CAROL

PHOTO BY RANDY BACON

CAROL

“There is Hope”

I’ve struggled with mental health since I was a younger teenager. I was diagnosed with anxiety and depression in my late teens. When I first started getting treatment, I would never really tell them about the highs I would have. I only told them about the anxiety and depression. It wasn’t until I was in my 20’s that I was diagnosed as bipolar.

I would start medications but never followed up with or completed therapy and would eventually quit taking the meds when I thought I was doing better. I would then start drinking or using drugs, which would start a cycle of mania followed by depression. This was my life for many years. I eventually got into some legal trouble and landed in jail. I was tired of the ups and downs and decided when I got out of jail to check myself into an inpatient treatment facility followed by a sober living home.

From there I started seeing a therapist. I have a team of people that help me with my medications. I'm now living back home with my family and 5 children. I’m sober and healthy. Just being home with my family, happy and healthy, and seeing my kids happy and healthy is what keeps me going.

My advice to anyone struggling with mental illness would be that there is hope. You can get help and stick with a treatment plan. I want people to understand that mental health issues and addiction are not something that you choose. It’s not something you can just get over and quit easily. It takes help from lots of other people.