Personal Narrative: Struggling With Mental Illness

There is no formula for the human brain. You can't sum up a person's experiences, thoughts, and personality with numbers. Yet still, multiple factors can add up to a problem, I can't say I've solved it because there is no equation for mental illness. I can, however say that I've learned to manage it. I know I’m not supposed to write about this. I have been told many a time by others and my past self that it shows weakness. However, I refuse to accept this. For me it shows, no, proves strength. The journey back to vitality was excessively difficult, but it was exceedingly worthwhile.

Struggling with depression is like trying find your way through a storm. Dark clouds loom above, smothering any ray of sunlight that dare shine. The constant …show more content…
I sat there as everything slipped away, too paralyzed by the fear of losing anything to act on it. It doesn’t make sense, trust me, I know, but that’s what happened. I would dwell over the fact that I wasn’t living life to the fullest rather than living. I would fixate on the fact that I wasn’t making a difference in the world, spending weeks suspended in this web of guilt i had woven rather than go out and make something happen. Subsequently I recognized it was time to stop suffering through life and reach out for help. The rope to pull me up out of the darkness had always been there, I was just too stubborn to grab it. I have always been weary of taking medication, I didn’t like the idea that a little pill had the power to change me. I wanted to be me. I wasn’t comfortable with it, but I did it. Looking back I’m incredibly thankful I did. It wasn’t a magic potion, but it allowed me to combat the chemical imbalance in my brain long enough to get better, to become myself …show more content…
I’ve accepted myself, even with my flaws. What’s important now is that I keep moving forward. No more looking back, the darkness is in my past. I now know how to combat it. I have come to believe that if I keep actively pursuing life then it will work itself out. The key is to dive in, to get involved, to immerse yourself in what you love. To continue learning about oneself and trying new things. To live. For so long I couldn’t see myself getting here, but now that I am. I can’t wait to see where I go next. I’ve braved the storm, now it’s time for me to take the world by