The Limitations Of My Depression Give Me Major Mom Guilt Guilt prevents me from living in the moment and enjoying this, but I hope the kids will remember those things, instead of me hollering all the time or being sick.
I buy them almost everything they ask for, and I know I’m compensating for not being the mother I think I should be. Of course, my kids don’t need material things to be happy, but I can’t help thinking they drew the short straw in the mom department., as well as an eating disorder. Two years ago, I was hospitalized for six weeks, but thankfully my kids were too young to remember. It would be OK if they did, but I don’t want them thinking I abandoned them or that it was easy leaving.
My husband says that we’re not raising kids, we’re raising healthy adults. He’s right. If anything, my kids will learn empathy, compassion and the importance of self-care because of my illnesses. I hope they’ll be able to have an open conversation about mental health and reach out if they start showing signs. In my opinion, you’re never too young to talk about mental illness.
I hope my kids and their peers will buck the stigma of mental illness and not feel shame in their disorders. But we, my generation, must lead by example. I won’t apologize for a disease I have little control over. And neither should you. Depression is a tenacious thief, stealing your motivation, your joy, your ability to function. It’s suffocating, the darkness and fatigue. Depression is a terrible disease unmoved by pain and suffering.