Skip to main content

What Is A Strong Person To You?

This proverb was written anonymously and can be found in the book The Language of Courage and Inner Strength.

People are like tea bags.
You fiind out how strong they are
when you put them in hot water.

Do you think that having an illness can make people stronger?

Yes, I think that people living with AIDS, cancer, schizophrenia, and other illnesses are strong people because the disease trys to suck the life out of them, but they won't let it. Fortunately with treatment they can overcome.

This proverb was written by Maya Angelou, and is from the book Words of Hope and Courage.

I can be changed
by what happens
to me.
I refuse to be reduced
by
it.

Again, do you think that having an illness can make people stronger? What is a strong person to you?

Comments

YoYo said…
It takes great strength to live with an illness, that much I know. Does it make you stronger? I sure as hell hope so!! If not, what is the point of being put through all that pain for?

I have no idea what it is like living with schizophrenia, but I do know what it is like going through life not knowing what the next 5 minutes might bring. I suffer from severe depression and anxiety. Sometimes to the point I can't leave my house. It has been war trying to find the right meds, and it's still not completely comtrolled. Honestly sometimes I feel like I have your illness, my moods change so randomly that I don't even know me.

I look forward to hearing more on what you have to say..
Matthew Howard said…
People tell me I have a bipolar disorder, but I don't know.

I honestly think a strong person is one who can think for themselves. Doesn't always listen to establishment. And makes their own path No matter what it might be.But thats a bit different than what you are talking about.

I do agree that having to deal with anything that other people don't will not only make you stronger, it will make you that much of a better person in the long run.
gmama said…
Strong can be defined by so many things, it is so broad. This blog belongs to my daughter, and she is very STRONG! She has handled this situation look, I, myself could not. I believe it is hard to actually express just what has occurred in her life, you would have had to be there. I do not know what I would have done! I don't know if I could have handled the way she is. When this situation occurred, she continued on with her life, with a strong passion on educating herself and making herself better. She did not seem to even stop and think about it and say "poor me." She just plummetted forward. I look at her and cannot express my love, and how proud I am of her. I truly don't know what to say when I see here because she is truly unbelievable. This blog is helping all of us, her immediate family. It appears to be therapeutic and strengthening in itself. It's those little things that come out whenever its ready to come out. As far as strength goes, I was happy when she started this blog, but I did not stop to think about the reality, the realness of what would come out. Honestly, as her mother, I could not muster the strenght to read it because it forced me to deal with the healing I have to deal with. It IS forcing me to pull strength out of somewhere so that I can move forward a little bit faster, with my daughter. I hope what I am saying is making sense to those reading this.

Popular posts from this blog

Lack of Trust: A Byproduct of My Mental Illness

In this entry, I'll share my experiences with Schizophrenia in regards to feeling lack of trust in others, paranoia, and isolation.... I remember my many episodes with Schizophrenia where I felt uneasy because of lack of trust in others. In the past, isolation was a giant bullying me around. Sometimes my mind would take me to a place of fear, hurt, and an unsettling spirit, which started with what seemed like a strange look, or a different feeling around an individual, when in reality it was another symptom of my undiagnosed illness- paranoia. My paranoia was rampant and dictated my life prior to experiencing a crisis, which led me to jail and into forced treatment and to receive an official diagnosis of Schizophrenia in 2007. In other words, my illness created enemies in my mind. For instance, I once believed my favorite kin was against me and I felt like she wanted me to fail, and I eventually thought she was conspiring to harm me. However, she never said anything to imply these ...

Fear to Openness about Medication

I am concerned that I may be slipping into depression that may get worse if untreated. Prior to the birth of my child I never had a bout with depression, but as my body changed so did my hormones and my susceptibility to depression. A few months ago I was diagnosed with postpartum depression and at the time I knew I needed extra support from my my treatment team. I knew I needed to focus on my mental health because my anxiety level was up and down, it was difficult to concentrate, and I felt extremely overwhelmed and afraid my mental illness would rear its ugly head and try to destroy my recovery accomplishments. I spoke my therapist who contacted my doctor and let them know I was coming in the next morning as a walk-in, which I did and we tweaked my medication. Now, its hard to focus and to carry out minor assignments, sometimes I feel anxious for no reason, I am extremely tired and sleep more than usual, and I feel like I am on a downward spiral. Yet, I have reason to be. I have ...

From the Terrors of Psychosis to Hope and a Better Life

For me, experiencing psychosis is an experience I will never forget. In short, psychosis is when an individual cannot distinguish reality. I endured a psychotic experience at the age of 20, almost five years ago, and still remember the terrors of the illness- officially diagnosed as paranoid schizophrenia in 2007. The manifestation of the illness dominated my livelihood whenever I was extremely suspicious, confused, forgetful, irritable, distant, irrational, and hearing criticizing voices when nobody was around. In my mind, everyone was envious of me because I had godly talents. I thought I could read people's minds and understand them, and sometimes they could read my mind as well. I rationalized these strange beliefs by my faith in God and the miracles of the Bible. I believed I was on a mission for God and eventually thought I was Jesus Christ being persecuted again when I was arrested for a crime I committed while not in the right state of mind. The bizarre thoughts increased....