Friday Five- Feelings edition

Welcome to another edition of Friday FIVE!  I am kind of halfway between coming off of White Friday and going into starting school and internship. Things are about to get very busy!

Today I want to blog about my feelings on this year's White Friday event. I have a few things to say....

I feel...

1. Successful
We doubled our pictures this year which is great!  I think we had more survivors participate because they have had access to our White Friday Facebook page for over a year. We are becoming more visible and known.

2. Frustrated

Although we had over 100 people join the even we only got 1/3 of participant photos. And we did get a few people who were too busy to participate. Really? We even had 3 people who had no white but still wanted to participate enough to wing it. I understand being busy, trust me, but you took 500 selfies last week for Instagram. We are asking for 1 that puts a face to supporting people struggling with depression. We have had many people get creative with incorporating white into their pictures and some who said, "I don't do white but I do think things need to change.

3. Proud

I am proud to see Jen's dream grow and even more proud to be able to support it. I am proud of our fellow warriors who have had the courage to put their beautiful faces out there for a great cause. It is not easy to admit you face mental health struggles but everyone does at one time or another. It takes us all assembling together to make our voice heard.

4. Honored
Last year I was asked to be an administrator on the White Friday page by Jen. I never thought it would turn into my passion in life. I never thought it would guide my coursework. I never thought it would bring me TWO of the most beautiful, caring, sweet, and amazing sisters. WF brought Jen, Eri, & I together. I knew them separately but together we truly have The Power of Three and we are a force to be reckoned with. Jen and Eri have gotten me through some very tough spots and I am so blessed to have them. It is an honor to serve as an administrator on WF. It is an honor to be included in these two women's families.

5. Talented and Useful
I cheated a bit but oh well. With TWO White Fridays under our belt, so to speak, we finally had enough material to do more. I took all of our beautiful submissions and made them into a video with music, motivational quotes, and tributes. It came together exactly as I thought it should and even with limited experience it is something that I am very proud of.  It was the least that I could do for an organization/event that has enriched my life. We always pay tribute to Robin M. Williams and this year we added Alan R. Citti. Two wonderful men who sadly lost their battles with depression far too soon.

Stay tuned folks, we are always working on things behind the scenes. We have been discussing logos and T-shirts with any proceeds going to worthy organizations such as NAMI, Doctors without Borders (for Alan), and St. Jude's Children's hospital (for Robin). The possibilities are endless!

Have a beautiful weekend. Be kind to one another. Keep writing your stories!

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Friday Five White Friday Edition

Welcome to our 2nd Annual White Friday. It is the first for the blog though so I thought that Friday FIVE would go hand in hand in introducing White Friday properly. Or at least BoBeary style. :)

Five Facts about White Friday

1. Who?
Jennifer Prochaska is the official White Friday Founder. Carrie Shack (me, otherwise known as BoBeary)  and Erica Holtry are administrators.

2. What?
White Friday is a campaign to shine a light on Depression.

3. When?
Every August on the Friday following the Anniversary of Robin Williams death (Robin passed 8/11/14).

4. Where?
Where ever you are! Put on White, snap a selfie, post it to social media with #WhiteFriday , and start educating people around you. Please search for the White Friday page on Facebook and keep up on our latest news. We post tips, tricks, research, and motivational things to spread the love and remind people that they are not alone.

5. Why?
It is long overdue to start erasing the stigma around mental health issues. Robin William's untimely death brought a great deal of light into a dark world and in the aftermath we decided to act. If the funniest man in the world can struggle with depression then anyone can. Many people do not seek help for fear of being ostracized but in truth everyone needs help at some point. We want everyone to be able to reach out when they need to. We want to start an honest and healthy conversation about Mental Heath issues and keep the dialogue going.

Bonus:

How can you help??

Tell your friends! Find the White Friday page on Facebook, engage with us, invite your friends, and join us on White Friday in August in posting your selfies. Send the message that no one has to fight alone and struggling doesn't mean you are broken or a lost cause. The founder and administrators at White Friday all fight along side you.

Don't let this be the end of your story

Long live the ;'s!

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Friday Five Diagnoses and Reality

Good afternoon fair reader,

Today I am going to continue to delve into the realm of mental health with you. We are getting ready to celebrate our 2nd Annual White Friday when we wear white to shine a light on mental health. Depression and mental health carries a huge stigma and the way to dispel that is to talk about it. So, instead of just telling you the research or stuff you can get on your own, I have decided to talk to you about my personal battle. Maybe, it will help you be honest about your own experience and we can start talking about it and supporting each other rather than perpetuating the darkness.
So here are my FIVE diagnoses that are mental health related. The last one just contributes.
1. MDD- Major Depressive Disorder
Yep, I fight (and mostly win) the big D. MDD is more severe and chronic than just depression and you get that label after having long periods of depression without a break.

