SHIFTING THE PARADIGM
expanding our capacity for acceptance
In community, all can be accomplished.
OUR STORY
Cognitive Capacities was established as a means of altering the context and language around mental illness. We view it as a gift to be honored. We would like to share stories of our life with a family member who is gifted with cognitive capacities and extraordinary senses. Thank you for participating with us.
When I do not know who I am,
I serve you.
When I know who I am,
I am you. ~ Hanuman
I still see the same little girl...intelligent, empathetic, sensitive, spunky & funny.
ALWAYS MY LITTLE GIRL
Cognitive Capacity: Schizophrenia
My daughter Angela was spunky from the start. I was present at her birth and she couldn't wait to get out of the womb and start her journey. From pre-school through middle school, she was a high achiever and loved her experiences with gymnastics, softball and soccer. She was a very caring, empathetic, funny, adventurous, beautiful young lady. Toward the end of high school things began to change and although the real Angela was still there, behavioral changes began to occur.
Mood swings, anger, and psychotic behavior surfaced. She dropped out of college, could not hold a job and she became dependent on us for survival. She was taken from home involuntarily by the SDPD PIRT team three times. The first two being only temporary fixes to a bigger issue that we could not figure out. The third involuntary removal produced a breakthrough as she was taken to SD County Mental Health and while there she agreed to a lengthy stay and received a diagnosis of Schizophrenia. She was able to come back home and we put a supportive plan together for her well being. We would not give up on her. We would draw in community and support to gain our footings.
She has been able to stay healthy, return to being a productive college student with a 4.0 average and now has a goal to graduate and become a social worker.
As her dad, I always knew the real Angela was always inside and could someday achieve whatever potential was hers to grab. I read books and learned how one needs to communicate differently with someone who sometimes wonders why they need medicine when they don’t feel sick, which is a very difficult issue. We live in a no stigma household and Angela has accepted her differences and is free to talk about it and share when she wants to. I am so grateful for this time with her and will always be willing to offer her a safe place to live as long as I am alive. She is wonderful and I am very proud to see her working toward achieving her independence and her potential!
COGNITIVE CAPACITY: BIPOLAR
Trading symptoms
Dad was a very kind and sensitive guy who was a leader in our church. He was the first person to help others and taught us to be philanthropic. Dad struggled for years with depression and bipolar. The world was a heavy place to him. When he was 63, he took his life. He left behind messages for the whole family and told us that he could not "do it anymore". I wish we would have known his struggles so we could have supported him. We miss him everyday. We would give anything to bring him back. Nobody in the family wants to talk about him and his struggles. The family feels shame and embarrassment. I don't understand and wish our world looked at this diagnosis differently.
COGNITIVE CAPACITY: ADHD
Fitting into the box
My son Josh has been moving at top speeds since he was in the womb. He has more energy than anyone I have ever met. He can do five things at once. I often joke that if it was the end of the world he would save us all. For many years now, Josh has been a square peg trying to fit into a round hole known as the education system. Whe I learned that ADHD was considered a "mental illness", I was saddened. My concern was that people would not see his gifts and brilliance, but only his diagnosis and the negative connotation that goes with it. I am so proud of my son and his giant heart and resilient spirit. This is a gift not an illness.
FINDING MY PATH
Cognitive Capacity: Depression
I was first diagnosed with major depression as a teenager. Looking back, I think I suffered depression throughout most of my childhood and continue to experience depressive episodes today. I’ve also been an empath for as long as I can remember; I have also just known things without knowing how I know them so I believe I have some level of claircognizance. Being empathic has been a gift, once I learned how to tap into it in a healthy way. I’ve learned how to gauge my surroundings and protect my heart when necessary, and to also open up deeper when someone else needs extra love. Being able to feel so much also allows me to understand others on a deeper level, and find compassion for people.
A SISTER'S LOVE
It has been a bumpy road with my little sister. She is a charismatic and bright young lady who received a college scholarship upon high school graduation. Her journey appeared solid and full of potential but soon turned to a slippery downward spiral. She found it difficult to manage college, work and her social life. She started having anxiety and panic attacks. My mom and I went to support meetings only to discover we were enablers. But we’re we really? Or just un-informed and disempowered as we relied on government funded rehabilitation!
A decade or so later the paranoia began and through our moms extensive phone calls and persistence my sister has been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. The meds have been tweaked several times and now the smile that once lit up my sisters face is back! We never gave up on her not lost hope. A dual diagnosis has its hurdles but my sister’s strong will and her strong religious beliefs give her the strength to succeed in her life.
My name is Christie.
I have generalized anxiety and am extremely sensitive to the feelings and emotions of those around me. I have heard the whispering of a voice in my head that was not from me and seen people who were not in our world which I thought I was making up. When I was 30, I met a mentor who helped me to uncover my gifts so that I could feel sane and impart information being shown to me.
My dad was schizophrenic. I often wonder if he was like me and the voices he heard were ones who had passed over. Dad did not get any support from family and was homeless by age 25. All I knew was if you were hearing voices, you would be abandoned and isolated. Out of fear, I hid my gifts. I have been on a tv program as a result of my intuitive gifts and am very accurate when giving mediumship readings or psychic readings. This is my path and I know honor those who have passed. I wish my dad could have received what he needed to live a peaceful life.
ABOUT ME
Ingenuity
Compassionate
Resilient
Fun
Creative
Goofy, Funny
Optimistic
Dont take things seriously
Forgiving
Energetic
Stamina
Ambition
Fearless
Works well under pressure
Struggle with distractibility
As a child I was called "too sensitive" by adults and teachers. As a teen I could barely hold it together being around other people. In university I was diagnosed with depression which none of my family or friends took seriously. I was still that "too sensitive" kid. I was told to cheer up and grow up and my condition was generally dismissed. I mostly held it together and was highly functioning throughout those years, and even through the first several years of marriage. It was when my wife and I started having children that I was finally unable to cope any more. I just was unable to keep up a facade with my two daughters. I started having anger issues, anxiety, and strong suicidal impulses, every day. I finally broke down one night and my wife took me to the doctor. I was diagnosed again with depression, but this time it was severe, with anxiety. I was immediately put onto medication which did wonders. That was 10 years ago. I still have days I don't want to get out of bed. I'm still not great in large crowds, or sporting events where people (including fans) get physical. But the dread and doom just doesn't stop me any more. And I have found a place where I can shine - as a personal coach. I just get people - I am a safe place for them to let go and be themselves. No matter what they have to say they get heard. Many times I already know what they are going to say before they say it, and I can voice for them what they can't say for themselves. I started out with no voice and I am now the voice for others. ~Brian
Finally Geting "it"!
ADD A STORY ABOUT YOUR LOVED ONE
“The truth is rarely pure and never simple”
Oscar Wilde
CONTACT US
We would love to hear about your loved ones gifts.