...World Mental Health Day today, so maybe spend the day looking after you and it's maybe a good way to start conversations with anyone close to you to see how they would react to your mental illness if you are thinking about confiding in them?  Kinda like:

You:  Did you know that it's World Mental Health Day today?
Them:  Nope, not at all
You:  How does it make you feel to know that there's a worldwide day bringing awareness to mental health?
Them:  "It makes me feel worried about the people who suffer from it" OR "It's all codswollop to me"
You:  Do you know anyone with mental health issues?
Them:  Yes OR No
You:  (if you feel comfortable talking to them) How would you feel about someone confiding in you that they have mental health issues?

etc etc 

You've started the conversation about it and you're starting to get to know how they truly feel about mental health without actually saying you're talking about yourself until/unless you feel able to confide in them.

I don't really know where to start so here is as good as anywhere.

When I was young I suffered with crippling shyness to the extent that my parents would invite children I knew from school to play with me.  Fortunately I had a few board games so that made it easier to start talking to other children.  My safe place was writing as I had a vivid imagination which was the start of having panic attacks as a friend found a book I was writing in.  She was surprised I snatched the book away and was flustered but shyness stopped me from explaining.

I've been diagnosed with psychotic depression and the one and only reason it wasn't diagnosed a schizophrenia was because I wasn't hearing things.

I think I am now though, from my neighbour, through our paper-thin walls and I dunno if it really is music that I can hear pretty much constantly from 6am every day or I'm now verging on schizophrenia instead of psychotic depression.

I'd always thought that "hearing things" meant in your head but this feels very external and I can only ever hear it when I'm sat on the sofa totally alone.  The instant I stand up the music disappears and I can't usually hear it while I'm doing my laps or exercises, it really is when I'm totally alone, sat on the sofa, using my computer.

I don't hear it outside or when I'm at my SIL's house or when I'm with Fergus, it really is only when I'm totally alone, sitting on my sofa, using my computer and it feels like it's external rather than in my head.

Am I going loopy or schizophrenic or am I just lonely please?

I'm with a Pagan Facebook group and I'm still a pretty new member there (only been there for a few months) but a few of the members are depressed (as opposed to sad so I think they've been diagnosed) and I was pondering on mentioning this forum to them as a source of support... would that be OK or should I wait for a while for everything to get more settled here please?

I haven't mentioned or even hinted to anyone on the FB group about this forum yet 'cos I wanted to get the go-ahead here first, but is that OK please?

https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditi...-disorder/

Personality disorders 

A person with a personality disorder thinks, feels, behaves or relates to others very differently from the average person.

There are several different types of personality disorder.

This page gives some information about personality disorders in general, linking to other sources for more detail.

Symptoms of a personality disorder

Symptoms vary depending on the type of personality disorder.

For example, a person with borderline personality disorder (one of the most common types) tends to have disturbed ways of thinking, impulsive behaviour and problems controlling their emotions.

They may have intense but unstable relationships and worry about people abandoning them.

A person with antisocial personality traits will typically get easily frustrated and have difficulty controlling their anger.

They may blame other people for problems in their life, and be aggressive and violent, upsetting others with their behaviour.

Someone with a personality disorder may also have other mental health problems, such as depression and drug addiction.

Other types of personality disorder will have different symptoms.

Find out more about diagnosing personality disorder on the Mind website

Mild, moderate and severe personality disorders

The way personality disorders are diagnosed is changing. Instead of being diagnosed with a type of personality disorder (such as borderline personality disorder), you may be diagnosed with mild, moderate or severe personality disorder, with particular personality traits. A mental health professional can talk to you about what your diagnosis means.

Treatment for a personality disorder

Treatment for a personality disorder usually involves a talking therapy and can also include other types of therapy and medicine.

Talking therapies

This is where the person talks to a therapist to get a better understanding of their own thoughts, feelings and behaviours.

Treatment can last several months or years, depending on the severity of the condition and other problems the person may have.

As well as listening and discussing important issues with the person, the therapist may identify strategies to resolve problems and, if necessary, help them change their attitudes and behaviour.

