How Mental Illness Has Affected My Life Essay

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I woke up in a hospital bed, with my arms tied down and a plastic mask covering my face. I was connected to a cardiac monitor, oxygen, an IV. I saw my mother sitting in a chair next to me, tears spilling from her eyes.“Oh shit,” are the first words that come out of my mouth followed by “I’m so sorry, I’m really sorry.” She’s too relieved that I’m breathing again to be angry with me. As I regained consciousness, I pieced together what had happened that night. In the midst of a severe depressive episode, I turned to alcohol to cope. I tried to drink my pain and loneliness away and ended up nearly killing myself. My younger sister, only nine years old at the time, had found me on my bedroom floor, unconscious and lying in my own vomit. This was only the beginning of my problems with substance abuse, only one example of the impact that mental illness has had on my life. …show more content…

I’ve coped through using drugs and alcohol, self-harmed, been suicidal, and abused my body in so many ways but after almost eight years of this I am still here and I am thriving. Despite my mental illness, I am on track to become the best version of myself, whoever she may be. I’m currently on medical leave from college, receiving intensive treatment that I’ve needed for so many years. Taking time off from school was difficult for me financially and emotionally, but it was the best decision I could have made for my long-term well-being. If you had asked me a year ago where I thought I would be now, I probably would have said dead. I never thought I would make it this far, but today I’m in treatment, I have a good job, I’m taking online courses, and I’m repairing relationships with my family and friends. I’ve developed resilience in the face of adversity, and I am finally moving on to greater

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