Skip to main content

Living with mental illness

Image
By
It is not easy to write a blog post and say I suffer from mental illness. It feels like this is something I should keep to myself. There is certain amounts of stigmatisation. From my experience workplaces in Trinidad need to be more open to hiring mentally ill persons. Persons should not be afraid to say that they are mentally ill and would require certain allowances like work from home, time off for monthly clinic visits, paid sabaticals and enclosed cubicles for example. In general we need better allowances for the differently abled in Trinidad and Tobago.

The disability grant that the differently abled get is not enough to get by. It assumes that you have a place to stay or you are living with your parents. At the very least the government should be making incremental increases. Also special provisions can be made for dental work, wheel chairs, other equipment and other needs. TATT for example has a great subsidy program of $600 towards the purchase of a smart phone for the differently abled.

The mental health outpatient clinics are pretty organised and works well from my experience but I don't know if everyone has the same experience as me. We need a new mental health hospital in Trinidad similar to ones that exist in the better developed countries. Families need to take care of their mentally ill relatives. My mom has been my number one supporter and for this I am eternally grateful. Not everyone has supportive relatives.

Living with mental illness for me has its ups and downs. From periods of joys to periods of sadness and frustration. We often have to miss out on things. Taking medication and having to deal with side effects is not easy. Society expects and rewards persons for being normal. A lot of the homeless suffer from mental illness and are not treated humanely. The other night I dreamt I was working for a big company and I had to rally for rights for the differently abled employees. It felt so real and powerful that I couldn't sleep the rest of the night after being awoken by that dream. It feels like the only time things get done and noticed is when we have protests. But protests should be peaceful.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How to measure success?

By
It is 509pm and I have decided to write. How to measure success? That is the question. It is very hard to measure success. I think only God has the true measure of success or failure. Someone may be a failure in this life but a success in the next life. We are told that God looks at intentions and effort. We can also determine our own definition of success. We do not have to let the world define success for us. We think of the world as not being a fair place so any one size fits all definitions of success or failure would be careless and wrong. Many times we think in terms of numbers. The grander the better. But what about quality over quantity? My friend tells me that I am essentially arguing for the democratization of success. I am taking the power away from society, institutions, and algorithms, and handing it back to the individual and God. That is true but I am essentially wanting to look at the bigger picture and to do that I am thinking that we have to answer some key questions ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Rainy afternoon thoughts

By
It is 220pm and I have decided to write. The rain is falling. I can hear it on the roof. It is gloomy outside but inside is nice and cozy in my favorite corner. I have no idea what I want to write about. I will start by saying God is good. Always. The islamic new year starts tonight in Trinidad. I am happy about that. Another milestone. Another opportunity to grow better. My friend Chatty asks me, what has God been teaching me lately? God has been teaching me patience. How to remain calm. How to appreciate my flaws. My flaws keep me humble. Let go and let God. He also asks, what am I hoping for? Sometimes I think about writing more tech blog posts. How can tech make the country better? How can tech make the world better? But I remember writing about the Arima smart city project and concluding that smart cities need smart people. Human development is very important. If people are not developing then what is the use of it all. How can technology help people become better? It all starts i...
Post a Comment
Read more

The answer is God

By
It is 308pm and I have decided to write. Make God a priority. Let God lead the way. Let everything be about God. Let God into your life. Surround yourself with God and watch how everything begins to make sense. This life is not an accident. This life is not happenstance. This life is the work of an all-powerful Creator. Nothing is too big or too small for God. Take your problems to God. Take your worries to God. Take your fears to God. Let go and let God. Submit to the will of God. The more you go to God, the more He comes to you. Start small. Start somewhere. Give God a chance if you have not done so already. Why do I say all of this? There are many things competing for your attention and your soul. In the midst of all of this, the world can seem like a confusing place where many things do not make sense. God brings clarity. God brings clarity because God sits above it all. You may think you do not need God until you do. Ask yourself, who is the wisest you know? If God is not the wise...
Post a Comment
Read more