Good evening my readers.
I am happy to say my husband and I are
now in our new place, that we moved too and love it. There are many reasons why
im so happy that we are now in a new place, but now that the night mare of
finding a place is over and were getting settled in and we have internet back I
can now once again focus on my blogs, which when im actively doing them keep me busy.
Tonight’s topic
is a very important one, though
everything I write on has importance, this topic sums them all up and it’s the very
reason why I do what I do writing this bipolar blog. The topic is Advocating. What
is it and why is advocating so important to those who suffer with depression, mental
health issues and how can you take part in advocating?
How many of you have
ever felt like your voice did not matter? How many have felt like you got the
short end of the stick, when it came to how doctors treated you with your depression?
How many of you have ever felt like you weren’t believed, or you were belittled?
I know I have at certain times. It wasent until I found my voice that I knew
then that my bipolar was not going to win this war.
For so many years in
my own journey, I did not know how to find my voice. I was so lost within myself,
I was fighting myself every day, afraid that I would be lost forever in a dark
world of depression .Because I didn’t have
a healthy self esteem, I didn’t think I could be of any use in raising awareness, which part of that process is Advocating for
yourself and for others.
Self-advocacy gives
you a sense of power and control. YOU play a role in your treatment, your not
just a patient, but a contributor, it gives you some ownership to this disease.
We can’t control bipolar/depression but we can control how much input we have, and
again it goes back to learning to care enough and love yourself enough to speak
up, you have a right to take part in
your own treatment of your emotional well
being.
Develop your own
power statement: Meaning I will be treated with love and respect. I will not be
silent; I have a right to be heard. In addition, stand by your beliefs!
Ways you can advocate:
Ask for what you want:
Make your needs known
The right to say yes
or no: know your rights!
You can change your
mind: do not be pressured into doing anything that makes you uncomfortable!
Stand by your beliefs
and values:
Do not be afraid to
speak what you feel: Your feelings are valid and worth being acknowledged
Receive all info on treatments,
risks and benefits:
Be treated with dignity,
respect, and compassion: ive gone through times in my journey when ive gone
to the hospital and was not treated with compassion. I had doctors whose
bedside manner was anything but kind! If at any time you feel like someone in
the medical field has done this to you, speak up, keep your cool, your
more apt to get your point across if you
don’t lose it, I know its tough, ive been on both sides!
Be listened to: Not
just HEARD!
Receive Hope and Encouragement:
Search out those who will support you!
Communicate concerns:
Don’t just sit back and go along with everything they tell you, if you have
concerns about medications they are putting you on, express that, its your
right!
Involve
family/friends: you have a right to have them involved!
Be yourself:
Be safe:
Change doctors: this
is huge, ive dealt with this one, because some of the doctors ive had were not
helping me in a healthy way, or they made me feel uncomfortable or terrible
bedside manner, so I switched to someone I felt comfortable with! Do not be a
doormat!
Play your ROLE:
have a part in the decision-making!
Keep track of your
progress: this is your way of showing your doctors that you care about your
treatment, its also a way of learning to find what your triggers are, and learn
healthy ways to cope.
Do your research:
ive done this before personally, know what your medications are, why you take
each one, side effects. When you choose a new therapist or psychiatrist, do
your research about their back ground and degrees, what are people saying about
them?
SELF-ADVOCACY IS WHAT
IT‘s ALL ABOUT! You have a voice make it heard…
Just like the small pebble in the water makes
many ripples, once voice can make all the difference, it can change how your
treated and then others hear about your experiences and then aren’t afraid to
speak up to! Make ripple effects~
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