I've met a lot of people in my 58 years. Lived with many men in the military, worked countless hours in security with others.
Some seemed to be happy- all the time. Every time you meet them you are greeted with the same smile and aura as the previous day...never any change. In fact I would be surprised if they have sad periods at all. We can all put up the mask, often stories from our posters mention how other people like workmates etc have no idea of their inner demons. How often have you had a friend that you connect with so well only to have a fallout, one disagreement and whammo- you find out they are unforgiving? or worse -revengeful?
This thread however isnt about that. It's to pose the question- If sufferers of any mental illness has another side to their personality can it be explored and tapped into in order to assist them in their recovery? An example: A sufferer of depression for 2 years has written in. Let's say his symptoms are common for this example, cant get out of bed, trying different medications, prefers no human contact, everything in life is negative and no future is clear. What the poster may not mention unless prompted, is that, many years earlier he had an adventuristic lifestyle, went mountain climbing, cycling, parachuting and other active sports and interests. These interests are so far back and not relevant to them that they dont mention it. Yet, it could I suggest, be a spark that could light up their lives again as an aid to their recovery.
What do you think? Are we often only seeing one side of their character? And if so is the other side a lifeline to their future?
MY OWN CLOWN
I have a mentor
A clown I hold in my hand
when I express my joy
he's a colourful one man band
and when he's sad
I see him through a blur
sitting sadly a mope
of course we both were
One day, one to forget
I watched his arms begging
in circles begging
and emotionally level pegging
I said to him
"Why do you copy me clown"
as he sat and looked he replied
"I copy you when you are up
and I copy you when you are down"
I stared closer at his face
and got a shock to see
his face was so familiar
-it was a mirror image of me.....
WK
