D-WORDSLAYER

A culture of misinformation I did not know what mental illness really was until I was close to twenty. Before, I thought mental illness was something which resulted from a deficiency at birth and was genetic. This thought scared me as I grew up knowing my mother, grand mother and great grandmother were ‘mad’, as we were told from a tender age. My mother was the first of five children and my grandmother was one of more than five, and my great grandmother was also from a large family. No one told us about mental illness or what caused it or why it happened. I simply thought it was an unfortunate curse on at least one member of the family, and prayed to never 'get it'!  Some of the 'folklore facts' I grew up with were;   If you kept your problems to yourself you would ‘overload’ and go crazy. If you fell too much in love you would go crazy. If you had too many bills you would go crazy. If you had no friends you would go crazy. If you were too ‘bright’ in s...

A Frantic Call "Please help me. She just stood at the door with a knife in hand. I can't live with her anymore." Panic and fear sounded through the phone. Its 2:30 am. (After a lot of drama, she returned to house, as though that call was never made)! There was a lot of uncertainty when that call was received. Did it really happen, or was my mother  creating a situation because she did not get what she wanted from my elder sister? Was it a hallucination - it happens a lot more with her aging. Trying to figure out truth from fiction with mentally ill people can be hard.  In this case, it was a variation of the truth. My sister claims she thought someone was outside, and armed herself, while questioning mom about a scholarship she never received. As for my mother, she ran out of the house into the darkness afraid for her life, as my sister followed - afraid for her. Does this make sense? No it does not, but it happened just over a year ago.  According to Google, ...

You are invited to look closer My friends I'm sharing a series of blogs called "Open Book - Mental Illness" from tomorrow. It's a heavy topic but is a serious social issue in the Caribbean and the world.  There are many families with loved ones who have some form of mental illness. My friend  Lisa Fraser Gallagher  has shared on her personal experiences with mental illness and she is an excellent resource on this topic.  In my fam ily one of my sisters and my mother are mentally ill. Like any other disease if you are unaware of the symptoms, left untreated it gets worse. There is no cure for mental illness. It can be managed, however not many people are willing to accept their loved ones are mentally ill. In Trinidad & Tobago there is societal acceptance of mentally ill behavior once no one is physically hurt. Hence, we have many street dwellers and vagrants living a homeless life by choice because of their mental illness.  To offer help to ...

Its Sunday and I’m grateful for the blessings of the week left behind. I am grateful for all the little and big things both good and bad which crossed my path. How can we manage life when there are ups and downs, positives and negatives, and outcomes which our minds and hearts tell us we are unprepared for? Ahh, but there is growth from all our experiences! Hmm. There was a Sunday when I sat in a house of worship and the pastor quite passionately advised the congregation that he did not want them to place any coins or red notes ($1 currency is red in my country) in the offering. He chided the congregation for being inconsiderate to the persons who had to ‘labour to count the money’ and even if they had to miss a week while they saved for their offering they must do so. Hmm. If it does not make sense to me then why accept the nonsense given? Many times, we receive gifts and tokens of appreciation which, may not suit our likes or desires. The person giving decided...

Understanding Character Character is associated with both good and bad behaviours. Understanding what comprises your ‘character’ is much more than what you want to show on your resume. Your character is built on your decisions and how you do what you do. Morals, values, beliefs and personality play a vital role in how you establish character among peers, friends and family. Leadership and integrity are on display for those of us in leadership roles in our homes and careers. Our attitudes, mental wellness, and psyche and temper are always tested, especially at times of extreme pressure, thus the inner person is always on show. How do you respond to criticism and opinions which are not aligned with your mentality and ability? Are you able to see beyond your perception of censure, disapproval, correction, and can you use these interactions as learnings and observations for personal and professional improvements? Having ‘good character’ seems to be tied to positive academic ...

Distressed panties? Can the demand for distressed garments push you to the ultimate intimate? Distressed panties will not be something I will purchase even though I’ve got a few and they are too comfortable to let go. I had this crazy thought as I hung my undergarments on my outdoor line to get some sun while drying.  Imagine walking into a store and finding tired looking panties, shreaded, and with holes. Hmm that would get folks talking. It could even get those folks inclined to be ‘trendsetters’ buying a tired beatten flimsy panty for maybe double what one would pay for the regular stuff. The mind of the consumer can be confusing at times, thus I’m trying to figure out what would make someone get insane with intimates! Teeny Tweens. I can see this group of young-uns checking out a Kardashian blog or Taylor Swift update to see if they are wearing distressed briefs. If ‘reality and other famous stars’ are into a trainwreck piece of cloth these impressionable babes wil...

Giving the r eviews... What do you do when you want to leave a realistic honest review but know the other side won't take it well?  In the past I would never be afraid about sharing a review which is negative, however we live in a society where less than positive reviews are frowned upon. Everyone's opinion is just that... an opinion. If the experience one had is negative, should that review not be shared?  There is a saying I've developed over the years, "If himself tells himself he is good, then he is good in his vision and his reality is himself!". From political, social, religious, and even personal perceptions, growth can only be exponential if the views and others are considered. It does not mean we must change to suit others, but simply means everyone is not receiving what we think we are giving. There is also the perspective that coming out of differences we can learn and improve. I recall at an office party for an outgoing manager ...

The Ugly Truth After reading a few articles and declining to read some more of the world headlines facing me today, I've come to the conclusion, that the world is really in a mess. Let me rephrase; many people in the USA are in a mess - morally, socially, spiritually, humanely. That about sums up my position on racism v vulgarity.  The fact that this can even be a topic of consideration underscores that sensationalism has taken over the more pressing need to solve world hunger crisis, terrorism control, species extinction, hurricane disasters, refugee crisis, human trafficking, global racism and gender biases, and the list goes on.  Twitter has become the tool of many folks who want an excuse to say what they want , when they want and yell "free speech" is our right. Thats a lot of 'bull and poppycock' if you ask me. Things are getting out of hand and while I would like to lay the blame squarely of the not so strong shoulders of the USA president, this...