article by Marc McCann
“If you thought the fall was spectacular, wait until you see the rise” (source unknown)
I bumped into a former AMH service user the other day and we got talking. He is working full time now and was very proud to inform me that his eldest daughter has just started Queens University. He was in great form. We wished each other well and went our separate ways, as I walked on I could not help but smile because around 8 years earlier he came into the service with severe MH issues. His life up to that point had been eventful. Drugs, crime, prison and suicide attempts do not even tell half the story, yet here he was, living well. One of his main goals when I first met him was to be a positive role model for his daughters. Goal achieved.
Last summer at an event in Belfast, I had the privilege of listening to the story of Clodagh Dunlop. Clodagh was an outgoing person with great ambition. Her life-long dream was to become a police detective. She applied with the PSNI several times and each time she was unsuccessful. Whenever she finally got the position, everything seemed to be falling into place and then one day her life changed forever. She suffered a brainstem stroke that left her paralysed with locked in syndrome and barely able to move her eyelids. To cut a long story short, she defied medical opinion and very gradually regained some of her mobility and speech. And although it was a struggle at times, she was able to walk onto the stage and tell her story completely unaided. She is now working again for the PSNI as a detective. Her spirit is unbreakable.
Around 15 years ago, a former teammate of mine, Conor Devine, was a fit, confident and talented footballer who had just started a promising career in finance when he received an earth shattering diagnosis of MS. His symptoms were chronic and debilitating. The Doctors said that he would likely never play sports again and would almost certainly be on medication for the rest of his life. He fell into a deep depression. Today, Conor is enjoying a successful career in finance, competing in Iron Man competitions and is medication free. His MS symptoms have not just halted; they have reversed. He has since built a large following online as an influencer for thousands of MS sufferers. Spreading hope with his story.
I have many more examples (the testimonies of Michael Gerard Doherty and Aoife Lennon come to mind and are well worth looking into) but I think you get the point. Most of us, myself included, have been to that dark, lonely place at some point. You would not wish the experience on your worst enemy. If you have been there, you have my utmost respect for slowly clawing your way back from the brink.
The human body and mind have a tremendous capacity for recovery. Amazing, actually. No matter how bad your situation is, never accept that you will always be depressed, anxious, addicted, unwell, unemployed, obese, or whatever the case may be because it is simply not true. With the right conditions and support, and the right attitude you can recover to enjoy a good quality of life. I have seen it and lived it.
Recovery. What a beautiful word.
