“You are only given one spark of madness – You mustn’t Lose It.” Robin Williams
Such brilliant words.
I am just starting to embrace this part of my being in my forties. I too have struggled with depression and anxiety over the years. It is so easy to self medicate. I get it. Coming from a family where the addiction gene runs strong I have sympathy and understanding for Robin’s family and for Robin.
My adopted father died in part because of alcoholism – I can’t help but think it was unresolved childhood issues that caused this – I wish I could have given him more understanding during the last years of his life but living with an alcoholic is not easy. You run out of patience.
We often label people as good or bad. Even children get this label. I feel proud when I am told how good my kids are, but really aren’t we all good? There are very few that aren’t good – just misunderstood or hurting so much that their goodness hides deep within their hearts. Waiting to come out.
Robin, I absolutely loved your stand up shows. Your craziness would have me in stitches. When you were interviewed by late night hosts I would have tears of laughter. Snorting giggles.
Thank you for making me laugh.
To those still living: If you are hurting reach out to someone. Don’t give up you will find someone who cares to help you. I believe that whole heartily.
Remember: Psychiatrist’s visits in Canada are covered under OHIP. I have seen a wonderful doctor for years and it has been so helpful to my mental health. Having a non judge-mental outlet for your thoughts is critical to staying emotionally healthy.
Let us live in less judgement of those that hurt or act badly. Behind all bad actions is always a story. Depression, addiction is a disease – not a personality defect.
Leigh – Thank you for your openness with all of us. And I totally agree with you – we see people's behaviour on the outside and feel like we have all the information we need to judge and completely understand the person when in fact the opposite is closer to the truth. We only see the façade, the act the person feels he or she has to put on to be liked, or the control they feel they need to have in the situation or over others to avoid feeling totally out of control. When we judge others we put up walls between us that can be so difficult to break through.
Thanks so much for taking the time to comment on this! Having dealt with family addiction and suicide I felt really drawn to the story and how it relates to my own life. I agree with your comments too!
What a deep insightful post Leigh. Thank you for sharing your "good" snorts and the "bad" ones too.x o
Thanks Jaeny – appreciate that!
So very sad, way too soon but just too sad to think that he didn't feel the need to live any longer and he had so much and so many people who loved him.
I totally believe in therapy as it was therapy that opened me up to what was causing me to bite my nails. Get rid of the cause of that coping mechanism and the symptom goes away by itself.
That's why addicts need to uncover their why they're self-medicating, and then the dangerous behaviour will stop.
If you had a broken head, you'd see a doctor. Why not for a broken mind?
I love your message about not judging but loving more. We all need to love more, starting with ourselves.
Happy to hear about your success Patti – we need to be open and honest more so that others will feel safe to share and get help!