[185329]

I have lost almost twenty years of my life due to mental illness. Is there any hope for me? Has anyone here gotten well enough to have some kind of a life? I feel utterly hopeless. I take medications for my schizoaffective disorder and social anxiety, but I feel like I don't know what to do now. I have been 100% med compliant for over seven consecutive years. I don't know what to do.

[CANDC]

Hi @185329 - sorry to hear you are feeling discouraged. Mental health issues seem to be very persistent with me but there is the hope of coping and finding meaningful activities.

Online activities play a far greater role than they used to. I find exercise helps me keep up my energy levels like 5 minute Tai Chi and Adrienne's complete beginner yoga both free on youtube.

The mind is a more complicated problem. I used to do video games but I tired of them. Mindfulness offers me the promise of taming that "wild beast" of a mind. Healthy Mind is a free smartphone app that is ad free and free from in-app purchases. It helps me have a positive focus in my day and develops thle ability to be mindful. Developed by the Univ. of Wisconsin Neuroscience department it offers the latest in the science side of mindfulness for the non-scientific person.

Palouse Mindfulness offers a free course and free to use resources that aim to develop mindful attitudes toward life.

For me, mental health has been an obstacle but coping with that revealed I need something to aim at not just something to get rid of. That has helped a lot.

CANDC

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[splitimage]

I'm sorry you fell mental illness has robbed you of years. I've felt the same way. I feel like I lost decades due to mental health issues. But I feel there is hope. For me with a lot of therapy and treatment and the right meds combination I did get better. I'm now working again and feel pretty happy most of the time. If you haven't done one before, I highly recommend doing a Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP), In the US many states offer that program. I found it to be a super helpful step in my recovery.