100 Hundred Today!!!!

Hello,

Today, is my 100th post!! Way to go Gina!!! It felt like forever that I was going to be able actually have a blog. I thank all of you for all your support and love! Need to thank my dear friend Lady Charmaine Day for helping get the ball rolling! My very special cousin Gary for designing my awesome logo! Dave Rudbarg for being Dave! To the love of my life my husband Jesse for his incredible support and being my proofreader!

Since it's the end of the month I just wanted to conclude on the Mental Health Month portion of my blog. We in the mental health advocacy movement focus on mental illness because those of us afflicted are so under served and face stigma every day.  Mental health is important for all of us.

Think how stress effects your life and how you deal or not deal with it.  I think everyone has anxiety one time or another in their lives. Why do some people keep repeating the same bad behaviors?  This number may have changed, but I read once that 53% of addicts suffer from a mental illness.   Why are so many of our young people dying from heroin addiction?

The circumstances of my life had forced to me to seek help, because if I didn't, I was going to die. It sounds extreme, and it was. Molested at 10 and raped at 21. I spent many years denying and avoiding those feelings. It was only when my life seemed so out of control and I couldn't stand myself anymore, that there was only one option and that was to get help.  There is no anger or resentment anymore, but I do attribute some of my suffering to the fact that, in our society, having to need help is seen as a sign of weakness. When actually it's the opposite. Facing the fact that I was abused and the effect the abuse had on my life was the most courageous thing I've done. It was incredibly painful, and when I look back, I am not sure how I did it.

We are brought up how to take care of our selves physically, but what about our mental health? We do know that physical and mental health are closely related. So why is there still so much stigma? 

Love and Peace

Chao
Gina