The Year of Celebration

" The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well." - Ralph Waldo Emerson Since my birthday post  much has happened: I've been to New York, then back again to Bermuda and now I have been back in London for three weeks. Moved into a new flat. Suffered from the flu. Done a bit of work. Submitted some writing to literary agents (fingers crossed). Definitely not been blogging (note to self: must work on consistency). I suppose the most intense experience of the last couple of weeks has been appearing on the BBC Breakfast red sofa again to discuss my experiences with Bipolar II disorder. NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) released new guidelines to assist health practitioners in diagnosing and managing Bipolar disorder earlier, especially in young people. The current average length between first complaints of symptoms to di...

Ahhhhh....sweet relief. After over a month of being bereft of technology, my precious laptop is back in my loving arms. I've been spending time organising files, reinstalling programs, belatedly responding to messages and generally arranging my life. I also received the video from BBC News 24 of my second appearance in January, so if you're interested take a look at the vid posted. It goes into more depth of the issues I've faced over the years.  As a result of sorting out my life, I've been very busy this week even though I'm unemployed. Unemployed and poor. I'm looking for part-time work to support me as I act and write, but unsurprisingly struggling, although I was offered an interview for a high-paying full-time gig this week. I toyed with the idea for a moment as the money was very tempting, but in the end I realised I don't want a mediocre, sell-out life. I want to do something I love (or at least like an awful lot) and I haven't been on a...

This time I swear it's not my fault. The failure to blog. My laptop hard-drive has gone kaput and it's being replaced. Much has happened since I last blogged. Firstly, I'm back in London and settled into a new flat. It feels good to have a home again after being a couch-surfing nomad for a few months. Ah, the life of a struggling artiste! In news that's more exciting than my living situation, a couple of weeks ago I appeared on BBC Breakfast and BBC News 24 worldwide. It has always been my hope that by sharing my story I can help remove some of the stigma around mental illness and encourage others to seek help and speak out when they need help. As a result, I was asked by BBC to appear on their show after a study from The Royal College of  GPs revealed that GPs are struggling to diagnose and treat young people who are showing signs of depression. As someone who has been dealing with the NHS in regards to this since the age of 14 I had my own perspective to share.  ...

Today is March 4th and it is the birthday of my late father, Julian Hall. As a result of the date of his birth, his motto for life was his birthdate itself: March Forth. The photo is a picture of my tattoo I got this past summer. The squiggle underneath is my dad's signature.  My father was a brilliant, intellectual giant of a man. Although not in really in stature - he was tall and very, very skinny. He was a barrister and Member of Parliament in Bermuda. He was an imposing public figure who believed strongly in social justice, but was not without his own demons. He also suffered from depression and anxiety and he was from a time where the stigma of mental illness meant it was unlikely for him to get help. Since I've found some level of peace in myself after seeing the right psychiatrist, I wonder whether it would have worked for him. Then in floods regret. Coco Chanel once said "guilt is the cousin of death" and she was absolutely correct. I felt so much gu...

No post yesterday because I was thoroughly miserable. Any particular reason? Well, no. Which makes being bipolar so frustrating sometimes, because I was on a high all week following my birthday (and not having the usual birthday crises). So I finished work at 3pm, got into bed, and didn't leave until 6am the next morning. I got a little work done on my children's book though (from the comfort of my bed) so at least I achieved something. All of my friends went to a concert at Snorkel Park. Mischka, a Bermudian reggae artist who was recently signed to Matthew McConaughey's new record label, was the headliner. But I couldn't even bring myself to shower, let alone get gussied up to go to a concert. And I had no amount of FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) either so wasn't really concerned. Although, I woke up feeling fine today and now regret not going out! Ah, you can't win 'em all (even if that's what this year of celebration is about). So I just decided to go dou...

Today, in 1729 the City of Baltimore was founded. Without Baltimore, there would never have been the best television show to ever exist: The Wire. I can't help but celebrate Baltimore, even though it has a less than stellar reputation. Who doesn't fancy a little bit of McNulty and Stringer Bell? Mmmmmm. Today's Quote is one of my favourites. It comes from a conversation when Lt. Cedric Daniels is being persuaded by his wife to adjust his morals: Marla Daniels: "The tree that doesn't bend, breaks, Cedric." Daniels: "The tree that bends too much is broken already." I consider it such a strong position, I greatly admire his character. Aziza, Cal and I took Jen on a little islan d tour today to Dockyard and then Horseshoe Bay, where she did her first cliff jump ever. I chickened out at the top of the cliff, mostly worried about injuring my foot again! Dinner tonight beachside at Mickeys.