I decided in November that I needed to tell the story of my life with Living Room: The joyful times, as well as the painful times

Part of the reason for telling my story was to reclaim the life I had lost. I wanted reminders that I had lived a good life, though things had gone so badly at the end. I wanted to find joy again, the kind of joy I experienced as I formed support groups, led them, and helped individuals work through their depression. You may ask: Joy while helping people through depression? Yes, for sure. Because at times of pain and struggle God made his presence most felt.

Today I am finding wellness. And I thank God for returning it in ways I had not thought possible.

All this because I told my story and, in the process, found better understanding – for myself, and hopefully for you too. As I continue, I pray to God that he will help me further that understanding – especially about the stigma so often attached to mental illness.

I hope my readers will learn to better sympathize with the pain from stigma. Often stigma causes more symptoms than the original illness itself. Sometimes even more illness is added to what was originally there.