My Mental Health Journey
This section of my website is what has driven & inspired me throughout the last year since I completed my Counselling for Depression sessions. What has kept me going is my vision of seeing it actually become live after Geoff had worked his tech magic. I feel I have now been able to find my voice at last with words & pictures in order to share my very personal story of living with my bipolar assisted by my special support group … that all the effort had been worth it. In time I want it to evolve and reach out to others who have been, maybe are now or will perhaps be affected by mental health issues in the future to a greater or lesser extent which impact on their lives and those of their loved ones. Many people over the last 19 years have asked why I had to retire from teaching at such a young age (47 years old) from teaching so early & I have always struggled to comprehend it fully until now myself never mind explain it to others ! This section of my website finally puts the jigsaw puzzle together.
My support group thoughts & feedback / iphone texts /emails/letters
Geoff = It looks very good & will help a lot of people.
Martin = Very thoughtful, detailed, personal & informative
Claire = I’ve had a really good read through all of the Mental Health section & it’s absolutely wonderful. I knew a lot about how you feel yet you write so eloquently that I feel I know even more from the “My Bipolar Affective Disorder” section. It’s useful to be reminded of the things which make situations more challenging for you as it means I can give better support to you. I also love how you think of others with your other sections e.g. World Mental Health Day & providing links to useful sites. You know how proud I am of you and how proud I am to have you as my Auntie !
Jackie = Have just been looking at your mental health pages. It’s no wonder you get totally exhausted ! Very brave of you to tackle your wobbly world with such honesty and, may I say, real intelligence. You should be really proud of yourself … an awful lot of work & thinking in those pages and you’ve succeeded in helping me and others to understand. It will have helped you too. Very well done. I’m so glad I help a little with our x5 holes golf & it really helps me too . A perfect combination. Very proud of you.
Mark = Had a read through of the mental health part of your site. Very informative read and must have took a lot of effort.
Dr Singh = Excellent mental health website section. I agree with your further plans to extend the scope of your website in the coming weeks and your plans to discuss the same with your previous Inclusion Matters therapist to look at options of making it more public. It is good that how by avoiding technical language and making it more personable and readable, the information in the website can be very useful for your own reflection as well as the general public. Continue to ensure that you avoid becoming over stimulated and put boundaries into your website work.
Dr Charles = I just wanted to let you know that I have visited your stepsandmoments website and I very much appreciated the new addition of the mental health section. What strikes me is your honesty about the struggles or “wobbles” of your bipolar journey , and your constant everyday battle to find balance and calm in your life. Initially on this journey , an important part of my role was to advise you to avoid over stimulation and to remind you of the importance of incorporating rest and relaxation into each day. Now you know your triggers and “danger zones” very well, and you are much better able to achieve balance, calm and relaxation in your life with very little, if any, intervention on my part. I know getting to this point has been a difficult struggle or you, but you should reflect positively on just how far you have come to get to where you are now – maintaining such a level balance and calm. I also appreciate the useful links to other helpful and useful mental health websites. I am sure your honesty on this website, along with the links you provide, will be very helpful to other people experiencing mental health problems in the future.
Marj = I love your website! It is a wonderful sequel to your earlier story of your mental health journey & a response to what has happened to you since. I love the title & cover picture. The idea of your website is brilliant, it’s structure allowing you to focus on specific important areas of you experience & activity, rejecting clutter( I know that was hard ). It allows for breadth & depth & your idea of selecting photos to take you (and your reader) along your pathways was an inspiration. The impression is of calm control, allowing exploration without confusion.. a truly mindful approach that must have been very satisfying and illuminating. I love your focus on beauty, using positive moments of awareness & stillness. I appreciate the open & honest sharing of your inner life & the way your language has reflected your thoughts & feelings about aspects of your life – and how you manage it. I believe your website could be really useful to anyone experiencing mental health – or any personal crisis, encouraging people to pay attention to & appreciate good times and positive experiences – bringing them into focus with words and meaningful photos.
Kim = I have looked through your website & I think it’s great. It certainly shows how passionate you are & tells your story … you have put hours into it. So a very big well done.
Teacher Breakdown / Support group feedback
Jackie … Had a look at your page about teacher breakdown. I really felt for you … Nightmare time. That was difficult for you to write I guess but well done for putting it all down & facing it.
Claire … I think the Teacher Breakdown page is one of the most articulate & insightful things I’ve read. It really does help me to understand how it must have felt for you & how it has impacted your life since. Really proud of you for writing it & it will undoubtedly help me in the future when I try to support people in my work through difficult times like that.
Martin … Read the teacher breakdown section on your website – very powerful, thought provoking insight into the human psyche & lots of personal stuff, some of which I’d long since forgotten about (e.g. cancelling holiday with mum). Well done with your website, keep it up.
Mark … Great work with the website. Gives a very informative view of your experience & is interesting to read … must have been very difficult.
Phil … By approaching and attempting to unravel this extremely challenging period in your life, certainly no easy task, I believe you have shown that you are continuing to move forward in a positive & meaningful way.
M arj … Dear Kath, I can sense your bewilderment and fear as life got more pressured & out of control – and your overworked, overstimulated brain collapsed under the strain. I am so very sorry about the exhaustion, anxiety & distress this caused you. I am really impressed by the courage you have shown in working towards healing and understanding. Even with the support of your various teams I don’t underestimate the toll this has taken of you. Thank you for inviting me to share your journey, so wonderfully well recorded.
From pain … to power … so pleased and proud