Personal stories

Jillian’s story of depression, anxiety, PTSD and substance use is a story of pain—and self-discovery. She recognizes her early warning signs and that ignoring or minimizing them means slipping down a rabbit hole of self-loathing and despair. She also accepts that she needs a community around her. With growing insights, Jillian shares with readers seven of her most valuable steps for self-care and recovery.

With years of experience through the “ins” and “outs” of a child’s recovery, attentive parents can build skills to recognize and support wellness. For Heidi, mother to an adult daughter with bipolar 1 disorder, the biggest transition has been adopting a recovery mindset. Hear about what this mindset means for Heidi’s family and why it’s so different to the end-point that recovery is often framed as.

From Manitoba to Victoria to Kamloops, Mike has undertaken profound physical and emotional journeys. An Anishinaabe Sixties Scoop survivor whose connection to his Indigenous language and culture has been broken, Mike has begun reclaiming identity through culture, writing, art and athletics, especially cycling. Read about his endurance on and off the bike, including when the ghosts of depression and alcohol threaten to haunt again.

After seven years of active symptoms, a dozen medications, three hospitalizations and a course of electroconvulsive therapy, Daphnée has leaned into young adulthood equipping herself with a host of relapse prevention tools. But perhaps most foundational of all is the role loved ones have in her life during setbacks.

Susan Inman, MA

Visions Journal, 2019, 15 (1), pp. 31-33

A father’s story of frustration

Gord M. (As told to Sarah Hamid-Balma)

Visions Journal, 2019, 15 (1), pp. 28-30 and 39

A daughter’s story of eating disorder and recovery

Rylee McKinlay

Visions Journal, 2019, 15 (1), pp. 24-27

Thoughts on parenting adult children

Julie*

Visions Journal, 2019, 15 (1), pp. 14-16

Janet Peralta Laguio

Visions Journal, 2019, 15 (1), pp. 11-13

"Mom, why can’t I be happy?"

This was the question my 22-year-old son asked me in January 2014. These were painful words for a mother to hear—from the child she loves with all her heart and might, from the young man she thinks the world of.

A case manager's perspective on homelessness and the importance of secure housing

Dale Wallace

Visions Journal, 2019, 14 (4), pp. 23-25

There is little doubt that having a home makes it easier for a person to manage their life; there is equally little doubt that not having a home makes for a dangerous existence.