May is the month that my mother died at the age of 59. On May 19th, it will be 21 years since her death. She died of a stroke. This was an unexpected and devastating loss. My mother was a brilliant, multi-talented and passionate woman who suffered from debilitating depressions. The kind of depressions that leave you battered and unable to function. The kind that ended up with her hospitalization.
May is Mental Health Month. This blog entry is perhaps one of my most candid and painfully personal entries, a “coming out,” if you will. I have lived with my mother’s illness and seen how destructive it was for her and my family. I still recall her darkest times, which I witnessed and experienced as a young child.
NAMI – The National Alliance on Mental Illness reports that 1 in 4 people suffer from a mental illness. Perhaps you or someone dear to you is or has been ill. Support and treatment are crucial but so is telling your story. Whether private or public, we must break the stigma. We must take a proactive stance and advocate, because there is no other way to heal as far as I am concerned.
