Categories: Health

Living in Recovery

Recovering from mental illness? You may never have heard that you can recover, but it is true that you can. Recovery may not mean that you can stop taking medications or going to therapy but you can live a more healthy life. You may never be recovered but you can be in recovery!

 

The first step to being in recovery is to surround yourself with positive people. This means both positive friends and professionals. You need friends who also practice good habits and will support you in your recovery. Friends who don’t smoke in general are a plus but this usually means friends who don’t smoke marijuana or drink alcohol. I say this because those with mental illness must avoid mind and mood altering substances to stay in recovery. Marijuana can cause mood symptoms and hallucinations. Alcohol is a depressant which can bring on depressive symptoms. Having friends who avoid these things will help you do the same. Surrounding yourself with positive professionals will also help in your recovery. You can’t work with doctors and therapists who have a doom and gloom outlook on your diagnosis. They need to believe that you can get better and be there to both assist you and cheer you on!

Taking your medications as prescribed and working as a team with your doctor is the second part of successfully being in recovery. From personal experience, I know its very hard to take medications daily. Especially when you have to take multiple medications! Doing so is part of recovering though and very important to your health. You need to come up with a plan to keep you on track of taking those medications. One thing I use is a reminder app on my cell phone called Mango Health. It alerts me four times a day when it’s time to take certain medications. You can also earn points and be entered in contests to win gift cards each week!

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One other way to stay in recovery is to participate in support groups with other people in recovery. In each major city there are support groups for various mental health concerns. Many cities also have drop in centers for people with mental illness – places which are open all day and people can come and go as they please and attend a variety of groups. Go to some of these and get involved! Being around other people in recovery will motivate you, especially when you are struggling. Groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Depression Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA) are good places to start. There are also online support groups if you can’t make it to an in person group or are too socially anxious to give one a try.

 

These are just some basic ideas on how to live in recovery from mental illness. Many people find other ways which help them specifically. It’s important to find what works for you and build on it. Things may not always work but you can always go back to the drawing board and try again. Good luck!

 




  • Lola

    View Comments

    • I haven't met people who experience mental illness. All I know, we need to support them all throughout for the fast recovery. Most of the time, I wanted to reach them out too. However, I wasn't able tried to have a close contact with people manifesting mental disorder.

    • I have learned someone in our region having a mental illness brought to mental hospital for treatment, but when the patient was out after few months he became mentally insane again.Perhaps you are right, the patient was not surrounded with helpful people.He was triggered by his previous condition.It should be better for the sick person to stay in a peaceful place.

    • I have read quite a few of your blogs. You have determination and that is your trump card. Well done.

    • Recovery from mental illness is next to impossibility if it is too serious. The insane people may seem to forget that he is insane for the exposure and treatment he received from the institution or the mental hospital. That is why they are caged at the said hospital until they die.

      Anyway for the sake of discussion. Let's assume that the mental patient has recovered and he has shown signs of fully recovered. Well, he may be released from the hospital and be brought home. He may be sane for one year or two or so as we are hoping for. But the possibility of relapse is possible.

      Since we are only human, we are sometimes irritated, felt disgusted, got angry. In short, we couldn't control ourselves. And I am afraid this would also happen to the recovered mental person. And his family might forget that their member of the family is once an insane. His request wouldn't be granted. He is maltreated and he is not given much attention anymore. In his state of anger, he would become vengeful and a great relapse of his mental illness would take place. For the second time around, he would be ferocious as the wild animals. He would turn wild and he would kill anyone in his sight or presence.

      That would possible. Believe me.

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