“We all have two lives, and the second begins when we realize we only have one.”
– Confucius
Frosty weather. Holiday meals with those you love and sometimes with people who aren’t favorites. Crowded stores full of shoppers searching for the perfect gift. Black Friday sales. Small business Saturday. Cyber Monday. Giving Tuesday. Christmas tree lights and decorations. Special treats for furry friends. Parties and busy schedules, upsetting daily routines. This time of year can also mean a tumult of anxiety, depression and loneliness for some who have lost a loved one or suffer from a chronic illness. My heart goes out to them.
Sometimes it helps to listen to someone else’s challenging story so your own doesn’t seem so bad. My sister, Connie, and I recently had the pleasure and privilege of being interviewed for a podcast on 2 Lives Matter by Laurel Morales.
2 Lives Matter is a storytelling podcast about people who faced darkness and how those incidents transformed them. The episodes are not complete biographies. Instead, they focus on challenges and how people overcame them.
Laurel asked me, “What has been the most helpful thing as you learn to live with your mental illness? What would you like people to know? My answer:
1) How important nonjudgmental listening is, not only for people with a mental illness, but for everyone else too.
2) Just because it’s an illness you can’t see, doesn’t mean it’s not there. Don’t judge them, help them.
3) How important it is to see it as an illness rather than just bad behavior. Ask the question: Why are they behaving the way they do?
4) How critical taking your meds is and how critical support is. People often don’t ask how you’re doing. They’re afraid to talk about it. Help them. Be there for them.
Confucius also said: “Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in getting up every time we do.”
The episode is about 20 minutes long. You can find it here on their website.
And here on Apple Podcasts. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/
Scroll down underneath the photo of me and Koda to the next photo of us where it says, 12/3/24 – How One Woman Thrives with Schizoaffective Disorder
Click on the play button – the interview starts in 3 minutes
Laurel said, “I believe it has the potential to help many people.”
Thank you for your continued support. I hope you enjoy this podcast and also reading my book, Spies, Lies & Psychosis: Surviving betrayal, mania, depression and the schizoaffective disorder. Available here: https://a.co/d/duv4ZI0 If you’ve already read Spies, Lies & Psychosis, feel free to leave a review or share it with your friends.
May your holidays be filled with love, laughter, fun times and good health!
Until next time…
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