YOU ARE NOT ALONE - A companion online community discussion board for The Mental Illness Happy Hour podcast with Paul Gilmartin

@Leif. I'm glad that it helps you to know you are not alone. It helps me too. Cutting is my fall back position too and I find myself missing it sometimes. I've resorted lately to banging my wrist against things and just thinking "break my arm". Gosh, that sounds so weird but it is better t...

@Leif - Boy this rings true to me. I'm transgendered or some sort of gender thingy. Basically a transgendered man if I had to narrow it down and I also cut, punch, burn, whack my head, arms, etc. No real advice. My therapist tells me to practice harm reduction. Basically hold out as long as I can (d...

Ooh, lately this has been my favourite rant to people. Well, mainly to my excellent doctor now and my great therapist. Horror stories abound unfortunately when you've been around with a mental illness as long as I have. a) "We don't have time to do Freudian therapy here" : Said when I said...

This is a poem I wrote while struggling to deal with PTSD flashbacks and insomnia from sexual abuse/rape. This bed is small and doesn’t hold much. Me and a dog and two decades of men. No wonder I can’t sleep with paws to the stomach and dicks in my throat. The mattress is sagging under memories of w...

I hate Christmas with a passion. I try not to. Last year was the happiest I have been since I was wee and that was just because I could distract myself with my dog. New Years Eve is hard too. All that pressure of a new year. Will it be better than the last? Why am I still alive another year? I used ...

I find it is a vicious cycle I get in. Insomnia leads to late night screen time but late night screen time can lead to insomnia. Or, rather, missing my window for sleep. I'm trying to limit all screens an hour before bed but it is darn hard when my mind is racing a mile a minute to not pick up that ...

Thanks Leif and manuel. You really struck home Leif about my avoiding something. My therapist agrees. I've been running around keeping myself busy, playing on the edge of addiction to just avoid myself. To not know something that needs to be known. I even see myself doing and acknowledge it but keep...

Does anyone know anything more about the EMDR therapy Paul said was helping him? It has been suggested to me but I have no real clue if it is a real thing or not. Love this episode and Paul feeling comfortable enough to bring up God. I'm not a believer but I could really relate and didn't make me tu...

Thanks for the welcome :) Yeah, I know BPD is not that bad. I struggle with accepting it since when I was first diagnosed years ago the doctor saw me for 5 mins in the hospital and told me "You are BPD. You will always be suicidal." and then turfed me out the door. At least my new doctor s...

Hi MusicalRaven. Welcome :) It is awesome that you are taking this step and totally normal about being super scared and nervous. Heck, I've been seeing my therapist for 2 years and sometimes I feel that way. Usually when I'm bringing up something new. Being nervous makes sense actually. You are goin...