We all know someone or have gone through the experience of losing friends because of a mental illness. I don’t have many friends right now and I go day by day watching my two sisters, my Mom, my Dad, and even going into a store, I see girls laughing together and the sad thing, is that, that was me a few years ago. That was me. 

Some of my friends were wanting to become nurses and doctors and I thought they’d give me the benefit of the doubt, understanding what a mental illness can do to a person but it didn’t work out that way. These were people that I thought I knew, but then they thought they knew me and the confusing thing, is that they did know me. They knew who I was deep down in my core. My lies, my delusions, all showed parts of who I really was but I have no way of telling them that. 

One of the reasons I have been speaking out through advocacy, being a consultant for a bipolar foundation, and speaking at NAMI events is that mental illness at first glance takes so much away from us. For me it was school, graduation, friends, some family, and it almost made myself take myself away from the world. The confusions we have to endure to simply live to the next day when we were at our worst or at that point now should be inspirational to people. People need to hear our stories and see the true reality of it all: that we are people too. 

I just wanted to say, that if you are lonely out there, that I really am inspired by you. We all have this feeling of not being strong enough at some point of our lives but we all are, we just don’t recognize it. Sometimes strength isn’t seen through our eyes or even felt in our body.