The Mental Health Survival Guide
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About this ebook
It's a memoir of Brian's severe struggles associated with coping with a multi-mental health diagnosis and is full of documented skills, tools and tips he developed as an action plan to cope and manage. The first memoir in a series written to manage chronic illness of body and brain.
Brian D. Satterfield's a certified peer and recovery specialist; chronic illness and trauma liberation advocate, educator and speaker. Brian now devotes himself to helping others live a better life. To help others, who've gotten lost, stuck, struggle, deal, cope, find relief with/from their complications. He's been working with severely mentally ill adults since 2009 – adults involved in the criminal justice system since 2012. While writing memoirs, conducting holistic workshops and presenting keynote speeches. Decide 2 Evolve is now booking keynote speaking, wellness workshops, and book reading/signings. At: www.decide2evolve.com/contact.
Brian D Satterfield
Brian D. Satterfield's a certified peer and recovery specialist; chronic illness and trauma liberation advocate, educator and speaker. Brian now devotes himself to helping others live a better life. To help others, who've gotten lost, stuck, struggle, deal, cope, find relief with/from their complications. He's been working with severely mentally ill adults since 2009 – adults involved in the criminal justice system since 2012. While writing memoirs, conducting holistic workshops and presenting keynote speeches. Brian's now booking keynote speaking, wellness workshops, and book reading/signings. At: www.decide2evolve.com/contact ... Brian's experience is over thirty years professional and personal. Brian's first book in Decide 2 Evolves series of published works – "The Mental Health Survival Guide – Managing the Severities of Multi-Mental Health Diagnosis" which was a #1 bestseller on Amazon across three categories. Brian's second book, “Napkin Notes” is a picture book focusing on relationships. decide2evolve.com | briandsatterfield.wordpress.com | twitter.com/bdsatterfield | pinterest.com/decide2evolve | facebook.com/briandsatterfield | linkedin.com/in/brian-d-satterfield | youtube/decide2evolve | google+/decide 2 evolve
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Book preview
The Mental Health Survival Guide - Brian D Satterfield
The Mental Health Survival Guide:
Managing the Severities of Multi-Mental Health Diagnosis
Brian D. Satterfield
¹st Publication 2015 as " A Mental Health Survival Guide: How to Manage the Severities of Multi-Mental Health Diagnosis", retired per author.
2nd Publication 2017 revised as "The Mental Health Survival Guide Managing the Severities of Multi-Mental Health Diagnosis"
ISBN-13: 9780999471708 | ISBN-10: 0999471708
All rights reserved. Upon the author Brian D. Satterfield, copyright law applies. This publication may be reproduced in any form for personal study, educational, advocacy purposes.
All information is evidence based practices within the Certified Peer (and Certified Recovery) Specialists certifications via OMHSAS, Pennsylvania
Published by Decide 2 Evolve ®, Pa Copyright © 2017 Decide 2 Evolve ® LLC Printed in the USA. Edited with LibreOffice on Mint Linux 17.3 | Paperback template courtesy of www.riotforgestudios.com
To contact:
www.decide2evolve.com/contact
decide2evolve@gmail.com
Contents
Acknowledgements......................................................
Preface.........................................................................
Chapter 1: Calm of the Bomb......................................
Chapter 2: Ladies!
....................................................
Chapter 3: Bomb Went Off...........................................
Chapter 4: The Office Visits.........................................
Chapter 5: Waiting Period............................................
Chapter 6: Incurring Debt – Unlearning.......................
Chapter 7: Denial letter – Uprising Within....................
Chapter 8: Helps Happening!.......................................
Chapter 9: West Fairview Township.............................
Chapter 10: Awaiting Award........................................
Chapter 11: Comprehending the SSDI Process............
Chapter 12: A Clinical/Medical Viewpoint.....................
Chapter 13: The Letters...............................................
Chapter 14: Decide to Evolve......................................
Chapter 15: In Motion..................................................
Chapter 16: Outta Here...............................................
Chapter 17: Cracked Up...............................................
Resources....................................................................
Genesis........................................................................
About the Author.........................................................
Acknowledgements
This survival guide is dedicated to every person living with severe mental illness (SMI). None of us asked for it – the stigma, bias, prejudice I’ve been exposed to in my life needs to end – The ignorance I quite often read, hear, and am exposed to is absurd! For it to evaporate, we need a social paradigm shift regarding all disabilities to happen. Truly, this is part of a world wide human rights issue... This book could also be titled The Chronic (invisible) Illness Survival Guide
Most often, it’s that by being severely mentally ill we are off, or different, and linked to poverty and crime. The link to poverty actually is accurate; mental illness at times is so debilitating that we are robbed of a rich and meaningful life. The link to crime is also accurate; crime usually happens when we are at our worst and are unable to make educated, rational decisions. For some, criminal justice involvement is a habitual habit. What isn't acceptable is when our illness affects our ability to live independently; to be involved in healthy, mutual relationships with other human beings; and to earn a meaningful income – It's the inability to earn income that's genesis of this survival guide – at first it was a self – healing memoir to assist me as I worked out of, or off of Social Security Disability Income.
