My name is Michelle and I am a 40 year old female.
I have personal experience with many of the disorders listed. I had been attending university for a psychology degree with my main goal being a Masters in counseling psychology so that I could help others. Unfortunately my health initially got in the way and I had to quit my schooling. Now, finances are a problem and I am unable to go back at this time. But my goal is still intact.
I have been diagnosed with, and would be interested in helping others with:
Chronic fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia,
Depression,
Dissociative Identity Disorder,
Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Panic Disorder,
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder,
Self Injury
Yes, I've had my share of problems. However, I have weathered them all and not once have I ended up in hospitalization. My psychologists have been amazed. I'm still in counseling and most likely will be for the best part of my life. Each diagnosis has brought with it a new and usually wigged-out reaction. But I come out the other side and get on with my life, learning how to deal with the new information. Counseling has been the biggest help, but I am also on Anti-Depressants. Without those, I would have committed suicide long ago. I also find any kind of self-expression extremely helpful. For me this is either playing musical instruments or drawing. Occasionally I need something more physical and will resort to vigorously cleaning my house or working in the yard!
No one in my family knows of my diagnosis. I am a single parent of a 17 year old. I am within a 20 minute drive of my parents, and my sister and her husband, and an hour of my brother and his family. Most of my problems stem from my mother and a man from my gradeschool. Having contact now with my mother is most difficult. But to continue to have contact with my father I have found that I must also see my mother. A sacrifice. And a sometimes horribly painful one. One other thing - "Denial" is a major way of life in my family for everyone except myself. I face things others refuse to see.
My email is: mrance2003@yahoo.com
