Month: October 2017

A Villanelle That Needs Some Work

                       An Early Fall Day in Downtown Edmonton

 

Today’s Poem (Scroll past for today’s blog)

 

Brave Words

By: Leif Gregersen

 

In life we lose all that we hold so dear

And from the bonds of love too many slip

Brave words and acts can conquer any fear

 

As kids we wait to grow year after year

Life seems to be just like a joyful trip

In life we lose all that we hold so dear

 

We have so little time upon this sphere

Hold close your hopes and dreams with a tight grip

Brave words and acts can conquer any fear

 

There will be times of joy, good will and cheer

And even times of magical courtship

In life we lose all that we hold so dear

 

Go forth and don’t let yourself shed a tear

Simply be warned with just a little tip

Brave words and acts can conquer any fear

 

Embrace your youth with your conscience all clear

Sail proud as Captain of your own tall ship

In life we lose all that we hold so dear

Brave words and acts can conquer any fear

 

October 30, 2017

 

Hello Dear Readers! Well, I haven’t done a whole lot of writing lately, especially in this blog and so I thought I would try and put something special together. I wrote the above poem in Iambic Pentameter, in Villanelle form which calls for a lot of word trickery and writing and re-writing. Earlier today I wrote a short story which I am hoping will turn into something. I am constantly reminded as I look at the wall above my computer that I need to take my time with my work, go over it more, plan it, re-work it. These are the words of a close friend who is a bestselling author who has helped me a great deal.

On the lighter side of things, something kind of big has happened. I have had a young woman who is a film student offer to make one of my short stories into a short film. The film is about teen love, teen angst, and teen suicide. One of the amazing things about this opportunity is that I named the main character after a dear friend I knew when I was 17 who committed suicide, and the film maker has agreed to put a tribute to him in the credits.

So, since this is a mental health blog, I feel obligated to talk about my experiences with this situation. Losing someone can be a very difficult thing, compounded by a factor like suicide. I have always felt that the most important part of the grieving process in the event of a suicide is for the person grieving to forgive themselves. Everyone blames themselves I think when a suicide happens. Why didn’t I spend more time with them, why didn’t I see this coming? These are common questions. One of the most important things I recommend is that if you have experienced a loss that you go into grief counselling. When my mom passed away I went for a little while and even just a small amount of opening up, sharing about the person and getting your feelings out can do a world of good.

So what happens when you can’t afford counselling or when you don’t even live near a place where you can get it? Just now I went and did a quick Internet search and I found a number of places that offer online counselling. These may be expensive, but most likely they would be deductible, and may even be covered by a work insurance plan. I know that in Edmonton where I live I have been able to access counselling totally free through a couple of agencies here.

The next part is tougher than the first, and the first one I know is difficult (the first one being counselling) this is, when is it okay to move on, find a new partner after losing one, making new friends? It can be difficult to make friends because if you lose a friend you will often be in a poor state of mind which may make it difficult for you to connect with new people you meet. This can be a situation where in some ways you need to force yourself a bit, and lean on others a little. One piece of advice a friend gave me when I first went into the psychiatric hospital was that you should make a group of friends that you can talk honestly and openly to, and never lean to heavily on any one of them. Support groups may not be the best place to make friends, and I strongly feel they are not the place to form relationships. People there are working on themselves and likely don’t need more stress. This is where it can really come in handy to have a hobby or a sport that you like. A sport, say badminton or swimming can be great. You can look up and attend events, or go to the pool each morning and start to make friends with people you have something in common with. Don’t stop going to your counselling or support groups if you have been lucky enough to find ones that work for you. But maybe keep those things private. I feel that you don’t really need to tell anyone about that sort of thing unless you are going to enter a committed, intimate relationship, and even then what you share is up to you. I hope some of this helps, thanks for tuning in and hope to chat with you soon!

Leif

Bipolar People and the Middle of the Night Poetry Musings

Please scroll past today’s poem to read today’s blog post!

Fall

By: Leif Gregersen

 

As I look out my bedroom window

Once stunning massive trees are now bare

And the temperature reads below zero

Dead leaves are everywhere

 

In the happy times

When I was just a little boy

The excitement of the season

Hinted at all the things I most enjoyed

 

Snowball fights in the school grounds

Cold nights bundled in my bed

Making snow forts in the back yard

Dreams of Christmas days in my head

 

Just a while longer

And the snow will fall

Skating, skiing, sledding

Always having such a ball

 

Now that I’m a grown-up

With not so many things to do

Except to keep my focus on

Loving, pleasing, caring for you

 

I’m now in my middle years

Almost past forty-five

There are still things to do and see

Though I admit I don’t feel quite as alive

 

And so I try to grasp onto my youth

By dating lovely girls like you

But the reality is the sad truth

That all the time I wish I could be born anew

 

October 13, 2017

 

Once Again It’s the Middle of the Night and I’m Wide Awake

Hello, dear readers! Well, my struggle continues. Today was actually kind of a great day, when I got up, I had to go to Staples with Taro (the manager of this building who handles my efforts to put on writing workshops). We had an enjoyable time having a quick coffee at Tim Horton’s, then I went to teach my class. I think it went really well. There weren’t too many people there, I think just five in total, but I really felt like I was in my element. I am starting to get better at handling classes with people who have mental health issues. One of the things I have noticed is that often people with these issues may be very confused about directions I give them and I don’t know if this is something cause and effect, but these people have a desire to speak and participate in the class even though it might be off topic. Today (creative writing) and yesterday (Wellness Recovery) I tried just letting them speak for a few minutes and then tried to direct them back to the material or gently encourage them to let others speak. It is actually really cool the way I am learning more about my own mental illness and my own writing skills as I do this. The only part that kind of worries me is that the person who was most supportive of my efforts to do the creative writing classes has been promoted and the new person may not be as supportive or trusting of me. The way I got this job was by going to a writer’s group and basically showing that I had enough knowledge to facilitate my own class.

