Wednesday, September 5, 2012

January First

While I read this true story I felt conflicted.  I knew how it felt to be labeled.  I am not schizophrenic, however I do have borderline personality disorder.  Twelve years ago I was misdiagnosed as Bipolar NOS.  I have been put on various cocktails of drugs of which never seemed to work.  They have upped my dosages to the point that I would fall down while trying to walk.  I was even put on Geodon, an anti-psychotic, at one point because my ex husband convinced my psychiatrist that I was hearing things.  It took a divorce to show the doctors it wasn't me and I wasn't having mental issues other than the borderline personality disorder brought on by the years of abuse.

No, I wasn't hearing things.  I heard him talking in low volumes on his cell phone to his mistress, now his second wife.  The problem wasn't with me, the problem was with my first marriage.  There is only just so much mental and physical abuse a person can take before they snap.  I snapped in the wrong direction.  I felt worthless and wanted the world to stop so I tried to take my life.  See, wrong direction.

I can only describe the feeling like I was in a bird  eggshell.  I was closed in and trying to drown out the problems around me but my shell was still to fragile to protect me and I cracked.

Finally I found the right direction.  No medication could fix the issues for me.  Talk therapy helped immensely.  DBT (dialectical behavioral therapy) group sessions helped me find the good in my life and the good in me.  I got out of the bad marriage.  The old me just wouldn't work in the new world that I had to create for myself.  I learned to cope with the environmental factors and radically accept that which I could not change.

Unfortunately for people like Jani with schizophrenia, January, talk therapy alone doesn't normally work like it did for people like me with lesser disorders.  Like many of my schizophrenic friends ( I met quite a few in the psych ward while I was being held), they need to find an equilibrium between the medications, their variation of reality, and the talk therapy of which for some can help immensely.

Though I do not have schizophrenia I do understand how it feels be held against one's will in a psych ward.  I also know how it feels to not want to leave the psych ward since it can be quite a safe environment where friendships that you wouldn't have on the outside are formed with people that do understand.


How far would you go to advocate for your child? In January First, father Michael Shofield and his family struggle to find the right treatment for his daughter Jani, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia at six years old. Join From Left to Write on September as we discuss the Shofield's memoir January First. As a member, I received a copy of the book for review purposes.

22 comments:

  1. Thank you so much for sharing your experience. I have a family member who has Borderline Personality Disorder and she's cut all of her family off...it's so hard for me to understand. But it's good to know that there are other people out there who do, and I hope she gets the support she needs like you did to turn things around.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sometimes the psychologists suggest that we cut from our lives that which offends us the most. In other words if we feel that our families are at the heart of our issues then we have to basically divorce them. It by no way means that the family has done something to harm the person with BPD but the person with the disorder is probably perceiving the family as a trigger for a bad memory. However there are in some instances families that were the cause of the disorder. If you want to read more about borderline personality disorder I can recommend http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/borderline-personality-disorder/index.shtml

      Delete
  2. My husband made me feel like i was going crazy too! Our seperation has been a complet detox for me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It is rather nice to get rid of unwanted baggage. Still there are the flashbacks and nightmares from that decade of my life. PTSD is the label they gave me for it.

      Delete
  3. Wow...thank you for sharing your story.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Unfortunately it has become an all too familiar one for a lot of abused women.

      Delete
  4. I'm glad you had the strength to leave your husband. Being constantly told that you are not enough can wear a person down. I'm happy that you have found a good place.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So many women are afraid to leave these types of relationships. I wish there were more support systems in place. I had even reported to my shrink about the beatings and he did nothing.

      Delete
  5. Your story is incredible - thank you for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. More people need to be aware of mental illness.

      Delete
  6. It must have eaten you up inside to be misdiagnosed! I'm bipolar and have been on my share of meds as well (21 in 3 years). We've got to keep fighting the fight and just say no to stigma.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I wish I could remember the cocktails of meds I was on. Geodon, trileptal, pamelor, depakote, zoloft, neurontin are a few I can remember off hand. Unfortunately I seem to be drug resistant. A few of the aforementioned drugs are also used to treat fibromyalgia of which I also have. Nothing seems to work on me. Same thing with most pain meds. I guess that is where the got the NOS from when they thought I was bipolar.

      Delete
  7. Rebecca, thanks for your honesty. I suffer with depression, and what you said about the bird eggshell really hit the nail on the head for me:

    "I can only describe the feeling like I was in a bird eggshell. I was closed in and trying to drown out the problems around me but my shell was still to fragile to protect me and I cracked."

    I have not tried to take my own life, nor have I had thoughts to do so, but I can see how easy it would be to go down that road mentally and emotionally... especially being in the situation you were in.

    Keep talking.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Occasionally I still slip up and go down that dark slippery slope. Its not an easy climb back up but it is possible.

      Delete
  8. Rebecca, I am cheering for you! It takes such courage to share your story and you have done it! It's your life, live it to the fullest.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My past is what has made me so strong today. When I look back I often shake my head at how I got through it all. Now I look forward to a happier future with each morning that I wake up.

      Delete
  9. Thank you for sharing your story. I agree with you, that more people ought to be aware of mental illness. I grew up with a BPD father, and I often wonder how different our house would have been had he gotten help. I'm glad for you, that you're in a better place now.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I remind those closest to me to not "push my buttons". I have to explain to them the first time that they are making me angry and I'd rather not lose control. It doesn't mean that they can't tell me bad things but it means that they should just use their wise mind in how they go about telling me.

      Delete
  10. Thanks for sharing your story so honestly. You should be proud of the journey you took and for finding the strength to take care of yourself.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. In the end we really only have ourselves in which to rely upon. It's sad but true. I have learned to trust again and still I get hurt. But I keep trying.

      Delete
  11. Thanks for sharing! I can't begin to imagine what you have been through, but I so happy for you that you are in a happier and safer place now!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I swear there are days that my life resembles something off a lifetime movie.

      Delete

If you decide to be a Troll I will refuse to pay your toll and your comment will not appear.