Overcoming Schizophrenia

This month (June) is the anniversary of my mother's life. The picture of me and my mother was taken while I was in high school. In this picture, we were standing on the porch in front of her antique shop. There are countless lessons she instilled in me, however, entrepreneurship is one of the few at the top of that list. Another is how to be a great supporter and mother by making loving sacrifices for one's child. While I was not well, and at my worse, she stopped working to relocate, in order to care and support me. I love my mother, and that experience portrayed the woman, and mother I aim to be remembered by my own child. I saw an American Greetings card and purchased it for myself. I think of my mother everyday, I want to acknowledge and celebrate her with another soothing image for me. I am honoring my mother's life and passing due to stage four breast cancer. I am also honoring all amazing mothers and women who've impacted us in loving ways among a milli...

I have a lot to say, however, I am hesitant to blog about it, because I am working on a couple of books. I will publish a collective piece with peers, and also publish my follow up book to What's On My Mind? later this year (2017). While I am excited to share my recovery journey I am frequently challenged by the ability to appropriately delegate my writings between the blog and book. My "Overcoming Schizophrenia" blog is still my healthy outlet and love... I appreciate all readers and strive to give my love to them forever through my self-expressive writings in order to relate, educate, and to further empower our growing recovery community and tight-knit recovery network; online and in-person. In fact, there have been many times when I got on my laptop to develop a blog entry on life lessons of my recovery, but chose not to complete it in order to convert it into a chapter in my book. Once, I valued my Bible more than anything...then it was my journal; like a safe...

I am alone, and not lonely. I’ve been performing different homemade self-love activities to nurture and to love and to pamper myself with a level of contentment of satisfying my own loving demands.  Last week I created a bulletin board of a collage collective of old greeting cards that my family and friends gave me. I included hand-written notes from friends, and pictures of myself and family. Today, I researched and printed lyrics of songs that identifies my spirit and self-care needs for right now. I really listened to the music’s words, and not just the tune, and beat; like I usually do.  These two songs spoke to the essence of my self-care identity, for now... 1)  Monica, “Love All Over Me” …I got love all over me, And I don’t want to get it off… Even my skin is changing, I’m feeling warmer… You put the color back in my life... 2)  Tink, “Treat Me Like Somebody” Somebody real is hard to find, Somebody worth all your time, ...

I understand how many readers may feel like I left everyone hanging, because I did… my commitment to my employer, my family and parenting, and straight up- my not-up-to-par self-care habits. It goes back to seasonal coping skills and lifetime coping demands; which I will forever seek balance. Writing in its diverse forms such as journaling and blogging is important to me. My writing is a must for me, to express myself by reflection, connect with others in order to expand my understanding of self and to relate; as well as to better function at a better than average degree on the scale and spectrum of my wellness… I am still here. I am still well. And I am still striving for a good life in my recovery, which forever shifts and changes…still I am me, overcoming my mental health conditions, and life’s uneasiness, and yet, and still; life’s pleasantness, at the same time!  I love myself because I am learning how to embrace my flaws that I usually aim to remove in thought, fantasy, ...