Julia's story

I was just an ordinary person five years ago. I had coped with life's ups and downs. I had been married to the same man for 21 years and had two teenage children. No one in my family had ever suffered from any mental health problems.

Pressures at work started to build up and I had to take time off with stress. After three months the stress turned into depression. My depression became worse and I was admitted to a psychiatric hospital. I had three admissions to hospital in a year and had to go through ECT treatment.

My husband although supportive at first didn't know how to cope with my illness, he didn't know what to say when he came to visit me. On my third admission to hospital he told me he couldn't cope anymore and said he wanted a divorce. My world fell apart.

Some of my friends sent cards and visited me. Others stayed away, they didn't know how to help me. If I'd had a physical illness I'm sure things would have been different.

Work retired me off on the grounds of ill health. I ended up losing my job, my husband, most of my friends and my home.

Mental health problems can affect anybody and at any age. With the help and support from Leeds Mind, I have started to rebuild my life.

This story was submitted to Mind by a website user, and is republished here with her permission. If you would like to share your experience of mental health with us, please tell us your story.

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