Happy new year, friends.
So, I’m eight days behind but its better late than never, sometimes. I wanted to provide a personal update regarding my sister Kristeen, who has been featured in the posts, Where you invest your love, you invest your life – Kristeen’s story and most recently, ALWAYS KEEP FIGHTING.
Kristeen checked herself into the emergency room on Sunday, December 17th. Her anxiety had been hightening quickly over the last 24 hours, but she remained the calmest of all her admissions yet. I have never been prouder. The very next day, her psychiatrist brought up the possibility of Electroconvulsive therapy and by Tuesday, had signed consent forms to begin treatment. Electroconvulsive therapy, or ECT, is a popular modern day, but less often known of, treatment for severe depression, bipolar, and PTSD. Most will automatically refer to it as electric shock therapy. This termonology was used back in the day when it was improperly performed. Today, the patient is put under while electrodes are attached to either one or both sides of the scalp, depending on the patient’s needs. A seizure is then intentionally started which may cause temporary to sometimes permanent short term memory loss. The patient is under for typically no longer than seven minutes. Kristeen had her first session that Friday, five days into her admission. They have also added an additional antidepressant called Luvox which opposite the Effexor, she takes at night along with Trazadone to help her sleep. She continues to participate daily in various activities and group therapy and continues to meet some really cool people. Today, Kristeen received her fifth of twelve ECT sessions and continues to respond well to treatment. Today, she began treatment for three times a week for the next two weeks. I have asked her if she would be willing to write about her time in the hospital and her experience with ECT, and she excitedly agreed. However, I’m still waiting. 😜
With that being said, a friendly reminder that the premise of The Standing Strong Blog is to share stories or art regarding a struggle with mental illness. A mental illness can be depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, schizophrenic disorder, borderline personality disorder, just to name a few. By sharing our stories with the world, we can inspire more to realize they are not alone and by sharing your story, we continue to stomp out the stigma of mental illness.
Submissions to the blog can include personal stories, whether about one’s self, a loved one, or someone from a far’s mental illness.
Art can include visual or audio. These include poetry, lyrics, drawings, music, and film.
I also love featuring spots on others making a difference in the mental health community.
Some past posts can be found below⤵
Building Trust – Sachin’s Mission
A Happy Mommy is A Happy Baby – Living With Post-Partum Depression
Braving the black hole – Zach’s Story
Please send submissions to:
thestandingstrongblog@gmail.com
Until I hear from you, I wish you all a wonderful and happy strong year.
❤ Kim
the Standing Strong blog 