Normal, or terrifying?
Whenever I hear someone cry or suffer, my heart cries with them. It’s horrible to witness the pain. What is more horrible though, is the realization that this behavior does not shock or surprise me. It has become normal for me to walk past a hospital room and hear someone sobbing. It’s normal to see someone so anxious they are physically shaking. It’s normal to see someone so agitated that they need sedating, or in so much pain that they seem frozen in time. Although I am used to this, I still weep inside whenever I see or hear these things. Suffering has become normal for me. I have been in those situations. I have felt those same feelings. I have seen and talked to hundreds of sufferers, each with their own painful journey. I have been in and out of hospital for so many years that this way of living is normal. It may be normal, but it’s not ok. Most people never witness the true grief that comes with mental illness. A lot of people consider me