Wisdom is not a measure of age; it's an outcome of courage
- Alice Mitchell
Hiya!
My name is Alice. I am 23 years old. I am an actor, singer, dancer, writer, Disnerd, musical theatre geek, mental health activist and travel enthusiast…
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…I also suffer with Anorexia, Depression, Anxiety, OCD and PTSD, as well as coming to terms with my own asexuality.
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In August 2013 I was at deaths door. I was severely underweight. I had heart, lung, kidney and brain failure. I couldn’t bring myself to get out of bed. I wasn’t being allowed to return to school or any of my dance training. There wasn’t a day that went by where I didn’t seriously consider taking my own life. In fact I was told by my doctors that if I carried on the way I was, I would be dead within a month…..
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...7 years later and it is a completely different story. I not only returned to school but I completed 2 years of 6th form, ending up with 4 AS and 3 A levels. I have a wonderful job. I am engaged to be married. My partner and I have bought our first house. I volunteer as a mental health activist and over the years I have raised nearly £5000 for the charity 'Mind'. While mental illness never truly goes away and I still struggle with my disorders everyday, the progress I have made over these past years is phenomenal!
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Unfortunately this is not the case for everyone. Far too many people are made to feel ashamed about their battle with mental illness. However this is down to one simple thing- awareness!…or rather lack of it. Mental health disorders are not something to be belittled; they are life consuming, life altering and, potentially, life ending diseases. It doesn’t take all that you have to make a difference, it’s what you do with what you have that counts.
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The aim of this blog is to talk about mental illness. It’s as simple as that. I am not looking to make monumental differences to people’s lives (although that would be an incredible achievement), I am simply trying to eliminate the hesitance society holds when broaching the subject of mental health.
While I am not a ‘professional’ I am, to some extent, an expert. What’s the difference? Well the first is trained with a degree, the second is trained with personal experience. I am not claiming to be a therapist of any sort, I am simply someone who has struggled with severe mental health issues her entire life and is determined to make a difference to ensure others do not suffer with the same trauma.
For advice, someone to listen, or simply someone to rant at then do not hesitate to contact me via email (onthementalmend@yahoo.com) or by anyone of my social media sites…
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Twitter – OnlyAliceMitch
Instagram – onthementalmend
Facebook – onthementalmend
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COURAGE
Alice H Mitchell xxx