Therapeutic communities

Treatment at a therapeutic community may be offered to some people with personality disorders. Therapeutic communities (TCs) are places where someone visits or stays for an intensive form of group therapy. The experience of having a personality disorder is explored in depth.

The person usually attends for a number of weeks or months.

Medicine

Medicine may be prescribed to treat problems associated with a personality disorder, such as depression, anxiety or psychotic symptoms.

For example, moderate to severe symptoms of depression might be treated with a type of antidepressant called a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI).

Read more about the treatment for borderline personality disorder.

Find out more about treatments for personality disorders:

• Mind: treatment for personality disorder
  
• Rethink Mental Illness: personality disorders
  

• Mind: helping someone diagnosed with personality disorder
  
• Rethink Mental Illness: personality disorders
  
• Royal College of Psychiatrists: personality disorder
  
  

Pip has just given me permission to create and sticky this thread to this part of the forum.  It'll be me announcing every forum member's birthday and your opportunity to join me in wishing them the best day possible.

If you want your birthday announced, it's easy enough to do and within your profile here on the forum, you just have to put your date of birth into your profile and "make it public" or "add to calendar" or something like that lol  Doing it yourself means that our admins have one less thing to do too.

Happy birthday to everyone on their special day!

If you want to have an avatar click on User CP which is on the left hand side above Your Journey.  

Scroll down to Your Profile, again on the left side of the page where you will see Change Avatar on the list.  

Click on that and in the middle of the page is Upload Avatar with Browse to the right and click on that.  

From there click on the image you want then click on Change Avatar.

https://www.dailymail.com/news/royals/ar...viour.html

SARAH VINE: Harry and Meghan's new life is already starting to unravel. What a pair of quitters and these are the real poor victims of their behaviour

By SARAH VINE, COLUMNIST
Published: 01:01, 16 September 2026 | Updated: 10:51, 16 September 2026 

Was there ever such a pair of quitters as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex? 

First, they leave Britain after just 18 months of royal life; then they abandon practically every project they embark on Stateside; now they’re back here again for unknown reasons and already, just a few weeks into their new life, things are starting to unravel.  Do they never look before they leap? 

Do they always act on impulse, like headstrong teenagers? 

Do they never plan a few moves ahead, or try to solve their problems instead of flouncing from one place to the next?

Every decision they make seems to be taken on a whim, with little or no thought for the long-term consequences for them or those around them.  But this time they have surpassed even themselves. They’ve pulled the children, Archie and Lilibet, out of their new prep school after just two days. Two days! Barely time for the poor mites to work out which peg is theirs and find their way to the loo and already they’re being whisked away.  Security concerns around the school run, apparently. Ha. More like bad planning, as usual, coupled with Harry and Meghan’s characteristic impulsiveness. And, as some have pointed out, this time it might well work in their favour.  After all, isn’t Ravec (the body that oversees VIP and royal security) currently ‘re-evaluating’ the Sussexes’ security status? 

The safety of the children would no doubt be an important consideration.  Either way, it’s done. The kids are moving schools and all the time, expense and effort that presumably went into preparing parents, children and staff at the first place for their arrival has now been wasted. The whole process will now have to be repeated elsewhere.  As for Archie, seven, and Lilibet, five, their poor little heads must be spinning.  Not only have they just been pulled out of the only life they’ve ever known in sunny California and dumped in the middle of the Cotswolds just in time for the English winter, they’ve now also had to endure all the stresses of starting a new school in a new country, only to have the rug pulled out from beneath them.  It’s one thing for Harry and Meghan to blindside their staff and other members of the Royal Family, as they have time and time again.  Only this summer, they suddenly announced their return, shocking everyone from the King down he reportedly found out about their move the Sunday before they announced it.  But it’s quite another to do that to their own children. How anxiety-inducing must it be for poor Archie and Lilibet? 

