How mental illness has affected my life ?
I feel like I have missed out on a 'normal' adolescence.
I can't seem to have a lasting relationship with anyone.
I feel isolated and lonely a lot of the time, like noone understands.
I feel trapped, like I can't enjoy myself, go certain places, make friends, be happy..
It has affected my academic achievements.
Day to Day tasks that are trivial become a struggle.
Basically, mental illness have affected most areas of my life.
In adolescence, It was just seen as hormones, normal aspects of being a teenager. I think when you hit post-18 and you still feel the same, you realise that you suffered throughout adolescence, its just hard to distinguish what is normal teenage behaviour and what is mental illness.
Even back then I knew that being unhappy all the time just wasn't right..
I think mental health services are in a bad state in this country really. The first choice is always medication and you often have to wait a while for talking therapies, you should be able to choose what treatment you want to follow and not have to wait weeks/months for talking therapies. Waiting for a therapy doesn't help someone whos in daily distress. Doctors don't have a consistent view of things, they each suggest their own favourite antidepressant, some don't seem to understand the chemical theories of mental illness, some don't even seem to understand mental illness at all....
My sympathy lies with everyone here who has posted, as one way or another we all have been affected in some part of our life, be it health, relationships, eating, general mood, self-image etc. Someday, we will be able to conquer our own troubles and lead a better life.