Thursday 22 December 2011

Insane in the membrane, Insane in the brain!

Ok, possibly a slightly tongue in cheek title, but it's been my earworm for the last few days.

Those of you who follow me on a twitter will probably have noted that I've been a bit errr... crazy in the head stakes. Partially, this post is going to be a little explaining, partially it's going to be some pondering on mental health issues and how they're often perceived.

So, first things first. I'm not depressed. It's interesting that when you say something's wrong with your brain, people assume you're depressed or at the very least sad. I'm not. What I do have is severe anxiety, which triggers ocd, panic attacks and just a general grim feeling of everything being overwhelming. For the record, this isn't like feeling anxious before a job interview or just worrying about things. It's intense and its debilitating. It feels like the whole world is caving in on you and you're completely out of control. It's possible that I also had a hypomanic period. But we'll ignore that one for now.

The other thing I've noticed is how weird it feels to talk about having a mental health problem. I mean, I talk about everything with anyone. I'm an incredibly open person. If you follow me on twitter, you'll know that there's not much I won't tweet about. But tweeting about my mental health, that made me... uncomfortable. At least to start with. Right now, I'm deciding to screw that uncomfortableness and just tweet my way through things. I'd tweet if I'd been to the Drs and given antibiotics for a chest infection, why on earth shouldn't I tweet I've been given diazepam to calm my brain down?!

Two good things have come out of this. The first is that so many people seem to have started to engage in conversation with me about mental health. Not just mine, but theirs too. Anything that increases the visibility and dialogue about mental health issues can only be a good thing as far as I'm concerned. The other good thing that's come out of this is that through the power of Twitter and awesome things, I've manned up and got myself some medical help. Boom!

Saying all of that, I think it's also important for us to acknowledge that for a lot of people, Christmas is a difficult time of year, for a whole host of reasons. I know that Christmas politics are one of the many things that triggered my crazy. Christmas is a difficult time, especially if you're alone or there are things you can't cope with. The wonderful Kellie of Big Fashionista has been compiling a list of useful numbers for anyone who's finding the festive period difficult - be it depression, anxiety, bipolar... please, know that you're not alone. Know that you deserve help, that you're entitled to help, that things can get better. Here's the list. Use it if you need it, pass it on to someone else if you think they might.


MIND
0300 123 3393
Samaritans
08457 90 90 90
Alcoholics Anonymous
0845 769 7555
Stonewall
Info line 08000 50 20 20
London Lesbian and Gay Switchboard
0207 837 7324
SANELine
0845 767 8000
Preventing young suicide
For people in Northern Ireland
0808 808 8000
Childline
0800 1111
Depressionalliance
Refuge 
0808 2000 247
Eating Disorders Association
0845 634 1414
Shelter
0808 800 4444
NHS Direct
0845 4647
No Panic
0808 808 0545

 And one last thing - why not knock on your neighbours door with a Christmas card and the offer of a festive mince pie this year? You never know the difference it could make :)
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8 comments:

  1. Love ya you beautiful woman.


    X x x

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  2. Lovely post. You're a wonderful person, never ever forget it!

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  3. Thanks for this Emily. You look after yourself :)

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  4. Lovely Post Emily - one of my friends has suffered from mental health problems that sound similar to yours including severe anxiety, at one point she really never thought she's ever get better. But over the last few months she has dramatically improved and feels so much better. I wish that there was no stigma attached to mental health issues, its really something that people should be open to talking about as that is so important. Good for you sharing things - it will help other people too. Hope you have a great Christmas! xxx

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  5. Thank you for sharing Emily. I think a lot of people will take a lot form this!

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  6. You're a great person and have supported me when I've felt anxious, so I hope it gets better for you x

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  7. Talking about mental health is always scary. I have made a point out of doing it, or at least trying to. It's scary, but it makes people kind of understand that when I say "I'm too tired", it doesn't mean I haven't slept, it means that the anxiety makes functioning normally SO MUCH HARDER and takes so much more energy.

    Truth is, I sometimes worry that future employers and stuff will find my blog and hold that against me, but I'm determined to talk about it, because if nobody starts, it just won't happen. I'm glad you are too, because it makes things so much easier.

    Good luck, I hope you feel better or at least learn how to cope with it soon. When "soon" is is another thing, but you know. It will happen.

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Your comments and thoughts are really appreciated :) Thank you for taking the time to chat xx