Skip to main content

Tonight's Support Group Meeting

I just got back from a NAMI support group. It was a very good meeting we covered a lot information related to coping with mental health, our attitude toward stigma, and various bizarre experiences. Afterward, I felt energized, uplifted, and empowered like the way church makes me feel, it was very good. I really enjoyed the company of my friends who are also in recovery from different mental illnesses. I look forward to next week's meeting!

To learn more about schizophrenia visit Embracing My Mind, Inc., NAMI, Schizophrenia Society of Nova Scotia (Canada).
Labels:

Comments

Feminist Voice with Disabilities said…
I love NAMI. I don't go to the support group here anymore, but I am involved with the Consumer Council. We are a small group, but we are very dedicated to advocacy, and I enjoy being involved. I'm glad you have found NAMI to be helpful to you, Ashley.
January 20, 2011 at 6:10 PM
Corey b said…
I suffer from paranoid schizophrenia as well. I find the hard part is even realizing i have it.. then acceptance of it is just emotionally agonizing. I don't quit suffer from hallucinations, but sometimes the people around me make me feel that i am, which brings me back to the realization that i have schizophrenia. I'm lost. The people around me still have hope, im sure, but are expecting way to much from me, and get mad because i don't understand. everything goes in one end of the brain and out the other, for me and them. I'm looking for help from somebody but am not sure where to start. :/

another thing that bothers me is. keeping relationships during recovery. that's why i initially stopped.
February 5, 2011 at 7:07 PM
Ashley Smith said…
Hi Corey B.,

I understand you and I are on different stages of recovery, as is everyone living with mental health concerns, with that said, don't let others influence your progress with the illness and continue to seek support.

I commend you for seeking support and coming forth as a person living with mental health, managing schizophrenia or any mental illness can be difficult.

Initially, I had a hard time with it, especially taking my medicine, but as time passed and I learned more about schizophrenia along with a lot of support from family, peers, and health care professionals, it got more and more manageable.

Recovery is a process that cannot be rushed. Although I am not a health care professional, from my experience, I would suggest to you to seek as much information about the illness as possible- a great book is The Complete Family Guide to Schizophrenia. Another great reading, that does not talk like a doctor but is in a more realistic way is one of my favorite books on the topic of schizophrenia, Welcome Silence My Triumph Over Schizophrenia.

Also, I am an advocate for the advantages of participating in a support group. Another great resource is the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), they provide FREE support groups (and online chat groups) across the United States (at www.nami.org).

Whenever you are ready, I encourage you to try peer support again by attending a support group.

Thank you for your comment, I am confident that others can relate to you, I appreciate your candidness and wish the best for you and your supporters.

Best regards,

Ashley Smith
February 9, 2011 at 3:21 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Religious Preoccupation

After a talk, a woman asked me if my faith contributed to my recovery because she noticed that I mentioned it throughout my speech. In addition to that, she told me that she observed people with faith as having a better outcome in their mental health recovery. First, I came from a family with Christian values. My faith in God started to get intense during the latter years of high school, which in my opinion, is when I started having symptoms. In my experience religion plays a major role in my mental health- its delusions, its coping skills, and in my recovery. In medical terms they call my religious rituals and delusions "religious preoccupation." Before I was diagnosed I was highly religious. In fact, I wanted to be an evangelist and to go to a Christian college. I would read my Bible for several hours a day throughout the day, listen to hymns, and meditate. Sometimes I would ignore people if they wanted my attention while I was meditating I was in such deep thought. Also, I...
15 comments
Read more

The Path that God Chose for Me

I am not upset that I have schizophrenia, this is the life God chose for me. The other day I was telling my mother I am glad I took a break from school, but I wish I had taken it sooner so that I could have recognized my illness sooner. She reminded me that everything happens for a reason, and that had I took a break sooner I would not have been able to know my full potential in college and in life. I went to college and got really involved in it through sports, internships, and mentoring peers. I was involved in so many things, school, church, home, friends, family, you name it! She was right, I am glad I took the path I took. I did not always have schizophrenia, but now that I have it I will work hard to overcome it. I try not to use the word schizophrenic because that identifies the person by their illness and that isn't fair. I am Ashley and I have schizophrenia. I will not let it limit my potential or define who I am. I can and will overcome these symptoms with medication, the...
23 comments
Read more

Schizophrenia is not Caused by BAD Parenting!!

The situation that I am about to discuss with you is very personal and a sensitive topic, however, similar things most likely occur in other people's families as well. After I had my psychotic break, relatives believed my mother was to blame for my illness. They believed I wasn't raised right and my mother's parenting skills were to blame. Although this was a harsh attitude towards my mother, it was another form of denial. Family made accusations, although I was not even raised in the same state as the rest of my family. Once a person has a mental illness the whos, whats, wheres and whys really do not matter. The only thing that should matter is getting that person back on the right track and moving forward toward recovery. During my childhood, I always felt loved by my mother. She would call me her "princess," "little queen," "pumpkin pie," or "ratcoon." I remember her telling me "I love you," and exchanging hugs before bed...
16 comments
Read more