Stories of Lived Experience
This collection brings together experiences from individuals across a wide range of health challenges. Some stories reflect struggle, others speak to resilience, and many highlight the ongoing work of healing. Together, they offer perspective, connection, and the reminder that no one is ever truly alone in their journey.
By sharing these accounts, we hope to create understanding, reduce silence, and encourage dialogue about what it means to live with mental health challenges in all their complexity.
Have your own story you would like to share? Click the “Share Your Story” button below.
The Workhorse in the Matrix: A Journey Through Late-Onset Schizophrenia (LOS)
The “We Didn’t Know” Generation:
For most of my life, I was a high-functioning Gen X workhorse. A survivor navigating a difficult family system built…
The Aftermath and Mental Health of a Police Officer’s Critical Incident
My name is Adam and I have been a Police Officer in Wisconsin for 23 years. I am also a Certified Peer Specialist in Wisconsin. I began my law enforc…
Grieving a Living Child: My Life as an Alienated Father
Before the silence, our lives were loud with joy. We were inseparable, a team. I was an all-star dad to an all-star daughter. I was there for her ent…
My brother-in-law Larry
My brother-in-law died at the age of 47. Our family circled his bed for the several-hour vigil. While emphysema served as the official cause of his…
Fighting for my son
It’s been almost 10 years that I’ve fought with this system. It’s reprehensible that I’ve needed to fight even one day.
My story is an extension of…
I deserve happiness
I deserve to be proud of myself. I deserve happiness. The only person who needed to be persuaded of that, to truly believe that, was me.
For as lon…
From Hopkins to homeless
It has been a long, arduous, and self-revealing journey through my nine years of addiction to recovery. Unfortunately, along the way I became deceit…
Surviving my son’s mental illness
I now feel a freedom I have not experienced since I stood on top of that mountain in Colorado so many years ago. My journey has turned out different…
Psychological care for cancer patients
When I asked my medical oncologist if she could refer me to a counselor who understood what it was like for me, a middle aged, high-strung female bu…
My long road to recovery
I feel gratitude every day for my recovery. I owe so much to my parents who stood by me through my entire journey with mental illness. They support…
I never give up
I literally woke up one morning and everything was different – the light that was shut off for 54 years was now shining bright. I finally felt just l…
Faith got me through
What followed was a very long series of hospitalizations, medication changes, diagnoses and misdiagnoses. I was in and out of several different faci…
I get to live in the now
It is possible to live without shame, guilt and fear driving my thought process.
Casual drinking, professional disappointments, boredom, socializing…
Isn’t mental illness a call to be otherworldly?
I choose to focus on being satisfied because satisfaction is a good attitude to have and a good attitude will bear you out of the ugliest times of yo…
They don’t bring you casserole
Apparently, my family didn’t heed early spring warnings of the dangerous rapids. We were totally inexperienced at white water rafting and without a p…
The light at the end of my tunnel
I consider myself blessed to be able to share my experience with clients through my role as a peer specialist in hopes of helping them find the light…
Increasing compassion
August 6, 2015 began like any normal day before it until my mom called my cell phone roughly around 11:00. I knew something was wrong because she rar…
Blake’s Journey
Everything changed for the Jones family when Blake had a mental health crisis. By age 18, he was diagnosed with dyslexia, ADHD, anxiety, and bipolar…
Finding a Lifestyle That Supports My Mental Health
My name is Molly Snyder and I want to tell you about my experience with major depression and generalized anxiety disorder.
Looking back, I think I ha…
Hiding in Plain Sight
When I started medical school in 1981, people with depression were still viewed as flawed individuals. The attitude towards women with depression was…
Reckless Steps Toward Sanity
I grew up in a home invaded by bipolar disorder that stuck fast to my mother, a woman who suffered from the time she was 54 until she died at 97. My…
Lisa & Max: We Are All Human
Most days now when I wake up, I have a panicky feeling in my chest and racing thoughts in my mind. I don’t always write, but I know that I need to ex…
Evan’s Story
“There is no blueprint, fortunately, or unfortunately, for how to deal with mental illness.”
“Mental illness can be a very scary thing. But when you’…
Katie’s Story
“If my parents didn’t have the resources to help me when insurance couldn’t, I would have died a long time ago. And that happens every day…”
Katie s…
Thomas: I found meaning
“Until you know that life is interesting, and find it so, you haven’t found you soul.” Geoffrey Fisher – …
Melissa’s Story
“I got stuck feeling angry because I can fight the sadness easier. And yet, along with the profound grief came this desire to learn as much as I poss…
Beyond the First Year: Exploring the Impact of Postpartum Depression on Families
“I never expected motherhood to be like this. I truly believed that once I saw her face I would be in love. The kind of love that was pure bliss, whe…
Amber’s Story
Hi, I am Amber and I am a recovering addict with over six years clean and I have been diagnosed at Bipolar II, PTSD and OCD. My first stay in the men…
Shy? Or Social Anxiety?
I suffer from anxiety and depression. What I don’t talk about often is the kind of anxieties I stress about. I feel what I suffer from the most with…
Hailey’s Story
“We made the decision to diagnose you with Anorexia Nervosa.”
A diagnosis can change lives, and once I was diagnosed with Anorexia Nervosa everything…
The Story Of Andrew Jensen
Andrew Jensen is a professional golfer and mental health Bell Let’s Talk Ambassador. In his teens, Andrew began to suffer with depression, culminatin…
Jacob’s Story
Spoken Word
Raymond’s Story
“I know that men don’t like to talk about their mental health, but I am committed to changing that.”
Raymond shared his moving mental health story at…
Behind The Depression Hole
Cee, the panda, is stuck in a hole.
It happened to Cee as he was taking a stroll.
Cee didn’t mean to fall right in.
No one plans on having depression…
I was literally killing myself with the hope of living longer
In July of 2020, I came to the realization that I had long been battling disordered eating; however, I didn’t understand exactly what or who the enem…
I choose me
Privilege.
There are so many different ways to define this simple world. Webster’s Dictionary defines privilege as, “a special right, advantage, or i…
Mental Camouflage: My Mind Gone AWOL
“I am sharing my story to let people know that help and hope are available for those suffering from this mental illness. I feel compelled to reach o…
Kimberly’s Story
My story with depression and anxiety started with my dad’s passing in 2015.
I’ve also experienced a lot of loss and am a recovering addict so there i…
Healing is difficult, not impossible
My name is Samantha. I am 30 years old.
I always tell people that going to therapy is one of the top three best decisions I have made for myself, nex…
Did I Get “Lucky”?
I was reminded recently about a term used for what I experienced during a severe bout of clinical depression while in college, called “Vegetative Sym…
Learning To Live A New Life
My mental health journey began at a very young age. When I was about 3, my older sister, Maggie was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder called San…
A Tale of Hope
From an early age, through my teen years, and into my time in the military, I struggled with my mental health. Though it does not define me, my story…
Even Broken Crayons Can Color
There is a huge volume of background information that I will not be able to explain due to the format of this platform about my story. I will provide…
Share Your Story
Your experience has the power to inspire, educate, and help others feel less alone. If you are comfortable, we invite you to share your journey with us. By adding your voice, you contribute to a growing collection of stories that highlight the many realities of mental health and strengthen a community built on understanding.