John's last post about signs has me smiling. Sometimes when you're deluded the signs are massive and neon with flashing lights and the whole universe pours into that moment and makes complete sense of everything. You're probably quite unwell at this point. Any feeling of omnipotence, or feeling like you have a divine purpose in life… Continue reading Insight (Elle)
I picked out a gravestone and decided whatever was written on it would be “The Sign!” You won’t believe what was written on it. Beside the owners name and date of life to end there were two words, “Keep Smiling”. How good is that? That’s not a bad sign at all. In previous blogs… Continue reading Signs, The KLF and Karmapa’s Flag (John)
My mind is calm. My recent journey through the dark stuff with the demon is over for now, and I woke with this feeling just 4 days ago. (Elle) Hello! It's nice to be back. First let me say a HUGE thanks to Elle for keeping content up on the blog while I've been off on… Continue reading Thanks Elle. (John)
This is a really serious topic but I can't write about it with any darkness or weight or sense of seriousness or I'll be smothered by darkness and weight and seriousness. It's a bit fundamental, and you can only approach fundamental things from out the corner of your eye. Staring truths straight on can blind… Continue reading Holding it all Lightly (Elle)
I feel like I have to spend the best parts of my energies just holding it all together (all the time, regardless of mood state). A constant below the hood and out of sight vigilance just to stop me from flying apart in all directions. Like 'background checks' being run on your computer while you're… Continue reading Holding it all Together (Elle)
Ha! Every so often – say once in three or four months, after I've been wandering round the bipolar block – I wake up with a beautiful feeling. I feel like I'm 'myself' again. Back to 'normal'. It's such a blessed feeling that it's hard to describe without an analogy. Think still water – perfectly… Continue reading This Poignant Life (Elle)
When I first presented to my General Practitioner to report my concerns about my mental health it took a huge amount of courage. I had been taught as a child in my claustrophobic and toxic household to never express health concerns. The answer invariably was 'there's nothing wrong with you'. Above all it was impressed… Continue reading Courage (Elle)
I've been thinking about 'psychiatric time' – it works differently to 'normal' time, and if you have a mental illness you have to come to some accommodation with it. Patience is required. Psychiatric time just runs slower than normal time. We're dealing with human beings – not blood tests. We get brought up short the… Continue reading Patience (Elle)
Q: Why do so many comedians suffer from mental health issues? Or is it the other way around – why do so many people with mental health issues make such good comedians? A: Again, I know where this comes from. The perception of the clown who’s crying on the inside is very common, but it’s… Continue reading Creative Sparks (John)
I struggle a bit with the term self medicating. To me the term suggests taking a substance for (percieved) beneficial or calming results. (John) Over the past couple of blogs Elle and myself have discussed the ideas and the term of self medicating. The quote above is from my last post. The problem is I… Continue reading Self Medicating (ii) John.
Mind Palaver 