To get back to the whole insomnia thing, I think one of my problems is that I have a few remedies in my cupboard that help me to sleep and I think sometimes I use them more than I should. One of them is melatonin, which works well but isn’t quite as much of a designer drug as some sleeping pills are. One of the problems with it is that it leaves you very drowsy even after a long sleep. When I take melatonin, I will get a good sleep, wake up to do what I must that day, then I have a strong desire to go home and sleep some more, which I often to and then I end up like I am now, wide awake at 2:00 in the morning. There is another side effect to it that I don’t know if everyone experiences, it happens when I take a lower dose than I need to get me to sleep, my lower back gets a restless, edgy feeling that completely prevents me from sleeping. I often have to get up and walk around or do something (like writing in my blog) to stop it from bothering me. My doctor has also said that if I have problems sleeping on occasion it is okay to take a couple of gravol. These anti-nausea pills give a pleasant sleep, but only if you are already tired enough to lay down. Also, I don’t like using them because I worry about dependancy and using a pill that wasn’t meant to help a person sleep. I feel that people with mental health issues walk a very thin line between abusing and carefully using our pills. The funny thing is that I seem to have no problem sleeping in the afternoon, and one of the ways I can sleep at that time is by taking a multi-vitamin which prevents me from having bad dreams.

So, no real solution to anything today. Just a lot of words about some sleep aid alternatives. I use one last method to help me sleep sometimes, what I do is just get up and write here in my blog. I honestly hope I am helping people by putting this out, please feel free to reach out to me if you like anything I have to say or want to chat. My email is as always, viking3082000@yahoo.com all the best!

Definitely a Touch of Mania In My Mind Tonight

This is what is known as the Muttart Conservatory in Edmonton. They are really beautiful inside, with plants from different climates in each one, made for Edmontonians to appreciate summer while it is winter outside, or to experience other parts of the world while the sun is shining. Scroll past today’s poem for my blog post.

 

Season’s Changes

Summer is past and all at once
The leaves all begin to turn
Soon cooler days will prevail
And marshmallow roasting fires will burn

I love this times of hayrides
Roasted hot dogs out under the stars
Loved ones all around me
And seeing the red twinkling light above of mars

As I change and I grow older
I sometimes let in worries and fears
And as the time goes by so fast
I also shed a few more tears

I think of all the loves I had and lost
And of all the loved ones who passed
I also miss more than a few old friends
From my old school’s graduating class

Look now, the leaves have fallen!
And the trees seem dead and bare
That means that Halloween is coming
Time to teach the little ones how to play and scare

The gutters are filled with crunchy leaves
That will soon be filled with ice and snow
But skiing, sledding, skating
Will still give us a healthy, happy glow

Don’t regret the end of summer
As I give best wishes to you, all of my friends
Just because the weather cycles are shifting
Doesn’t mean the cycles ever end

September 28, 2017
Leif Gregersen

Well, I don’t really know if anyone reads these. Still, it seems to be good therapy for me to write them. I am troubled by a few things tonight, not the least of which is that I can’t get to sleep. I thought it would be easy to sleep tonight, I stayed up all night, went for a swim in the morning and walked a total of at least 11km on top of that. I even played a little street hockey with a couple of kids for a while just for fun. It really was fun too, I got a lot of joy out of it. But now, after taking a pill for a headache, a tranquilizer and ten milligrams of melatonin I am not able to fall asleep and morning is fast approaching. It had been a long day yesterday. I got notice that I had a library book ready for pick-up and so I went and got it (Graphic Novel about Donald Duck) and spent most of the night reading it. I also have gotten myself into two courses online, both of which are writing courses. Basically I had been up all night. I don’t feel like I still can take on the world or even that my thoughts are racing, but I definitely think something is wrong if I can’t rest.

There have been a lot of things going on. I am now teaching a Wellness Recovery class for the Schizophrenia Society and it has its trials. There is this one young man (who reads this blog) who I lost a shouting match to over wanting to explain some ways a person can make a hospital stay easier. I had every right to kick him out of the class, but I didn’t want to have him leave disgruntled, I feel that would be simply the result of not teaching him with enough patience. I am reminded of one of the worse memories of my mom from a shortly before she died. She grabbed me by the collars while she was sitting in her wheelchair, wouldn’t let go of me, pulled me down to her face and said, “You are the stupidest…” It really hurt, even though I know my mom’s mind was pretty much gone near the end. I don’t know why negative things have to pop up, there were plenty of good memories.

So at a time like this, one has to stick close to family to get through. My dad and I went to a nice restaurant the other day and had fish and chips. The waitress was really cute but my dad didn’t seem to mind that I wanted to talk to her for a while after we finished eating.

Eating brings up a whole new subject. For the past while I have been trying out a vegan diet, though I stopped it about a week ago. I have to admit I felt better when doing it, didn’t feel so bloated and fat as I do now, but I found myself also feeling pretty weak and I didn’t get a whole lot of exercise in the time I was trying the diet. I have decided I will try the vegetarian/vegan diet again, but I want to consult with a professional nutritionist before I do.

As I look at the clock, I see that my countdown to having to get up is just six hours away and I have barely slept a wink. I see my Psychiatrist in the morning and I think I am going to have to bring this up with him. The bad thing is that I have been told that sleeping pills affect memory but I have been taking them anyway, and I have been finding that my memory is getting much worse. Anyhow dear readers, I hope you were able to wade through all of my complaining today. On the more positive side of things, I published a flash fiction piece, feel free to click below to check it out!

https://flashfictionmagazine.com/blog/2017/10/08/first-love-last-hope/