I think I have always experienced anxiety. Not all the time, in that I’m not always anxious, but it has always lurked in the background, waiting to spoil things. I don’t know how much anxiety is normal though, and perhaps mine is a sensible and healthy amount. No anxiety at all would be quite a … Continue reading The worried doctor
Tag: bipolar disorder
Personality
We all have a personality, but, when you move into the realms of psychiatry and mental health, this term can take on a rather different meaning. It is often also very difficult to discuss, something which is hardly surprising, given the fact that personality disorder can be seen as a punitive diagnosis, one of exclusion … Continue reading Personality
Memory & more
I used to think that being present in any particular situation ensured accuracy. By this I mean accuracy of observation and also of recall; that standing witness to events was always reliable. As a child, I thought of the years as a climbing staircase, with different events, schools and holidays marking out the way. In … Continue reading Memory & more
Psychiatric drugs – mainly antidepressants
When we drink alcohol, or use other recreational drugs, there is usually a rapid effect. Scarcely has the glass been placed back down, than a feeling of well-being – or whatever your drug of choice promotes – radiates through the limbs and settles happily in the cranial control unit. Obviously, more may be taken, and … Continue reading Psychiatric drugs – mainly antidepressants
Disordered mood – what is it like?
Depression is not about feeling sad. It is really difficult to describe, and even to remember, between episodes. When gone, it dissolves and weakens, the same way that dreams disappear, becoming just a pallid description that in no way evokes the experience. But for me it is does not conjure sadness or tears; in some … Continue reading Disordered mood – what is it like?
Does stress make you ill?
It would be daft to think that stress plays no role in mental illness – it is, after all, a normal human reaction in difficult and challenging situations, and I doubt that I’m alone in finding the experience of mental illness really quite stressful. I get stressed when I am ill, and often worry about … Continue reading Does stress make you ill?
