So often in my work, I meet people living with mental illness and substance use disorders, trauma and eating disorders. Many of these illnesses go hand-in-hand. Many people turn to illicit substances to self-medicate their depression, anxiety or PTSD. Sadly, for some the consequences of using illicit substances to make themselves feel better can trigger more profound illness.

Earlier this week, I met a young man whose long-term use of marijuana, LSD and mushrooms triggered a psychotic break. People like to think these drugs are not as dangerous as say, cocaine, heroin or methamphetamine. That is not the case. We know now that heavy, long-term marijuana use in teenagers can trigger psychosis, particularly if there is a history of schizophrenia in the family.  Such was the case with the young man I met this past week. He never will be the same.

We know now that long-term marijuana use in adults can lead to Alzheimer’s-like symptoms and cancer.

People think marijuana is harmless. It is not. Using marijuana runs the risk of dependence. There is a distinct withdrawal syndrome when one stops using marijuana and it can up to five weeks for the drug to leave the user’s system. Withdrawal is characterized by decreased appetite, insomnia, restlessness and irritability.

It pains me to see so many people living with substance use disorders. Substance use does not just spell trouble for the person living with this illness, it affects the whole family. The consequences of substance use can be dire. Not only do the users risk long-term health complications, they risk the possibility of arrest and prison time if their use is caught by law enforcement. People who use substances risk the possibility of losing friends and loved ones as their use becomes problematic.

Do you not deserve a life free of the albatross of substance use? Do you not deserve a healthy, happy life? There is help available for people living with substance use disorders. Many hospitals offer treatment programs and there are scores of treatment programs you can participate in to end your dependence on substances. Do yourself and your loved ones a favor and reach out for help today.

Every day in my work I meet people who are in the throes of mental health crisis. I meet people who are struggling with crippling anxiety, profound depression, substance use disorders, eating disorders and trauma. I meet people struggling with suicidal thoughts. People come to our offices seeking help, searching for a way out of their misery. I am reminded of the courage, the bravery it takes simply to say, “I cannot do this alone. I need help.”

All too often it seems, people living with mental illness feel that living with these diseases is a sign of weakness and that asking for help somehow makes them lesser people. This could not be farther from the truth. It takes more courage to ask for help than it does to suffer in silence. It takes more strength to take that first step on your journey toward wellness than it does to stay stuck in mental illness.

So often, people living with mental illness become comfortably uncomfortable with their disease. They become used to living with the symptoms of depression and anxiety; they become used to living with their substance of choice. People become so used to their illness that even the thought of living a different way and embracing a new and better life can be more paralyzing than staying stuck in their sickness. Change can be scary and requires courage.

One of the reasons people do not seek help is because they do not believe anyone wants to hear about their concerns. There are people out there who do want to help you work through your problems and help you create for yourself a better life. Can you find the courage to ask for help? Can you find your strong, your brave and reach out for assistance? You do not have to do this alone.

With everything going on in the world, it can be easy to let things get to you and bring you down. What to do in times when the world seems to be crashing in on itself and you are bombarded with constant negativity? Practicing self-care can help navigate these difficult times.

What is self-care? It is taking the time to take care of yourself and your needs. Here are some things to try:

• Get Enough Sleep
• Maintain Proper Nutrition
• Exercise Regularly
• Maintain Social Support
• Find Hobbies You Enjoy
• Pamper Yourself

Self-care is not selfish. You need time to take care of yourself when the going gets tough. Even 15 minutes of listening to your favorite music or reading a favorite book can help you balance your life with all that is happening in the world.

If you begin to feel overwhelmed and believe you need more than self-care, reach out. There are people who can help you work through your feelings about what is happening in the world. If you begin to feel like it’s all just too much and you want to exit this world, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800.273.TALK or text the Crisis Text Line at 741 741.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So often in my work, I meet people living with profound depression and crippling anxiety. One of the things I frequently hear in people living with these diseases is negative self-talk. What would happen if instead of beating ourselves up for living with mental illness, substance use, trauma or eating disorders, we started speaking kindly to ourselves? What would happen if we simply loved ourselves?

What if instead of berating ourselves for being stricken with mental illness, we reminded ourselves how strong we are? What if instead of saying nasty things to ourselves about dealing with anxiety, we reminded ourselves that we are warriors? What if instead of berating ourselves for living with substance use disorders, we reminded ourselves that we live with a disease? What if instead of saying we will be happy when we lose 10 pounds, we tell ourselves that we deserve to be happy right now exactly as we are? What if instead of blaming ourselves for being the victim of trauma, we reminded ourselves that we are stronger than we think?

