However, he began to pile pounds on his 5-foot-6-inch frame. Medication freed him from the crushing weight he’d endured for years: mood swings, methamphetamine abuse, psychiatric hospitalizations. Scott: Going the DistanceĪfter his bipolar diagnosis in 2003, Scott faced a common trade-off. That worked for me and I’ve seen it work for others. “Then the more stable you are, the more you can handle goal-planning, aspirations, and dreams. “The steps you can take are in proportion to how well you are,” she says. #Schizophrenia success story professionalThat’s the bedrock beneath her climb from wandering the streets in a state of psychosis to professional success, condo ownership, and marriage to “the man of my dreams.” Leslie is clear that her own success relies on taking her medication and following her management plan. “I love encouraging people and contributing to their success,” she says. Leslie had managed her own development, and now she could help others do the same. She obtained her business coaching certification, started Open Spaces Learning, and knew she’d found her calling. Her newfound sense of self, combined with the satisfaction she found leading peer workshops, led Leslie to reinvent her career. “I was scared to death for 10 years, and I was being someone else,” she reflects. Thanks to “acceptance, inclusion, and compassion” offered at the Mood Disorders Association of Ontario, she ultimately gained the courage to share her story. With a livelihood to protect, though, she became afraid that people would find out about her diagnosis. It had taken two years since her diagnosis, but by 1999 she had her feet on a solid career path. She moved on to another part-time job in event planning, more in keeping with her degree in hospitality and tourism management. Those interactions gave her the confidence to take a part-time job working for a friend, knowing it was a transitional step. She began by taking a Thai cooking class, then a pottery class. Once she was stable and feeling stronger, Leslie was ready to interact in the “real world” again. “Trying to manage finances and housing on my own wouldn’t have worked.” For her, that meant returning home to her “phenomenal” parents for support, shelter, and food. “When you’re diagnosed, identify the resources you have around you,” says Leslie, 42. Her first step was to make a realistic plan to get back on her feet. When she first left the hospital, Leslie knew she had to take it day-by-day. Now she owns a small company in Toronto that helps business clients create an effective workplace “in line with their values and purpose.” Armed with a brand-new bipolar diagnosis and a prescription to treat it, Leslie decided the only way to go from down-and-out was up. “I was struggling to find a reason to work or be responsible for my life,” she recalls.įull-blown mania and its aftermath-that locked, windowless hospital room-prodded her in a new direction. The endless nights of partying had left her lonely and adrift. She was 27, coming off years of recreational drug use that helped numb her chronic depression. It’s been 15 years since Leslie woke up in the psychiatric ward of a Vancouver hospital and vowed it wouldn’t happen again. Let them inspire you to “step it up.” Leslie: Climbing the Career Ladder Meet four people who did just that, and have the results to show for it. No matter where you are in your journey with bipolar disorder, you can plot your recovery course and travel along it at your own speed, letting each accomplishment pave the way for the next. Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither are you. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. What is not started today is never finished tomorrow. These four individuals are proof positive that change for the better, when living with bipolar disorder, really can happen.
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