Aug 26, 2020
By Katharine Hartleb
NAMI
https://www.nami.org/Blogs/NAMI-Blog/August-2020/How-Early-Intervention-Impacted-My-Life
I remember the first time I experienced the feeling of not being able to get out of bed. Not because I was too tired, but because I was too sad. It was during a time in my life when I was coping with a lot: My parents were getting a divorce, I had been in a car accident and one of my classmates died by suicide. At sixteen, the gravity of these events created emotions I had never dealt with before.
Even after a few months, these feelings continued to get worse. Feeling increasingly withdrawn, I decided I needed professional help. My next step was seeing a psychiatrist, who diagnosed me with major depressive disorder and general anxiety disorder. I’ve never known anyone with mental illness, and I felt alone in my pain and diagnosis. My friends were having a great time in high school, yet I was struggling and felt alone.