There are scores of positive things we could say to ourselves on a daily basis to turn our thinking around. It may sound silly, but we can practice saying kind and loving things to ourselves when we are getting ready for the day. Just look at yourself in the mirror and tell yourself that you are lovable. There are other things you can say to yourself. Some are below:

• I am beautiful.

• I am smart.

• I am blessed with talents that I love.

• I deserve to achieve my dreams.

• I am worthy of love and belonging.

• I am worthy of respect simply for being human.

• I am strong.

• I am a fighter.

• My features are beautiful.

• I believe in my abilities.

• I am unstoppable.

The more you say these things to yourself, the more you will come to believe them. When you have belittled yourself with negative self-talk for years, changing your vernacular to positive self-talk can feel foreign and forced. Practice saying kind things to yourself and you will start to see that wonderful person that you truly are. More likely than not, no one is more cruel to you than you. Is it not time to start treating yourself with the kindness you afford others? Do you not deserve your own love?

Every so often in my work, I meet someone struggling with an eating disorder. Eating disorders are more common than most people think and according to some statistics, about 30 million people of all ages and genders live with eating disorders in the United States.

I am one of those people. I have lived with anorexia nervosa for 36 years. People say things to me such as, “Can’t you just eat something?” or “Just stop doing that.” It is not that easy. Anorexia gets inside you and lives there. I do not remember what it is like to live without anorexia. I cannot remember what my life was like before I started counting calories. I cannot remember what it was like to not look at my body and hate it. I cannot remember what it is like to think that if I eat, how long do I have to exercise tomorrow to burn off what I just ate? I do not remember what it is like to think that people looking at me think I am fat.

Eating disorders are complex mental illnesses that are difficult to treat. Some people believe eating disorders are simply about having a bad body image or wanting to be thin. There is more to eating disorders than just that. Some statistics indicate that every 62 minutes, at least one person dies as a direct result from an eating disorder. In fact, eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness.

Anorexia is not the only eating disorder people live with. While I have struggled with it, others live with bulimia or binge eating disorder. Most eating disorders thrive on isolation. People living with eating disorders often feel alone in their illness. It is this isolation that can lead one living with an eating disorder to consider suicide.

Living with an eating disorder is not a choice. Anorexia becomes you. Bulimia becomes you. Binge eating becomes you. But, as with other mental illnesses, there is help available. Many mental health counselors specialize in treating eating disorders and more and more treatment facilities are working with patients living with eating disorders. If you or someone you know is living with an eating disorder, reach out. Your local hospital may be able to recommend an agency or therapist for treatment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

According to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, each year 45,000 Americans die by suicide. Some statistics show that one person dies by suicide every 12 seconds and a suicide attempt is made every 28 seconds.

We may not always be able to stop someone from trying to kill themselves, but knowing the signs of suicidal thoughts and behaviors can help. Some of them are:

September is suicide awareness month. Sometimes feeling suicidal is less about wanting to die than it is about wanting the emotional or physical pain one is in to end. So often, suicide is about not knowing how to make that pain stop.

So often, those who are suicidal feel like a burden on their friends and loved ones. It is our jobs as friends and loved ones to reassure the person who is considering suicide that they are not a burden on us. It is our job to reassure them that they are loved and worthy of belonging because more often than not, the person who is feeling suicidal feels alone in his pain.

So often, people who are feeling suicidal believe that their friends and loved ones would be better off without them. People who are suicidal believe that by killing themselves, they are doing their loved ones a favor by dying. We must tell them that they are not a burden to us, we must tell them we love and need them in our lives. We must tell them that our lives would never, could never, be the same without them in it.

Suicide is not about being selfish. Suicide is about making the pain one is in stop. There is help for people who are feeling suicidal. If you or someone you know is feeling suicidal, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800.273.TALK. Anyone who is feeling suicidal also can go to any hospital emergency room and receive help. There are people who care. There are people who want to help. You are not alone. You never are alone.

So often in my work, I see people in the throes of mental illness, substance use disorders, trauma and eating disorders who just want the pain of these ailments to end and are not sure how to make it stop. Sadly, there is no magic pill that will make these illnesses vanish. You have to work on your own recovery.

I do see so many people who take the first step in seeking treatment, going into the hospital to get stabilized from mental health crisis. In the hospital, patients are taught coping skills with DBT and CBT. People there learn about relapse prevention and are encouraged to continue treatment once discharged from the hospital. Sadly, for whatever reason, many people choose not to continue treatment once they get home. Perhaps they cannot afford to pay for outpatient services or medication. There are programs that can help with that, though, and many locations offer services on a sliding scale.

