The brain is an organ. So why have we attached so much stigma and shame to having an illness related to that organ? When someone has heart, lung, kidney, or pancreatic illnesses, people pray for them, support them, help them, set up Go Fund Me accounts, love them, etc... When someone has a mental illness, … Continue reading Or are we happy being passive-aggressive savages? →

Eating Disorders are grave and can be quite lethal. Also, they are not a choice. They are an illness. No healthy human being would consciously choose to self-destruct and engage in slow motion suicide. Here are some alarming statistics from ANAD: -At least 30 million people of all ages and genders suffer from an eating … Continue reading Eating Disorders are grave and can be quite lethal. Also, they are not a choice →

Intrusive, obsessive thoughts are sheer mental torture. The mind of a mentally ill person, an addict or a trauma survivor provides a fertile environment for these horrific thought patterns to emerge and take root. And my experience has been that these ruminations are never fuel for joy or happiness. They almost always involve something painful … Continue reading Like a broken jukebox that keeps serving up the same depressing country song. Only it’s in your head →

In AA we call Alcoholism the "disease of more," as many of us suffer from cross addictions, some of us pick up new ones to replace alcohol, and almost all of us are compulsive in our approach to many things we do and consume. My years of living in the sickness of my Bipolar Disorder … Continue reading In AA we call Alcoholism the “disease of more” →

As a person who has survived 51 years with Bipolar Disorder, and who has been blessed to find Recovery, I love Carrie Fisher for having the guts to share her incredible journey-to inspire us all and to fight stigma. She is a profile in courage in her struggle with an SMI, Bipolar Disorder. It was … Continue reading She is a profile in courage in her struggle with an SMI, Bipolar Disorder →

When one has an untreated mental illness, addiction, or emotional trauma, it's fair to conclude that one had stunted social skills and malaptive behavior patterns. My experience was that while manipulation was one tactic that I used to get my needs met before I got into Recovery from Bipolar Disorder and Alcoholism, it was by … Continue reading Most people have a desire and need to be believed and trusted. →

Bipolar Disorder, my addictions, a dysfunctional upbringing, and (often self-inflicted) trials and tribulations beat me down to the extent that this raging, defiant agnostic was willing to surrender to a Higher Power of my understanding, the AA way of life, and the Red Letters. Both the suffering experienced and the spiritual solutions have brought me … Continue reading When those of us who have passed through the Dark Night of the Soul encounter light, we are indeed bursting with gratitude →

When I was still in the painful bondage of my mental illness and addictions, my concept of love was that it was strictly a feeling or sentiment. Between that false belief and my instability, relationships and friendships were as ethereal and passing as were my momentary pleasures and gratifications. Love was tawdry and cheap to … Continue reading And all of this pertains to healthy self-love too →

Negative self-talk was one aspect of my untreated Bipolar Disorder that was causing me so much emotional pain. It was self-inflicted, but done so without realizing that it wasn't natural or that there was any other way. I was much like a fish swimming in water and not being conscious of the water. When I … Continue reading So choose the words of your self-talk wisely and with compassion! →

Before I got into Recovery, I spent 43 years experiencing insomnia, self hatred, distorted thinking, anxiety, depression, mania, self harm, addiction, many toxic and broken relationships, rage, fear, financial insecurity, personal insecurities, discomfort in my own skin, emotional agony, varying degrees of isolation, ruminations, and, pursuing myriad self-destructive activities.. To borrow a phrase, "nevertheless, (I) … Continue reading Never Give Up →