Blog for Mental Health 2015

“I pledge my commitment to the Blog for Mental Health 2015 Project. I will blog about mental health topics not only for myself, but for others. By displaying this badge, I show my pride, dedication, and acceptance for mental health. I use this to promote mental health education in the struggle to erase stigma.”

It is that time of year again. Or rather, it was that time of year again three months ago, but my ongoing physical health dramas have prevented me from keeping a timely eye on the blogosphere this year. Still, it’s better to be late than never, so the time has come to voice my pledge to blog for mental health in 2015.

My reason for signing the pledge each year is simple. Mental illness has played a major part in my life for as long as I can remember. My sister, parents and I have all suffered at the hands of mental illness. So much so that we could probably write some form of collaborative book exploring the best way to cope (and live) with mental illness. Whether it be anorexia nervosa, depression, agoraphobia, self-harm, bipolar, PTSD, hearing voices, social anxiety, personality disorders, OCD, my family has been there, lived it and bought the T-Shirt to proudly proclaim our experiences.

Although I began suffering from mental ill-health when I was thirteen, I didn’t become vocal about it until I was twenty-seven, when I shared my depression with close friends. Shortly after (following a catastrophic collapse of my mental functioning courtesy of a breakdown) I began writing this blog, with the sole purpose of sharing my life (warts, kinks and all) in the hope it would help convince people that those who live with mental illness are far more than their illnesses; they are wonderful, beautiful, extraordinary individuals who should never be labelled or stigmatised.

Eight years later, my blog is still going. It’s a little worse for wear, for sure, but then so am I. But no matter how hard life is, no matter how bad my inner turmoil, pain and confusion, I will continue writing this blog when I can. For I still believe in that mission statement I created all those years ago.

People are far more than their illnesses; they are wonderful, beautiful, extraordinary individuals who should never be labelled or stigmatised.

They should be free to live the life they deserve.

Should you wish to find out more about this magnificent (and totally worthwhile) endeavour,
you can discover all you need to know by visiting the Blog for Mental Health website.

Blog for Mental Health 2014

“I pledge my commitment to the Blog for Mental Health 2014 Project. I will blog about mental health topics not only for myself, but for others. By displaying this badge, I show my pride, dedication, and acceptance for mental health. I use this to promote mental health education in the struggle to erase stigma.”  

When I began writing this blog in 2007 I had no idea that I’d still be writing it seven years later. Truth be told, with everything that was happening to me at the time, I genuinely thought I’d be dead by now! But I’m not. I’m still here, still wandering the seemingly endless road to recovery and still rambling on about all things mental health related.

Sometimes I do question why I continue to write this blog. Back in those early days there were very few mental health blogs, and hardly any of them were written by people living with mental illness. Today there are hundreds upon thousands upon millions of people making their voices heard; all of whom with far more clarity and panache than I’m able to muster.

But whenever I begin questioning my little corner of the internet, I remind myself of the reasons why I began blogging in the first place; so that other people experiencing mental health problems would not feel alone, so that those prejudiced against mental illness could learn about what people have to live with and so that I could explore myself through the therapeutic act of writing. All causes I am still committed to.

This is a blog about mental illness, but it’s also a blog about me; a valiant (if futile) attempt to tell the world that no one thing defines who a person is, that they are so much more than their mental illness, homelessness, sexual predilection or social standing.

So as a new year dawns, I once again commit to write about all the topics that the mainstream media have labelled ‘taboo’; self-harm, suicide, poverty, homelessness, discrimination, abuse, sexual predilections and mental health in general. I once again vow to be as honest and open as it’s possible to be. And I once again pledge to give stigma the spanking it so richly deserves.

~ You can learn more about (and take) the Blog for Mental Health pledge here ~