Thankful Thursday

Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm thankful for so many things, but today, I'm especially thankful for my mental health.

I don't even know how to put into words how good it feels to be mentally healthy.  I really don't.  Getting to this point, where I am healthy and normal and genuinely happy with my life has truly been the best thing that's ever happened to me.  I think I wrote about this a little bit last November, when I was just starting to see and feel some improvement, but at that time I never imagined how far I would end up coming.  I didn't think I would end up doing this well; I didn't think I would end up this happy.

I didn't get here on my own, though, and I'm so very thankful for all the people who've helped me.

I'm thankful for my family and Jerbs, who have just always been there, who witnessed the crazy firsthand, who had to calm me down over and over again, and who loved me anyway.  Jerbs probably saw the most of it, since she lived with me through years of it, and I can't count how many times she took away sharp things and pills so I couldn't hurt myself or tucked me into bed and rubbed my back until I fell asleep or how many times she took care of me when I couldn't do it myself.  I'd probably be dead without her.  And both she and my family helped a lot with the financial aspect of the treatment, for which I'm very grateful.

I'm thankful for Corey.  Even with all of the heart ache that was the end result of that relationship, and even though he's no longer a part of my life and never will be again, I'm thankful to him for pushing me to get treatment and for finding the first doctor who ever actually helped me.

I'm thankful for Dr. Wright, who actually listened to me and made a correct diagnosis and started me on the treatment that helped me.

I'm thankful for all the various friends who've been there at one point or another, who have had kind words or a shoulder to cry on at the times I've needed.  These people know who they are, and I adore them.

I'm thankful for my MHC co-workers, because it was refreshing to go into a place where nobody knew about my issues, who just treated me like a normal person.  And it was even more refreshing that, when I did eventually tell them about it, they reacted with complete shock.  Most of them said they never would have guessed there was anything like that going on with me, and it was amazing to hear that.

So that's that.  Now I'm off to have some Thanksgiving dinner/lunch/whatever (courtesy of Sprouts) with Jerbs!