Emotional permanence is a term I recently heard for the first time. It has to do with believing in emotions even when they can’t be seen. This concept is taken from object permanence which is the understanding that objects exist even when they can’t be seen. When I read the term, I realized that I have problems with emotional permanence. I also realized that not having a consistent sense of emotional permanence was a major cause of anxiety.
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I’m so pleased to announce that this Thursday, I’m launching Snap Out of It! The Mental Illness in the Workplace Podcast with Natasha Tracy. (You can always find it via “Podcast” on the top menu.) This podcast is unique because, as the name suggests, we are focusing on mental illness in the workplace and not the overly-general mental health in the workplace. Don’t get me wrong, there is a place for discussing mental health in the workplace too, but that’s not the focus of this podcast. Just like on this blog, I’m focusing on mental illness.
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I had a mentally ill parent. It was my father. He’s dead now, but when he was here, he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Of course, I didn’t find out about that until I was an adult. That secret affected my life from the time I was a child. What it’s like to have a mentally ill parent is different for different people, but here’s what having a mentally ill parent was like for me.
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I hate bad self-help advice. I hate overly-simplified pop psychology. I (by and large) hate self-help gurus. The idea that you can manifest anything you want or attract anything you want into your life is bullshit. Life is more complicated, more difficult, and not to mention far less fair, than that. And while you might think some of this is obvious, often this bad self-help advice is wrapped up in such a pretty bow that you can’t see just how bad it is. Because make no mistakes about it, bad self-help advice hurts people and it can hurt you too.
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Keeping productive and motivated during depression is a tall task. Depression wants to suck all of the productivity and motivation out of you to the point where you become nothing but a lump on your couch. I know all about this. I work from home and for myself and so without a boss or yearly reviews, depression really has a leg up when it comes to causing a lack of productivity. That’s why I have to take productivity and motivation very seriously. Here are a few techniques to maintain productivity and motivation during depression.
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The scariest parts of bipolar disorder depend on who you ask, I guess, but I can think of quite a few scary things; after all, serious chronic illnesses like bipolar disorder tend to be scary on their very face. From having to deal with bipolar disorder for the rest of your life to possibly losing your life to bipolar disorder, there’s a lot of which to be scared. So here, I want to talk about some of the scary (and the scariest) aspects of bipolar disorder. Let’s face our fears.
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I was recently asked what it was like starting to work for myself with a mental illness. Or, more specifically, what should people with mental illness know if they’ve going to try working for themselves? What do people with mental illness need to know about entrepreneurship? There is a definite appeal in working for yourself for many people, perhaps, especially for those with mental illness. But there are also special considerations for people with mental illness too. Let’s take a look at starting your own business if you have a mental illness.
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People sometimes tell those with mental illness that it’s “all in their head.” Would it surprise you to learn, then, that sometimes people with mental illness think the same thing? Sometimes people with mental illness wonder if they’re making it all up. I’ve had these thoughts. I’ve wondered if I was making up my mental illness. I’ve wondered if my bipolar was all in my head. Weird, for an advocate, I know, but let’s look a little deeper at it.
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I have been told that I trigger people with my writing and speaking. And let’s make something clear: that is never my intent. I never stand up in front of people or sit behind the keyboard and think about how to trigger someone. In fact, I soften my language quite frequently so people aren’t triggered. Nonetheless, people say I trigger them. Well, this is incorrect. They’re placing blame on me for their triggers. I didn’t trigger you, your brain and trauma did. It’s not my fault you were triggered.
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