MHFA Qualified!

Sadly, last night was my last session on the Mental Health First Aid course - and as they say, all good things come to an end. 

For someone who has been labelled most of the mental health diagnoses known to modern day psychiatry, I didn't know how much I was going to gain in actual knowledge from the course. I was to be proven wrong; the spectacular expertise of the two facilitators meant that the material was given over in such a way that it gave a new perspective on mental health. Furthermore, the environment was so warm and understanding that everyone within the group felt comfortable to speak out about their experiences and understanding of mental illness. It was amazing how this small group of people embraced the openness, both about their own everyday struggles, but also in their attempt to understand what it actually feels like to suffer with a mental illness. 

The course not only gave me more of an objective understanding of the illnesses featured, but it gave me confidence to talk about my own illness in a productive way – to help others understand my journey with the mental health services and how this information can be utilised to help others. 

Something that stood out for me more than anything else within the course was the idea that an individual can have no diagnosis of mental illness but can still have minimal mental wellbeing, yet someone can have a severe mental illness but still have maximal mental wellbeing. Just because someone has been diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder, Depression or Schizophrenia, doesn't mean that they are now going to be living a life full of unhappiness and loneliness. Contrary to the belief of the media, someone suffering with Schizophrenia will not be a mass murderer or a paedophile any more than your next door neighbour or the Milkman! 

Mental illness can affect anyone - you, me and all the others that walk this earth. It is not the be all and end all. The majority of people will completely recover and live a fulfilling life. Some may relapse, but that is okay; we all have our good and bad times. The illness does not have to define you.

I know that there are still certain bruises I cannot touch and that these are going to take me a long time to overcome. I know that every time I feel low I have the ability to get to a point where life doesn't seem worth living any longer; but it is about learning to manage these thoughts. 

I always thought that I would be able to get rid of my obsessions– that if I worked on them long enough in therapy I would be able to be ‘normal’. I came to the realisation last night that this may be a false belief. I am obsessive and this is probably not going to change. However, what I obsess about and how it affects my life can be changed. 

Mental illness does not equal sadness or badness. For me it was a part of my life that I won’t ever forget. I will use my experiences to campaign for better understanding so that others can get help quicker and more easily.

It really is time to change. Please help me by spreading the word.

R Xx