Today would have been our mother's 72nd birthday.  Today we are discussing her and how she impacted our lives.  We get honest about our mother-daughter experiences as they relate to our mental health.  Also, in today's episode, we are discussing the need for safety and security in relationships, the need for control, self-worth, the concept of time, and, as usual, so much more.

We are also discussing the future of the My Sister's Keeper Mental Health podcast.  

Join the discussion as we talk about the term "play it by ear."  We do know the correct term, but we are asking you you say it.  

You've heard that saying, "Who pissed in your cereal this morning?".  That's what we're talking about on today's episode of My Sister's Keeper Mental Health podcast.  Heather is talking about her experiences with therapy since Randi advised her to start on the last episode.  At the same time, we're talking about the struggles Randi is having finding a new therapist and the lack of mental health resources available to those in need.  We're also finally diving into Heather's new-found relationship with her brother, who recently popped back into her life.

As always, we're discussing an array of topics, from everyday annoyances and struggles to life before and after trauma, crying in the shower, being your own advocate and riding around on big wheels.  

You can find the free reflection journal referenced in today's episode here.

We are covering a vast range of topics in this episode, from seasonal blues to sexuality and everything in between.  Find out why Randi tells Heather to seek psychological treatment.  Hear one of the reasons Heather has a strong mistrust for therapists.  We're talking about the importance of reflecting on the year and acknowledging ALL of our accomplishments, big and small. We discuss the realization that our family and family traditions end with us, which gets us to the topic of mortality.  Randi is sharing with us how MD Motivator impacted her life and changed her view of society.  Heather is sharing some tips to help you make your social media feed more positive.  

If previous episodes had you thinking that we tend to go off-topic, this episode won't disappoint. And as always, we have some good laughs.  Living with mental illness is heavy; laughing at ourselves and each other helps make it a bit lighter.

Don't forget, you can view transcripts of this and all of our episodes here.

Also, Heather referenced a Reflection Journal she created, you can download that for free here.

In today's episode, we are finally talking about Borderline Personality Disorder, which according to the DSM-5, is one of four cluster B personality disorders.  Both Randi and Heather live with Borderline Personality Disorder, so we're diving deep into how it feels and how it has affected our relationships.  **Trigger Warning** We briefly discuss suicide in this episode as it relates to how Randi was finally diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder.  Because both sisters live with this mental illness, we are able to speak from the perspective of our own experience with the disorder, as well as how it affects our relationship with each other and others.  We also talk about little things we feel could be helpful for our partners and friends to consider when loving someone with BPD.

As always, you can view the transcripts of this episode here.

Also, you can find the article referenced in today's episode here.

Join us in today's episode as we go off-script and have a coffee chat.  We intended to discuss our experience with Borderline Personality Disorder today, but life happened. We also thought it would be nice to break up the previous three episodes, which were a bit heavy.  Today we're chatting about a few things, like Randi making it to 54 and her progress with therapy and getting out of the house post-COVID (even though it's really still COVID).  We'll also be discussing how Heather is quite confident she is losing her mind, the grieving process after leaving a work family of over a decade, and how her brother randomly reached out to her after 12 years without a peep.  As always, we've got it all here on My Sister's Keeper Mental Health Podcast, including some swearing and a few laughs.

If you enjoy this podcast, please be sure to subscribe.  If you know someone living with mental illness or loving someone with mental illness, please be sure to share this podcast.

Finally, don't forget to follow us on Facebook and/or Instagram.

You can find the transcripts of this and all of our episodes here.

In this week's episode, we are discussing Heather's experiences and memories of growing up in an abusive household.  We will briefly discuss the ACES (adverse childhood experiences) and how a single safe person in a child's life can change their life.  **TRIGGER WARNING** Child Abuse, Domestic Abuse, Stalking

We're talking about different types of abuse again in this episode and how growing up in the same abusive household can have a very different outcome for people.  We're also discussing the dysfunctions of the court systems as it pertains to custody (back in the 80s)

Bonus: You'll hear about what ended up happening to the biological father and where he is now.

Heather lives with Binge Eating Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder, High Functioning Anxiety, and Health Anxiety.  This episode actually ended up being a challenge for her, which you can read more about in our journal.

If you enjoy this podcast, please be sure to subscribe.  If you know someone living with mental illness or loving someone with mental illness, please be sure to share this podcast.

Finally, don't forget to follow us on Facebook and/or Instagram.

We're unpacking a lot on today's episode of My Sister's Keeper Mental Health.  Today we are briefly reviewing Randi's traumatic upbringing and its long-term effects on her life, and those effects were not only mental illness.  **Trigger Warning** We do discuss child abuse and domestic violence in this episode.  While we try not to go into too much detail, we do hit on some specific memories to help our audience get a glimpse into the events that have made us who we are.  

Countless people live with undiagnosed mental illness, Randi went undiagnosed until she was 25, and even then, it was only a partial diagnosis.  We are discussing her Bipolar Disorder Diagnosis, as well as her very late Borderline Personality and PTSD diagnosis and how these illnesses have impacted her life for the last 50+ years.

Be sure to follow us on the socials.  We are mysisterskeepermentalhealth on both Instagram and Facebook.