The Mindstorm

Author: Chrisa Hickey

  • Mom FAIL

    I am THE worst mom in the whole freakin’ world, according to the evidence.  If you work in retail support, as I do, this time of year is IN – SANE.  Freakishly insane.  Crazy, insomnia-inducing, working 80 hours a week, never home, living on fast food, forgetting what your husband looks like and ignoring your…

  • Ray of Light

    I got the call last week I knew would come around this time. Tim’s not having a good week. He’s not sleeping much, easily agitated, and lashing out. He has a new caseworker and she wasn’t sure why. But I knew. It’s Fall. Read the rest at CABF.

  • Fall

    Perfect Fall in Door County by D. Moultray (C) 2010 Used vis Creative Commons License I’ve been MIA, I know, and I’m sorry.  I need to be better at being more regular.  If for nothing else than for my mental health.  I always feel better when I get things down on paper.  Even virtual paper.…

  • What I Know (The Gertz Family)

    I don’t know the Gertz’s. We live maybe 12 miles apart in the Northwest suburbs of Chicago, but we have never met. Never at a doctor’s office.  Never at a psychiatric hospital on a visiting day.  Never at an in person or online support group meeting. I have no idea if the Gertz’s ever joined…

  • We Walked!

    It was a beautiful day last Sunday in Chicago for NAMIWalks.  I was the captain of Team BringChange2Mind / CABF.  Our friend ImpassionedCat shared some great photos she took of the walk and the team.  Thanks for sharing them with us, Catherine!

  • Remembering

    On the morning of September 11, 2002, I stood at Ground Zero with my friends, on a pilgrimage to be where our hearts had been for a year. In our effort to get near Ground Zero, we mistakenly ended up in the press pen behind the families of the survivors. We stood there, face to…

  • More Reading, More Cynicism

    I’ve been taking the train into the city to my company’s alternate set of offices one day a week for the past month or so, and The hour ride each way has given me back time to leisure read.  I love to read, but am usually too busy or to tired during the week to…

  • The “P” Word

    I get questioned occasionally as to why I’m a member of the Child and Adolescent Bipolar Foundation when my child does not have Bipolar Disorder. Tim has – and it’s a long diagnosis – Schizoaffective Disorder, Bipolar Type. His condition shares many symptoms of Bipolar Disorder, specifically periods of mania and depression. But what frightens…

  • 30 Things About My Son’s Invisible Illness

    30 Things About My Son’s Invisible Illness

    I read this on Melissa’s blog, and thought it was great – so here’s our 30 things, modified a bit to be from a mom’s point of view. 1. The illness my son lives with is: Schizoaffective Disorder, Bipolar Type 2. He  was diagnosed with it in the year: 2008, but some mood disorder since…

  • We Interrupt This Blog for a Little Whine

    I love summer, usually. This summer has been one of the most humid summers in the Midwest in documented history. So the fact that I’m in surgically induced menopause due to a complete hysterectomy / oophorectomy last March and flashing like a bug zapper every few hours has left me cranky and sweaty.  Really freakin’…