Last week, I met a woman who came to the emergency room after what she described as a “relapse” in mental illness. She told me that she had been working on her recovery for four years and had been feeling better. One thing led to another and she stopped participating in her own recovery and ended up in the emergency room. She felt defeated and discouraged by this relapse, but determined to get back on track with her mental health and vowed to seek outpatient services and perhaps new medication. That kind of determination inspires me and also reminds me that relapse happens long before one reaches a crisis, takes that first drink or participates in self-harm after years of abstinence. Relapse begins when one stops doing the work of recovery.

Relapse is not an event; it is a process that begins days, weeks, months before one finds oneself in crisis. Relapse begins when one stops going to therapy or stops taking one’s medications. Relapse begins when one ceases contact with an AA or NA sponsor. Relapse begins when one starts making excuses as to why one cannot make his regular AA or NA meeting.

Relapse often is preventable. One has to continue to participate in his own recovery for recovery to work. Recovery works if you work it. Moving from mental illness to mental wellness takes work and once well, recovery requires daily effort to stay well. There are things one can do to prevent relapse such as reaching out to your psychiatrist or primary care physician if you think your medications no longer are working and talking with that doctor about perhaps changing medication or adding something new to your regimen. Relapse can be prevented by making sure you keep appointments with your therapist or counselor even if you are feeling better. Relapse can be prevented by maintaining regular contact with your AA or NA sponsor. Relapse can be prevented by using your coping skills when needed.

I have said it before and will say it again: Recovery is work and requires daily effort. Are you not worth the effort it takes to get and stay well? Do you not deserve a life full of happiness and health? Do you not deserve to become the person you always were meant to be? Recovery works if you work it. Are you ready to put in the effort?

How many of us say to ourselves things along the lines of, “When I lose 10 pounds, I’ll be happy” or “When I get that job, I’ll be happy?” How often to we predicate our future happiness on things over which we have little control? How often do we hold off on letting ourselves be happy with the way things are right now? How often do we postpone our joy?

You deserve to be happy right now, in this moment, in the life that you are living. Sometimes, yes, that can be difficult if you are living with mental illness, substance use, eating disorders or trauma. But, try to remember, there are things in your life that are good, too, and be thankful for those things. Your happiness should not depend on something that has not yet happened.

It can be difficult to find joy when you are struggling with mental illness of any kind. But to some extent, once you make the decision to be happy, happiness often follows. Once you decide to make the move from mental illness to mental wellness, happiness will follow. Yes, it takes work, but there is joy to be found even as you journey toward wellness. The steps you take now to become well should be celebrated. There is joy to be found along the path to wellness.

What can you do today to find happiness in the things that you are doing to move from illness to wellness? Can you celebrate the fact that you got out of bed today and into the shower? Can you pat yourself on the back for getting dressed and making it to work? Can you congratulate yourself for sticking with your medication regime? There is joy to be found in these small things; celebrate them. You deserve to be happy now, today, as well as in the future. There is joy to be found every day. Sometimes, you may have to search a little harder to find the good, but there is good in every day.

 

How many of us are living with mental illness, substance use disorders, eating disorders or trauma our own worst critics? How many of us beat ourselves up for even the smallest transgression? Likely more than not, no one is meaner to ourselves than we are. The things we say to ourselves often are cruel and uncalled for.

It can be difficult to remember when living with mental illness to give ourselves credit for small victories and celebrate our accomplishments. It can be difficult for those living with mental illness to remember the good things that we do during the day or the good things that happen to us throughout the day because we are stuck in a pattern of negative thinking. It can be difficult for those living with mental illness to remember to be gentle with ourselves. It can be difficult to remember that we are doing the best that we can.

I recently met a woman living with major depressive disorder who confided in me that she is often cruel to herself, calling herself weak for having depression. Living with mental illness does not mean you have a flaw in character, it means you have a flaw in brain chemistry. If you are taking steps to find your way from illness to wellness, give yourself proper credit. You are doing the best you can.

We who live with mental illness are warriors, fighting a daily battle against the demons in our minds. We need to remember to give ourselves props for even the smallest things, like getting out of bed and into the shower and to work. We who fight the good fight must try to remember that we should celebrate those little victories. We who battle depression, anxiety, substance use, eating disorders and trauma need to be gentle with ourselves.

What can you do today to be kind to yourself? Can you take a walk or go for a run? Can you go for a bike ride in a nearby forest preserve? Can you jot down three good things from your day before you climb into bed at night? Can you take some time just for you to take care of yourself? Even just a few minutes a day of treating yourself to a kindness will make you feel better about yourself.