Their parents’ behaviour has already excluded them from getting to know their cousins or having a meaningful relationship with their British relatives, and now this. What a mess.  Children look to their parents for stability and wisdom. Harry and Meghan are supposed to be the grown-ups and yet they are behaving like children themselves, chopping and changing at the first sign of the slightest obstacle. Besides, kids understand so much more than we give them credit for.  They will likely be feeling very scared and confused by this sudden decision, especially if they’ve picked up that it’s a security issue.  Talking of which, if the duke and duchess were really so worried about their own safety and that of the children, why would they post pictures of family life in their new countryside idyll?

Isn’t that kind of thing completely counterproductive and a gift to anyone with bad intentions towards them? 

There is no need for it, and it serves no purpose other than to expose them to unnecessary scrutiny and potentially attract unwanted attention.  No one in the Press has identified either the Sussexes’ new home or the children’s school, out of respect for their right to privacy and safety and yet they themselves have strongly hinted at their location to anyone with even basic local knowledge.  That is no one’s fault but their own. And no doubt if, God forbid, something were ever to happen, the couple would blame everyone except themselves. It’s such classic Sussex denial.  One can only conclude that they are either very stupid or they like causing a melodrama.  Let’s not forget that time in New York in 2023 when they issued a dramatic statement claiming to have been involved in a ‘near-catastrophic car chase’ (a highly loaded term given Harry’s family history) which, on closer inspection, turned out to be them getting stuck in a traffic jam.  Granted, they were snapped by a few paparazzi but never in a manner that put anyone in any danger.  As for their school-run complaint, I won’t reveal the name of the establishment, but I have several friends whose children have attended that school over the years, and I would say two things. Firstly, it is a brilliant, very well-established institution, and more than capable of dealing with the security concerns of high-profile parents. Second, even the most cursory enquiries would have revealed its one and only disadvantage: The local traffic, which is famously murderous.  It’s so bad I have one friend who used to leave the house at 6.30am just to get her kids there on time. Houses within walking distance are fought over by millionaires and exchange hands for eye-watering prices.  Parents endure it because the school is so good. But it is notoriously a nightmare traffic-wise.  So why, if they were going to uproot the entire family and send their children there, didn’t the Sussexes check the practicalities of their decision with some of the few remaining friends and supporters they have in Britain?

After all, Princess Beatrice and her husband, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, own a six-bedroom converted farmhouse in the Cotswolds complete with ‘party barn’, tennis court and swimming pool, which they purchased in 2021 for around £3.5million.  Edo (as he’s known) attended schools in the area. By all accounts the Sussexes remain on very good terms with the Mapelli Mozzis. They would have been more than able to tell them the lie of the land and flag up any potential pitfalls concerning school runs.  Perhaps they didn’t bother to ask. Or perhaps the fact the decision to return to Britain was taken so on the hoof just meant there was no time.  It seems they did the dry run in August, when everyone is on holiday and the roads are relatively clear which makes you wonder about the quality of some of the security advisers they’re using.  Or perhaps Prince Harry is just so used to the VIP treatment he simply forgot that as mere mortals there are no motorcycle outriders to clear the way through civilian traffic. Well, all I can say is welcome to the real world, Sir. Not always as fun or as easy as it looks, is it?

I loved school up until I left primary school as it was a small school and ju  Myst from my street there were seven of us in the same year.  My problems started when I started at a local comprehensive as I was separated from my girl friends and I only knew a couple of boys from the primary school.  Thankfully I made new friends and still saw friends out of school.

Unfortunately I started getting bullied by older girls and never found out why so I started dreading going to school.  It was okay during lessons, it was lunchtime, morning and afternoon breaks that were difficult.  My friends always had my back but it was the times when they weren't with me.

I was incredibly shy and was scared to tell my parents and teachers as I thought it would make it worse.  My parents knew something was wrong ad tried to get me to talk.  I was also afraid they would think I was being silly or was trying to get out of going.  It only started to ease a bit as a couple of girls were laughing about what they were doing - she and I went to different schools as she was in the last year of the 11+ where we lived.  My sister overheard the conversation, I don't know where they were other than they were out, and she had words with them.  Whatever was said worked but by this time my mental health was already suffering.

I joined last night as I am struggling to find anybody I can trust enough to talk honestly about how I am feeling.