"In the span of 6 months, I lost my dad, was forced to move out of his house by family, and also ended a years-long relationship with my partner at the time. The pain that I felt was so deep that I spiraled into the deepest depression yet."
Struggled with:
Depression
Divorce
Grief
"I met my future husband when I was 26 but I never felt truly connected to him. I felt just as invisible to him as I did to everyone else. When we decided we wanted to have children, by some miracle, I was able to abstain from drinking just before and during my pregnancy. I coped by being very controlling, a shopaholic, and a workaholic. The twins were born when I was 31 and postpartum depression led me back to the only solution I thought I had: drinking"
Struggled with:
Addiction
ADHD
Anxiety
Depression
Panic attacks
Suicidal
"Our daughter noticed changes in me like I wasn’t as active in keeping our house as clean as I used to, and I realized that at my job I was getting more drained, and I am only working 4-5 hours a week. I came to know I had to work on myself, and my new med helps with the depression, and mostly the anxiety."
Struggled with:
Anxiety
Depression
Helped by:
Medication
Self-Care
"Reflecting on my journey reminds me of the progress I’ve made and the strength that I have now. It’s a testament to the resilience of the human spirit. You need to take the first step and reach out. Someone is there to help you!"
Struggled with:
Depression
Grief
Helped by:
Journaling
Self-Care
Therapy
"In my experience, I don’t think I could’ve recovered without residential treatment. Residential treatment is long-term (minimum 28 days) where you stay overnight at a facility and spend the day in individual and group therapy. In treatment, I was able to get out of my environment, focus solely on getting better, and not have to worry about school, friends, family, or work."
Struggled with:
Eating disorder
Negative body image
"No matter how much I’d accomplished, because my life wasn't excelling at the rate that I desired it to, I believed something was wrong with me. I would compare myself to others, and do things I wasn't interested in or enjoyed, just to be accepted, and in doing so I lost my identity and my ability to be my true authentic self."
"I was in a fog, so confused, and felt all over the place. I had to relearn myself when to anticipate these challenges occurring and plan for prevention, do more outreach for support and be really open with my partner about all of the above. This is really difficult to do all while trying to figure out what’s going on with your body and brain, and a new human to care for."
Struggled with:
Anxiety
Depression
Grief
Postpartum depression
Helped by:
Journaling
Self-Care
"One evening, I was running some errands for the rescue when I became mesmerized by the headlights of the oncoming cars. This thought popped into my head… if I just crossed the median, this could all be over in a second. That’s when I knew I had a serious happiness problem on my hands."
Struggled with:
Anxiety
Depression
Helped by:
Reinventing yourself
Self-Care
"I came across an Instagram post about Akashic readings and was intrigued by the positive feedback, so I decided to give it a try. During the hour-long session with the practitioner, she guided me to prepare questions that my spirit guides could help answer. Naturally, one of my pressing questions was whether I would ever become a mother. To my immense joy, she affirmed that I would indeed have a daughter and even mentioned that I would produce ample milk for her."
Struggled with:
Anxiety
Depression
Infertility
Helped by:
Self-Care
Spirituality
Therapy
"No one can change your life for you and help you. You have to make an effort to get better. It can be very difficult when you're depressed, but you have to take at least one small step every day. Start with what is easiest for you."
Struggled with:
Depression
Helped by:
Exercise
Medication
Self-Care