I had a weight lifted off my shoulders.
Picture by Casper Rae on Unsplash.
I was finally diagnosed with bipolar at age 26. Have you ever spent years thinking, “what is wrong with me?” And then you finally get an answer? Doctor after doctor, therapist after therapist, psychiatrist… the list goes on. Antidepressants aren’t working and never have, and now it finally makes sense.
I have bipolar.
That’s the first time I’ve written it down, and this is the first time I’ve written about it at all. I was unsure if I wanted to share this with Medium, but hey, I’m an open book.
Bipolar runs in my…
And how I wish I’d said something.
I’m not one to hate on all men, just on some of the things they say when directed at or said to women. I’m sure some men have said things they wish they could take back — which means they at least learned something.
I’ve compiled some of the dumbest things men have said to me — from what I can remember because I’m sure there’s more than just these few.
Sadly, after some of these things were said, I didn’t do or say anything most of the time. I didn’t speak up most of the time, and I wish…
I’m tired of saying the phrase.
A close friend of mine who we will call Ginger said to me last Monday, “I hate it when men do that.” We were talking about working in retail and the little things we didn’t like about it. I took a sip of my coffee that the barista had just placed there and continued with my story about how some men treated me as a shop worker.
While working as a pharmacy assistant and being a female, I’d experience a male customer’s sexist behaviour on occasion (which is every day). In this instance, I complained about getting called ‘gorgeous' regularly…
My home life as a child was never perfect, but what person had a perfect home life? There’s no such thing as a perfect childhood. As an adult, when Christmas time rolls around I don’t think much of it; I make an effort to avoid getting caught up in the festivities because I’m not too fond of Christmas now that I’m all grown up. I don’t hate it, but, certainly, I wouldn’t say I like it.
As an adult, Christmas time reminds me that my parents are divorced, and most of my family lives far away in separate locations. When…
But it’s not because I’m lazy, I lack motivation.
I can be lazy now and then — I might wait until the morning to put the dishes away or wash them two hours after dinner instead of right away. But when does ‘laziness’ become a noticeable issue? For me it was when 1.5 months of laundry had piled up onto the couch. I couldn’t find my clean clothes among the pile of dirty ones.
Laziness can often be seen as someone being just that — lazy. But what if something else was going on? For someone such as myself who suffers from major depression just like millions of others…
And I still wore it every day.
When I was 12 years old, my older sister passed down one of her shirts to me. She no longer wanted it, and when I was young, I wanted to be just like her, so I accepted it with excitement because I was always trying to find excuses to wear her stuff.
It was a pale yellow color, with a pink quote in the chest area:
‘Boyfriends make good pets.’
Back then, 12-year-old me didn’t think much of the statement. My 14-year-old sister didn’t either. …
When women are controlling towards men and it gets overlooked as normal.
My parents were married for 15 years. During those 15 years my dad’s hair was long. His hair went down to his waist at one stage. I never saw his hair short. It wasn’t until after their divorce when I was 18 that my dad finally cut his hair. I asked him, “why now? Why did you keep it long for all these years?” and he replied, “I only kept it long because your mother pleaded, and made me to keep it that way.”
Looking back on this memory today, it made me think, do other women do this? Because…
It’s very important.
When I walk down the street, when I go to work, and even when I’m with my family or friends, I am surrounded by gays, bisexuals and transgender people, even someone who is asexual. Without thinking hard, it’s clear to see that the LGBTIQA makes up a huge part of the community. Even I am one of those people, and I’m proud of it.
You don’t have to look far to notice these people. They could be your neighbor, your sister, your best friend, and even that stranger you said good morning to on your way to get a coffee…
It’s important to remember a few things.
One meal that I never seem to get sick of — regardless of my depression taking the wheel or not — is curry. Whether I’m having a negative week mentally, or a positive one, curry is one thing that I haven’t lost interest with over the years when I’ve been severely depressed. But it’s not the same with other things that I like.
It may be obvious already, but in the beginning, I didn’t realize this:
1. It’s normal to find things you enjoy ‘boring’ if you’re depressed.
It’s a widespread symptom of depression, but of course, in the beginning, I didn’t know this. As the years went on, I learned.
One…
