"You will emerge from this nightmare like the powerful, beautiful, resilient person who you are." Powerful and true words of encouragement for those who have been thrust into the nightmare of Clinical Depression. Depression is a a truly hellish experience. It has its own distinct flavor of (emotional) torture in the sense that it robs … Continue reading You may not see it or believe it now, but you can and will overcome this →

"Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me." THAT is one of the biggest lies ever told. Words are powerful. Words matter. Words can encourage and convey love or they can gash the psyche, convey hate, and plant the seeds of shame. If we are pummeled with cruel words frequently … Continue reading LIE: “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” →

Those of us with a mental illness and/or an addiction tend to expect people to read our minds and act accordingly. Then when they don't act according to our expectations, we get resentful or angry. We also tend to believe that other people intuitively know what we are feeling. Before I got on the path … Continue reading We Need You →

"No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted." -Aesop As I was driving home from watching the football game with my son at a local bar and grill today, I passed a homeless woman sitting near a busy intersection. If it's logistically possible when I am driving, I almost always stop to … Continue reading “No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.” -Aesop →

In my family of origin, I was indoctrinated with the core belief that I had to be working or grinding to justify my existence. Given my Bipolar Disorder and addictive inclinations, this of course evolved into a compulsion. My felt sense was that I HAD to be busy doing something productive nearly every waking moment. … Continue reading Rest, recovery, and reflection are essential aspects of my life today. →

This graphic fascinates me. Probably because it is a great visual representation of any one of my hypo-manic or manic episodes. As the photo of this "journal" goes, my episodes were "happy! happy! happy! happy!....BROKEN... happy! happy!..." My Bipolar Disorder was a viscious cycle of hypo-manic or manic episodes (happy!) followed by the inevitable crash … Continue reading As the photo of this “journal” goes, my episodes were “happy! happy! happy! happy!….BROKEN… happy! happy!…” →

Handling my feelings has never been my forte. In fact, at age 51, I am still getting acquainted with my feelings and allowing them to manifest without numbing them out, running from them through hyper-busyness, or sublimating them to something less painful that leaves me feeling less exposed (i.e. sadness, shame, or fear to anger). … Continue reading Handling my feelings has never been my forte →

"A lot of the pain that we are dealing with is really only thoughts." As a person who has suffered with untreated Bipolar Disorder, Alcoholism, Porn Addiction, and emotional trauma, this statement doesn't just speak to me. It assaults my ears with a bone-rattling, cacaphonous din. For 26 years, and through parts of my Recovery … Continue reading Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional. →

THIS IS A MAN.... A Human Being with a Mental Illness Treated Like Garbage "Mark Rippee has survived on the streets of Vacaville for nearly twelve years despite being sightless, missing parts of his brain, enduring the pain of an interior metal rod to support his shattered right leg, fifty surgeries—many of them to heal … Continue reading THIS IS A MAN…. →

Once again my friend and fellow sufferer, Bridgette Saunders, has penned a magnificent piece of writing. This one is a metaphor for death by suicide that she scribbled to amplify awareness for National Suicide Prevention Month: THE ONCE-FOREST A forest shook with the rust of disease on the bark of its trees. One day it … Continue reading THE ONCE-FOREST →