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| My Garden, a Harbinger of Hope |
by Barbara Mulloy- Robbins
It has been said, “For everything there is a
season…” and for me, my season of health related distractions will hopefully soon come
to an end.
As many of you may know, the
old order of my life came to an abrupt halt in July, 2012 with a health issue
that interrupted perhaps a once in a lifetime vacation…a cruise down the Mediterranean
coast.
However, it wasn’t meant to
be. Instead, the Big “C” became an uninvited guest who brought along with it a HUGE laundry list of inevitable health issues to navigate through. With my focus on
the above and all its related “extensions”, there never seemed to be enough
time or energy to continue with my blog, Barbara's Reason, and along with that… promoting the 2nd
edition of my book: An Uphill Struggle: Managing Dual Diagnosis in the Family.
I decided that it is time to
show up and become a presence once again in response to the extensive ADHD media coverage
today. I watched Brian Williams on NBC Nightly News speak
on several occasions about the subject. Alan
Schwarz and Sarah Cohen collaborated on an article for The New York Times and The Palm
Beach Post , with the headline: ADHD Seen in 11% of U.S. Children as Diagnoses Rise. Those, along with
many other ADHD articles have spurred me into action.
I want to throw my
hat back into the ring and speak about my troubled journey with two sons both diagnosed
many years ago. This was a time when ADD/ADHD were neither recognized, treated or even accepted by
the general public; certainly not the least of which, the medical community. Consequently,
both boys chose to self medicate resulting in their untimely deaths in 1997 and
2004. It was for this reason, that I chose to write my book.
Sadly, it still appears there
are no definitive answers to many of the surrounding questions regarding my sons' mental
health and in broader terms, the entire world's. It is, however, our thesis that
an underlying condition (ADD/ADHD) tightened the grip of my boys' eventual
addiction.
So, that was where I was then, and this is where I am now. I am dedicated to continuing the discussion surrounding ADHD, mental illness and addiction and how, in some way, the three all appear to be so closely tied together.
