Lived Experience Forum

[JohnS]

Hi everyone

My name is John and I am a retired librarian. At present I am in a good place living a stable life on the coast of nsw with my beautiful wife. I have come to to the Sane forum to learn about (and hopefully help) ) other sufferers of mental illness. I have Bipolar and was diagnosed with it 1998. I have found a brilliant psychiatrist who has prescribed the correct medication to keep the manic side of me under control. Since moving to the coast I have finally found the best pyschologist I have ever had who has helped me immensely. Before I met my doctor I self medicated with drugs and alcohol. So, whilst I am a part of the forum I think I ccan use my life skills to help other people in their journey and struggles in life. Thank you for allowing me to tell my story. Looking forward to hearing from you soon. Best wishes.

JohnS

[Lunar]

Hello @JohnS

A very warm welcome to the forums 🙂 it is nice to meet you. Thank you for introducing yourself and sharing some of your experiences with us, it's great that you have found a great psychologist currently and finding ways of managing your manic symptoms. I look forward to hearing more.

Are there certain skills that you have learnt that you have found particularly helpful for you?

Lunar

[JohnS]

Hi Lunar

Thanks for your kind words and welcome. I feel very comfortable with this forum.

Handling my illness involves a range of things.

Firstly : having mental health professionals who know their stuff and you can communicate well with.. They should provide the proper medication (doctors) and therapy to deal with life skills (psychologists).

Secondly - take care of yourself. I know of the ad for Mars Bars "work, rest and play". This is a good motto to live by.

Thirdly : be passionate about something : personally this is definetley music. I listen to music everyday of my life. I sing and play guitar and have written and recorded a song for my wife's 50th birthday which she absolutely loved which gave me great pleasure.

Last of all : look after your mind, body and spirit. This is different for everybody - but you must do it.

Sharing my beliefs and what gets me through is quite enriching. I feel like I am connecting with other people who I can help as well as people who can help me living with mental illness.

Thank you very much.

John 

[Lunar]

Hello @JohnS

That is so kind of you to write a song for your wife's birthday, I bet she absolutely LOVED that. I agree with the power of art, including music and other forms, it is a great way of expressing yourself and releasing your emotions. Rather than bottling them up, I love a good sing a long to a sad song and even a cry, it really helps!

I also really admire you for sharing the ways you reached out, was it hard for you to initially ask for help with your mental health and to admit that you were hvaing some problems?

Lunar 🙂

[JohnS]

Hi Lunar

thank you for your kind words about my music.

i hope that you have had a good day.

i was not really aware that I had a mental illness till I found my doctor and was told that if I stopped drinking alcohol then the medication would work better. I took that on board and found out that she was right. Haven't had a drop for 15 years and I feel great. 

Doesn't mean that I don't have stress however try and do other things to curb my anxiety like working out at the gym or watching the surf at the beach with my soul mate and best friend (my wife).

its taken quite a long time to get where I am now but it has all been worth it "with a little help from my friends".

best wishes

John