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Started by: Jade Sharee
Hi, my name is Jade and I'm Black, Queer, Non-Binary, an MSW (Social Worker) and Crisis Counselor working overnights on a su*c*de hotline. To make a long story short, I struggle with my own mental health issues. I was diagnosed with Bipolar II, Social Anxiety, and ADHD in 2017 after my first hospitalization for su*c*dal ideation while in the middle of my Masters program - this was after years of being diagnosed with Depression and Anxiety. After this, my mental health began to get better and after graduating with my MSW in 2018, I went to work as a crisis counselor. I have dedicated my life to working in mental health and helping support others through many of the struggles that I also face.
While I was stable for over two years, I ran into complications with my medication last Summer shortly after starting a second Masters program and new job as a child and family therapist. My medication began causing vision impairments that forced me to resign from my new job and set me back in my classes as I struggled to maintain stability while having my medications adjusted. All the while, we still were not certain that the side effects were due to the medication so I had various appointments, an EKG, bloodwork, an MRI, etc. in order to figure out what was going on. Over several months, I struggled because I no longer had health insurance right in the midst of being in dire need of medication management. This completely threw off my sleep and functioning because I had to choose between taking a medication that would cause severe side effects or going without it and facing the consequences.
As we were working on a plan to address my side effects, I also went through a series of hardships that only exacerbated my already shaky and fragile mental health. I had someone I considered a close friend essentially cut me off without much of an explanation. While traveling abroad, I left my computer in the airport (thanks to my lack of sleep), then my best friend and I were physically assaulted, and a few days later, I learned of a death in my family.
So in December, my best friend and I decided to move to LA the following month as it seemed like a good choice for our mental health after everything we'd been through. We knew that the Portland weather was also contributing to the depression and felt like a fresh start somewhere would be the best thing for us. Two weeks after moving, he suffered a brutal assault and a few days later we both witnessed my emotional support dog get violently killed by our neighbor's dog. Ultimately, I believe that losing my dog (my ESA of 3 years) was what caused me to spiral again. A few weeks later I decided to check myself into the hospital again because everything had become too overwhelming at that point and I was no longer fit to support other people who were struggling on the crisis line if I was not able to care for myself first.
Even with "good" health insurance through my job, this recent hospital stay of 3 days has left me with nearly $3000 of debt to pay on top of how much I have been/continue to pay out of pocket for individual therapy ($250/month) and medications. After getting out of the hospital I took additional time off from work to adjust to the most recent medication changes and overall, I feel like I'm doing better. Of course then Covid-19 happened, then George Floyd and Breonna Taylor and Tony McDade and on and on, then an increase in calls to the crisis line. My goal, and the reason I've set this up is to eliminate the stress of the debts that I owe simply for reaching out and getting care so that I can move forward. I likely owe my school or will soon have to start paying on student loans because of how much time I've taken off... I haven't even started to figure that out yet.
I plan to continue to support others in my work. I plan to continue speaking out about my experiences - being Black, being Queer, being Non-Binary, and being Mentally Ill. Ultimately though, I've decided that I want to start a non-profit to benefit Queer Youth of Color in my community through advocacy, education, and direct service. I hope to use what resources are left over to make this dream a reality.
If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out.
Thank you for taking the time to read and share, it means so much to me!!!
Posted by Jade
August 5 at 5:34am
Posted by Jade
July 30 at 10:21am
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