Introductory Letter to Readers

Hi there,

So, I'm supposed to be creating a mental health blog. I've been trying to motivate myself to make a start on it for a few weeks, but I keep being blocked. The Blob Meister pointed out to me that this was rather ironic; my mental health preventing me from helping my mental health.

The best I can do for now really, is give you a quick intro to myself, and things you might encounter in my blog that are confusing. I'm keeping the blog fairly anonymous, so that I can be free in what I write. Those who know the nicknames I use for people will recognise them in the blog.

So, I am Olana, or Llama.

Blob = The person with whom I live. Lovely fella, gives way too much of himself in looking after me me. Totally messed around by his ex wife, regarding visitations with his kiddies.  

Trouble = One of the few Norfolk friends I have. Used to live next door to her and her husband.

Sister Features = My younger sister. She lives in London, with her partner, and two children. She has MS, and also has troubled mental health.

I moved to Norfolk in 2016, because my life had got to a point whereby if I didn't remove myself from everyone and everything I knew, I was at a very real risk of committing suicide. There is a mix of circumstances that created this situation, that I'll blog individually another time.

My background is that I grew up in Sussex, in a "broken family" at a time when it was not common, and poorly understood. My sister and I were bullied badly by our step mother. I escaped to university, but pretty much messed that up due to not understanding that I had depression, anxiety, and PTSD. 

I became ill with M.E. (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis) a year after I finished university. I then developed Fibromyalgia in 2010, at which time I was also diagnosed as having Hypermobility Syndrome. 

So basically, I'm chronically ill, with chronic fatigue, chronic pain, chronic head mess, and a plethora of other symptoms that come and go at the whim of M.E. and FM. It's a joy to be alive!

I was married in 2006, to a man I'd been with for 4 years. We divorced another 4 years later. I tend to forget that I was ever married, to be honest.

I spent another 5 years with a wonderful man, whom I miss terribly. My mental health ruined that relationship.

And thus I moved to Norfolk.

You'll learn more about me as I post in the future. Or in a minute!

Thank you for sparing the time to be here.

Olana xx