Skip to main content

My Recovery- Stamped and Approved by Me!

September 2013 is National Recovery Month... Recovery Month promotes the societal benefits of prevention, treatment, and recovery for substance use and mental disorders, celebrates people in recovery, lauds the contributions of treatment and service providers, and promotes the message that recovery in all its forms is possible. Recovery Month spreads the positive message that behavioral health is essential to overall health, that prevention works, treatment is effective and people can and do recover.                               
  • With proper care and treatment, between 70 and 90 percent of persons with mental illnesses experience a significant reduction of symptoms and an improved quality of life. (the National Alliance on Mental Illness, NAMI)
September 2013 also represents my five year anniversary for maintaining this blog, which I started in 2008. At the same time, September is my birthday month, yay!

As I reflect on my journey of recovery that began in 2007 at the age of 20, I can look back with peace of mind, and joy, to see and experience maturity in recovery. Since my diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia in a state hospital in the summer of 2007 I have created a new life for myself that is no longer defined by my academic achievements and failures, but consistent invalueable experiences in the mental health field that has molded my recovery; my involvement in the lives of my peers, advocacy, and volunteer work.

There is life after diagnosis of mental illness, I am proof! I have accomplished many of my short-term and long-term goals which will continue to change along with my ongoing recovery plans and responsibiliites. Some of my goals that I have made included: living independently, obtaining my driver's license again (it was taken from me for the incident I committed that landed me in jail), and becoming a Certified Peer Specialist (after three attempts to get into the training), among other accomplishments. Now I hold several leadership positions in the mental health community, including board member, mentor, trainer and advocate.

I say all this to emphasize that an individual living with mental illness can fulfill their goals- whatever they are. Therefore, I urge you- whether you are an individual living with severe and persistent mental illness, a family member, educator, or professional, etc., to have hope for a better future for people affected by mental illness, because success is defined by the individual and it is attainable. In fact, I've overcome many obstacles such as not having health insurance, having a fixed income, and being looked down upon because of my mental health condition, but I've endured!

My hope and goal is to finish college, become a homeowner, and to gain full-time employment among many other goals, which I believe I can reach as long as I maintain consistency in being compliant with my treatment regime, surround myself with like-minded people, and to have faith!

Recently, I found myself so stressed and tired at another daily challenge that I had to use self-talk to encourage myself to keep pushing forward. I told myself aloud, "I can do this. I can do this, there are people who are willing to help me. I can do this." And this statement helped me to look at the positive side of situations and to keep going.

Thank you for reading about my struggles and joys- I hope my experience will motivate you to see strength, hope, and the endless capabilities in yourself, whether you have a mental illness or not. Thank you.

Comments

Matt said…
Going great! You are an encouragement and motivation.Keep it up.
Dawn said…
You have accomplished so much! Kudos to you! Your testimony encourages me and others. Thank you so much for sharing.
Ashley Smith said…
Thank you- Matt and Dawn!!

Ashley Smith

Popular posts from this blog

No, Please, That's Not Me

Prior to my diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia I did some things that I am not proud of. Now that I look back on things I blame my illness for my poor judgment. I am by no means condoning the behavior I carried out, and will share with you here. I will provide a few instances where my behavior was unlike me and caused an uproar. This post shows how schizophrenia affects other people. This post is for the family members and friends of people with schizophrenia, or showing bizarre behaviors. First, I asked my mother permission to give my friend a statue that was in my mother's house. My mother agreed to give my friend the statue, however, I took her permission a step further to get rid of what she had at my discretion. At the time I did not live with my mother who was away on a business trip. My mother buys and sells things so she had a lot of collectibles, antiques, and other interesting stuff. While my friend and me were in my mother's house my friend saw a lot of stuff that s

What Is Remission?

Remission is the absence of symptoms for at least six months with the support of medication. In other words, a doctor who has never seen you before may not diagnose you as a person with schizophrenia anymore. Remission is also high functioning in several aspects of life, living independently, goinig to school or to work, and socializing with other people. However, this does not mean the patient is cured or the illness has went away, the illness is still present, however, under control. Remission is achieved with the assistance of medication. "Published studies suggest that 10% to 20% of people with schizophrenia have remission of their illness as they get older, 20% get worse, but in a large majority (60% to 70%), the course of illness remains relatively unchanged." To reach remission it is recommended that you aim for a stress-free environment. Therefore, do things to relieve stress such as journaling, exercising, talking to friends, listening to or creating music, making a

by A Guest Blogger: For Addicts, Recovery Means Creating a New Life

If you’re struggling to maintain your sobriety, you aren’t alone. There are millions of fighters just like you working toward reclaiming their lives from drugs and alcohol. There are a few common traits that many successful recovering addicts share. Keep reading to find out what they are and how you can follow in their footsteps. They establish new patterns You can’t continue to live your life the same was you did when you were using. You must change and adapt to your newfound sobriety. Consider a career change; many recovering addicts find they have more success by starting their own business. One career that is easy to enter is dog walking. As a dog walker , you’ll reap many rewards including getting to spend time with dogs, which can actually boost your recovery efforts and stave off depression. Dogs have been used as part of a treatment plan for users as young as 11 and come with the added benefit of helping you stay physically active. Plus, being with