Being called off or crazy or insane, or nuts is society’s stigma, one that I believe was brought on by decades of ignorance and the idea of the social norm
that needs a serious overhaul... For me – any one of those four words I do my best to ignore the ignorance of the person saying it – and thirty days a month, those words don't bother me – also, my skin isn't that thin!
The National Institute on Mental Illness estimates that in America, 20% of adults live with some extent of mental illness—that’s about one in five people! So let’s put some faces to this percentage. They might be family members, coworkers, people giving or receiving your organization’s services, neighbors, friends. It can affect anyone of any age, any race, any background, and any income. It’s not a sign of personal weakness or a lack of character.
I thank the following organizations and the people involved: Cumberland-Perry County mental health/intellectual & developmental disabilities office; NHS Stevens Center mobile peer-support unit (Carlisle, Pa.); Geisinger-Holy Spirit Behavioral Health(Camp Hill, Pa); National Alliance (on) Mental Illness [NAMI] of Cumberland and Perry counties, Pa.; Depression Bipolar Support Alliance [DBSA], Harrisburg, Pa.; Cumberland-Perry Community Support Program (CSP); Chapter 9, West Fairview Township Support Group Meeting; Mechanicsburg Family Practice-Pinnacle Health; Mechanicsburg Chiropractic, Pennsylvania Recovery Organizations Alliance[PRO-A]; Pennsylvania Mental Health Consumers Alliance[PMHCA]; Disability Rights Network Of Pa; NAMI of Pa; DBSA of Pa; Mental Health America [MHA] of PA; Hershey Medical Center(Hershey,Pa)and Polyclinic Hospital(Harrisburg,Pa)
I thank the following people specifically for assisting me during the duration of this projects timeline: Brooke (Brooka
) Ryman-Coolidge, Bonita and Frank Lewis, Ron (Dad
) Stubbs, Bob (Buckskin
) Sharkey, Stuart Druckman (DC), Parker and Pat Lee, Ken and Amy Talbot, Debbie Doubrava (PhD), Candace Mills, Pat(ricia) Meily, Mark and Grace Watts, Geoff Lampell, Thomas Fager, Barry and Barbara Harver-Cocker, Taylor Andrews, Esq., and Larry Stine. And my fur balls: Boba, Rylee, and Keria. (the girls). All I forgot to mention: Get a hold of me and give me an ear-full! - I’d like to give special thanks to Eileen Speader (LPC) who came into my life while I was converting this project from journals into a rough draft.
This survival guides in memory of the following folks: Janice Marie (Willard) Stubbs and Bryan Douglas Willard – We at times couldn't agree to disagree, and we had many heated arguments – nonetheless, both of you left this world too early in this lifetime. Also, Janet Kelly, (Nurse Practitioner) - As of July 04, 2013, the one and only Mrs. Right-4-Me: Stacey Lynn. - Much gratitude for second chances.
Mi Nina, Keria, (the pooch) - the best girl a guy could hope and wish for – I owe my life to this fur-ball: Boba Fat, the cat – Without him being in my life (1999-2014), I'd be a successful suicide statistic.From one intense topic to another – Let's clarify the legal stuff – if you don't want to read bad stuff about yourself, don't do bad things to people and animals... Seriously – I am expressing my freedom of speech via my United States Constitutional Rights – Additional: there are always three views of any situation regarding perceptions of reality – yours, mine, third party/the Gods...
Here's how this memoir acts and behaves like a survival guide: I do a chapter review and offer tips on how to manage mental illness, find relief from, amongst other situations that affect our mental health. These tips come from 30 + years lived experience, where the last six are working in the behavioral health field. Every tip I offer is evidence based in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania via the Certified Peer Specialist (CPS) and Certified Recovery Specialist (CRS) certification, which are Medicaid funded services..Also, these are simple spiritual based practices to bring peace of mind, within – whether you live with or without a mental health diagnosis.
From time to time, everyone experiences anxiety/nerves, and depression/blues. These are natural cycles of the human brain... Most people can cope with, find relief, and easily manage these mild forms of mental illness. Some people can have a smoke, drink, and everything is fine. I'm sure you've experienced, or witnessed one of these three examples: I need a drink to take the edge off, or calm my nerves
– I'm fine with one drink to ease mental illness, the entire bottle in two hours, probably not! Or, I workout four-five days a week, or spend those four-five days a week with my pets, to fight the blues.
Preface
About 2003, sometime during my first marriage deja vu sets into mindfulness. It becomes obvious the struggles of everyday life, and living it is overwhelming, yet, again – In 1989, my first mental health breakdown, or as it's called today psychotic break
happened while I was in trade school working