2. PTSD- Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Although I did serve in the USAF, I never saw combat. I broke my back in a training accident at 19. It ended my Nursing career and just about broke me. It added the MD to my D. Then while awaiting medical boards for my discharge I was a victim of what the military calls MST or Military Sexual Trauma. You civilians call it rape. Victim shaming from someone who was supposed to be my friend and threats of the perp kept me quiet for years. None of us are in the service anymore so I don't have that reason to hold it in.

3. PD- Panic Disorder

This is the shitty one. It wasn't so bad until I almost wrecked my car driving home but everything went downhill from there. Thankfully I had the best boss ever at the time who put up with me while we got things under control. I probably should have gotten fired for walking away from the register to sob on the bathroom floor because I thought I was going crazy. And the first morning after I started the meds that kept me from having the Panic attacks in my sleep, he nursed me through by helping me get the fog out. I never got to thank him for that but I was fiercely loyal to him.

4. Anxiety

Gosh, I have had social anxiety forever. I was teased mercilessly as a child. The reason I survived the bullying was because I had some awesome friends and a great Mom and Sister at home to support me. I have always known that I had a higher purpose on this earth so I fight it and go on.

5. DDD/CP/FMS- Degenerative Disk Disease/ Chronic Pain/ Fibromyalgia

This all stems from my accident. I had a compression fracture of T-12 & L-1 and broke off some bony bits on my spine. The USAF told me it was a sprain and sent me back to training. They were going to make me continue the exercise but I couldn't sit, stand, or lie down without crying. Oddly, they still never x-rayed me. I went to my civilian doctor to find the break. I have had back pain everyday since.

I carry on because I cannot quit. I fight because I do not know what else to do. I fight for others because while I do not understand your exact situation, I do understand what living in the dark feels like. I also know the gratitude that I felt and still feel for the people who stood/stand by me.

Please take someone's hand and come in to the light rather than taking your life. Take mine. We can move slowly as long as we move forward.

Come over to Facebook and search for White Friday. We post articles, and supportive memes, and resources all the time. You can contact me and I will do my best to find local resources for you. Just don't make an irreversible decision over a temporary problem. Please.

Love, Peace, and Light to everyone!

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For the love of the laughter- Friday Five

I love comedy. I love to laugh. Not any old laughter will do either, it must be that deep down, side splitting, snorting, ready to pass out laughter. Today's Friday Five showcases my top 5 favorite comedians ever and it ends with a serious message.

5.Margaret Cho
Yes, I cannot help loving her stand up. Raw and kinda raunchy makes me laugh!
4. David Sleaze Punk Musician
"I'm foolin' you and you don't like it, fuck you!" Google it.
3. Billy Crystal
Comic Relief y'all!
2. Whoopi Goldberg
Jumpin' Jack Flash, Comic Relief, Burglar. Brilliant!

1. Robin Williams
Hands down my absolute favorite comedian, Humanitarian, Gamer, human ever!

We are coming up fast on Robin's birthday and the day he passed from this world. Now if you want to comment on how sinful you think his death is or go into the sordid details.... SOD OFF!

I never met Robin but I followed his career and Humanitarian work from the beginning. When he died I felt like a piece of my soul died too. Suddenly the world was just a little darker and the clouds permanently obscured a piece of the sun. He touched so many lives and that included mine. He opened my eyes to homelessness at the age of 9. I watched every single Comic Relief that I could. I was a bright child and he made me laugh from the beginning. It still seems unreal that he is gone.

I am definitely not the only person he touched but it was the way he died that broke my heart.  The more the story came out the more lost and sad I felt. We were more focused on how he died than how he lived. My dear friend and sister Jennifer started White Friday on Facebook and asked me to be an admin. I was honored. You see I have fought my own battle with mental health issues in my life. I have put on the mask and smiled despite feeling empty inside. I wondered why I should hold on and keep going. I have felt alone.

I read every thing I could about Robin. I figure he didn't want his family to have to deal with the effects of his disease so he decided he would not be a burden. My grandma did that except she waited until everyone left and willed herself to die. I wish I could have made her understand that she never would have been a burden.

White Friday is our way to let people know that they never have to fight alone. We are currently in our infancy but we are always working behind the scenes to push forward. Our goals are to erase the stigma attached to mental health struggles. We do it in honor of Robin M. Williams and everyone who grieves for him. We do it to remind people that they are never a burden. We do it to let people know that every life lost to mental health issues makes this world a little darker.  Whether you are the King of Comedy or an everyday person you are a star to someone. Please seek help. Please. You are not alone!

1-800-273-8255