Thursday, September 27, 2007

Let's count 'em...

...the blessings that is. I certainly haven't gone short of blessings in my life, now or ever. And that phase I went through of what seemed like chronic fatigue, whatever caused it, has made me doubly appreciative of my now pretty normal energy levels.

I am going to carry on taking 500mg Sodium Valproate for a few weeks just to see that my health is stable on that and then look at beginning to reduce it.

This morning I've been filling in application forms for voluntary positions in a local mental health centre (MIND). One is general admin, another is volunteer advocate, helping clients get their views across to professionals. At the moment I'm more inclined toward the first because it seems less exposing and more behind the scenes. Also I know who the advocacy services manager is and am not wild keen on working with her. As I filled in the forms I realised that I have tons of relevant experience and skills for this type of work, although I have no grand ambitions to be a mental health worker as such and sometimes I guess I feel I might just like to move right away from the scene.

I've thought some more about taking some kind of qualification in Nutrition. There is one course in Nutrition for Complementary Therapists at a local college...it starts in January, provided there is enough uptake. I actually am a qualified aromatherapist although I've never really practised as such.

I'd like to eventually work with mental health service users around nutrition...that would combine both my longstanding interests.

I consider myself recovered from 'severe and enduring' mental health problems. Yes I can still get depressed moods but they are usually related to circumstances and they don't last long. I feel my health, mental and physical, is within my own hands. I think I am most unlikely to have another episode of mania. That is my intuitive hunch. I simply need to stick to a broadly low GL diet, take my supplements, refrain from alcohol, drugs, nicotine, caffeine and sugar, get adequate rest and exercise regularly and minimise stress.

It's turned chilly on this island of Blighty...makes me feel a little like hibernating but instead I have to go out and meet the employment advisor, go to the college and enrol for my IT course and then go to the West End for DRA...Dual Recovery Anonymous. Take care all...love, Zoe.

1 comment:

Richard A said...

Hi, just read your blog my love. Well written. Just found your blog as google knows it links to my site. Hope the lettuces have survived as I did not put any more pellets down and its been raining. Better stop before i turn this into a gardening blog. X