Well, after 4 months of doing not much of anything, I'm back. Meds seem to be working, albeit slowly, as I'm actually starting to show signs of having a life again. I'm back in school now, going to community college taking a class to become an Emergency Medical Techician-Basic (fancy term for entry-level paramedic). My first clinical observation is next saturday night from 7pm-7am in the St. Lukes South emergency department. I'm really excited about that, as I get to see all the fun gory patients that come in on a weekend night. 
Later this semester I get to do some ambulance ride-alongs, so I get to see all the REALLY nasty gory stuff up close and personal. Good times ahead.
Well, now that I've told you what's new in my life, I suppose I should explain who I am and why I've been away for so long, since I'm sure no one reading this now knew me back then.
A little over a year ago, I was just beginning my second year at Iowa State University, and I got hit with some severe depression. Couldn't go to class, couldn't leave my room, saw no point in living anymore, yadda yadda yadda. This went on for basically the whole first semester, and I ended up dropping out of college and coming back home to KC.
When I got back here, basically nothing changed; I wasn't improving at all. I went through all winter and spring as a vegetable, doing absolutely nothing but immerse myself in video games in my parents' basement.
Finally, around June or July, I found a counselor that I liked and felt comfortable with, and could actually talk to. That's when I first started showing some signs of progress. I started seeing a psychiatrist shortly after, and he got me on Effexor sometime around August. After that, I really started making some significant improvements.
By the end of August, I was enrolled in this EMT class that I'm taking, and so far I haven't missed a single class, and I actually look forward to going to class (much more than I can say for any of my year and a half at ISU). My grades are decent, I'm finally getting out of the house, finally starting to have a life again. I still spend most of my time laying in my room playing games, but the changes I've made so far are monumental compared to how I was 6-12 months ago.
My next step is trying to find more opportunities to get myself out of the house and interacting with people face-to-face. Anyone in the KC area have any ideas for what a 20-year old can do to pass the time? I've been out of touch with the real world for so long that I'm really lost when it comes to doing anything social. Any advice/comments from anyone would be mucho appreciated.
I know not many people will read this, and those who do probably won't care about any of what I've said, but I figure maybe there's someone out there who's right now going through what I was going through a year ago. And maybe by reading this, they won't have to go through all the crap I went through for as long as I went through it. If nothing else, it's just good for me to get these thoughts out. Just typing it out takes a huge weight off my chest.
So, do whatever you like after reading this. Comment if you feel like commenting. If you read all this and don't give a shit, that's fine too...though I wonder why you've read all the way down to here if you don't care.
Whew, that's the most I've typed in a journal in months. I hope to be updating and posting more often now, as I get more and more motivation to do stuff.
That's all for now,
~Iakona
Later this semester I get to do some ambulance ride-alongs, so I get to see all the REALLY nasty gory stuff up close and personal. Good times ahead.
Well, now that I've told you what's new in my life, I suppose I should explain who I am and why I've been away for so long, since I'm sure no one reading this now knew me back then.
A little over a year ago, I was just beginning my second year at Iowa State University, and I got hit with some severe depression. Couldn't go to class, couldn't leave my room, saw no point in living anymore, yadda yadda yadda. This went on for basically the whole first semester, and I ended up dropping out of college and coming back home to KC.
When I got back here, basically nothing changed; I wasn't improving at all. I went through all winter and spring as a vegetable, doing absolutely nothing but immerse myself in video games in my parents' basement.
Finally, around June or July, I found a counselor that I liked and felt comfortable with, and could actually talk to. That's when I first started showing some signs of progress. I started seeing a psychiatrist shortly after, and he got me on Effexor sometime around August. After that, I really started making some significant improvements.
By the end of August, I was enrolled in this EMT class that I'm taking, and so far I haven't missed a single class, and I actually look forward to going to class (much more than I can say for any of my year and a half at ISU). My grades are decent, I'm finally getting out of the house, finally starting to have a life again. I still spend most of my time laying in my room playing games, but the changes I've made so far are monumental compared to how I was 6-12 months ago.
My next step is trying to find more opportunities to get myself out of the house and interacting with people face-to-face. Anyone in the KC area have any ideas for what a 20-year old can do to pass the time? I've been out of touch with the real world for so long that I'm really lost when it comes to doing anything social. Any advice/comments from anyone would be mucho appreciated.
I know not many people will read this, and those who do probably won't care about any of what I've said, but I figure maybe there's someone out there who's right now going through what I was going through a year ago. And maybe by reading this, they won't have to go through all the crap I went through for as long as I went through it. If nothing else, it's just good for me to get these thoughts out. Just typing it out takes a huge weight off my chest.
So, do whatever you like after reading this. Comment if you feel like commenting. If you read all this and don't give a shit, that's fine too...though I wonder why you've read all the way down to here if you don't care.
Whew, that's the most I've typed in a journal in months. I hope to be updating and posting more often now, as I get more and more motivation to do stuff.
That's all for now,
~Iakona
susannahjoy:
yay for emt classes!! i kept trying to get into the ones at my school, but it was always full, and then they accidently deleted me from their computers and wouldnt let me register at all, so now i'm not going tos chool. damn people.