Lived Experience Forum

[justanotherguy]

I consider myself a survivor of the mental health system & the global psychiatric system in general. The last 20 years of my life have been like hell on Earth and only now am I starting to see how destructive the 20th century has been on normal, sane, healthy people. Every single aspect of the modern world has been attacking me and my loved ones for most of our lives. There is nowhere I can find in society right now that gives any peace or any sense of mental wellness or genuine life purpose.

[MissA]

@justanotherguy Sorry to read that you are feeling this way, that sucks. I have definitely felt like that in the past. I am a recovering alcoholic - 7 weeks sober tomorrow - and since completing inpatient detox 5 weeks ago I have been trying to rebuild my life and a huge part of that has been making and building on connections with people. Family and friends of course, but I have also become active again within my church on a social level. I am not here to tell you to go to church or anything like that, you are obviously entitled to believe what you do, but the connection and peace that I have been feeling is partly due to this for sure. I would recommend you stay connected on the forum too. Whatever you decide, you have my encouragement and I wish you all the best 😊

[justanotherguy]

Hi @MissA , glad to hear you are winning the battles. Jesus was a great teacher, it's a shame many were not ready for his message 2000 years ago. Good luck on your journey, I visit this forum from time to time.

[justanotherguy]

Hi @Appleblossom & @Kyle1 , thanks for your support 🙂

[Appleblossom]

I mean it @justanotherguy 

I cant take survival of the system for granted cos a few of my family died in it.

I know Sane wants people to be able to trust and reach out, but we really need to be able speak freely and not cover up things as well.  For most of the time I have been on the forums I tried to walk the line of respect, but being true to myself. Not easy. But needed.

[justanotherguy]

Sorry to hear of your losses @Appleblossom , I was hit extremely hard by the psych monsters but I never was truly a soft target - I think I scared most of them back to the 1920s. I remember the kind of fear when people spoke about the old mental asylums - the movie 'Young Eienstein' humourised them well but the young me never realised how truly evil those places were. I wish you could get some kind of recompense for what was basically State-sponsored torture.

EDIT: Ballarat seems to have been especially bad, between the orphanages, the mental asylums, and the church sex abuse, it would have been a terrifying place. I was in Ballarat mental ward in 2016 and it really was terrifying then too.

[Appleblossom]

Thanks @justanotherguy 

Its complicated. I know people from the Ballarat orphanages and made Silent Protests to Julia G for the Royal Commissions.... and the whole sex abuse thingummy ... whammied my father in an orphanage the generation before, had us (sibs and I) end up in other orphanages.  SO getting something prob for my time and abuse in the homes, but not them for their abuse in the psych wards.  I had a lawyer for a few years, but they found it too complicated after a few years and bailed.  So my deal ... is that I did not get hush money so am FREE to SPEAK.  

Its hard dealing with the legitimate anger from when we are betrayed, but not letting that anger ruin the rest of one's life. 

[justanotherguy]

Hi @Appleblossom ,

Again I am so, so sorry for your experience & those of your loved ones. It's like it all gets swept under the rug never to be spoken of again. The church has been especially bad at remaining silent on many fronts - the George Pell case showed how far some people will abuse the rule of law. I can't understand how somebody can carry guilt for a horrible crime - do some of these people even have guilt? In my case all of my case notes have been sent away into storage & I have to apply to FOI to see them - it's like they don't want me to see if possible. I can see off into the future and I can tell you it will be very hard for this kind of abuse to happen again for a very long time.

The Universe has a looooooong memory.

[Kyle1]

anytime @justanotherguy 

I understand a lot of what you said, and empathise. 🙏