13) and Hunter (11) have missed out on childhood experiences because of my illness. They have needed to grow up faster than their peers.
I'm going to go back to the days of childhood school, where when you first learn a new topic, you are given definitions to give you a base line to begin your knowledge. This first blog may seem tedious and boring to some, I'd say I'm sorry, but I'm not. For those individuals who feel this way, this is only the first entry. To those who need the understanding of terminology that goes with mental wellness, I hope what I give you is simple enough to understand, but not so simple you're left with questions.
The definitions I use will come use from Merriam-Webster online dictionary. The terminology I feel needed are:
sufferer
caretaker
anxiety
panic disorder
depression
counseling
Sufferer - 1 to experience pain, 2 to experience something unpleasant, 3 to submit to or be forced to endure
Caretaker - one who gives physical or emotional care and support
Anxiety - 1 fear or nervousness about what might happen, 2 an abnormal and overwhelming sense of apprehension and fear often marked by physiological signs (as sweating, tension, and increased pulse)
Panic Disorder - an anxiety disorder characterized by recurrent unexpected panic attacks
Depression - 1 a state of feeling sad, 2 a psychoneurotic or psychotic disorder marked especially by sadness, inactivity, difficulty in thinking and concentration, a significant increase or decrease in appetite and time spent sleeping, feelings of dejection and hopelessness, and sometimes suicidal tendencies
Counseling - professional guidance of the individual by utilizing psychological methods
All of these definitions are correct. However, there is a lot more to anxiety and depression than these definitions. For every person who suffers from these ailments their symptoms may be different. Meaning, what my family and I have suffered and felt with my mental illness', another family can have completely different experiences and feelings.
As we continue this journey as a family, we'd like all to know we want AND expect questions in our comments. We want to help others see that there are options when going through mental illness.
Broken minds can be healed just the way broken bones and broken hearts are healed.
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, Oct. 2013
