My Mental Health Journey Part 1

⚠️TRIGGER WARNING/CONTENT WARNING. This post may be triggering for those with depression, anxiety, and other mental health illnesses.⚠️⠀⠀

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I cried every. single. day. My heart pounded and felt as if it were going to beat out of my chest. My chest would tighten when I tried to calm down. This happened, for I don’t know how many years, to be honest. In high school, my sister (my saving grace) had me talk to the counselors. After a short time they contacted my parents telling them they should get me professional help. It was the fall of 2008 when I was diagnosed with major depressive disorder, anxiety, panic disorder, ADD/ADHD, and OCD. I have been on so many cocktails of medication to find the right fit. The medicine couldn’t work on its own though, I was also in cognitive behavioral therapy. It was through therapy that I found power, healing, and therapeutic relief in writing and journaling. 12 years later, I am still on meds and in therapy, and it helps me live day to day. It eases the anxiety, puts the panic attacks at bay. It allows me to easily live a happy, healthy life along with routine therapy sessions, regularly writing, and leaning on my support system. I wish things got better once I got professional help, but with stresses of life in general, my mental health also ended up taking a turn for the worse...

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