Having just started writing for TeenHelp, I decided that the first thing I was going to write about was my personal experiences with depression. For me, it started back in January shortly after the death of my nan in December, the third death in my family that year. It had a huge effect for me and I felt distraught. With three deaths within five months, it gave me no time to mourn them until after so it was too much for me. That started my mental health illness. It is tough for me including the...

There are lots of different types of Anxiety including panic attacks and phobias. Panic attacks do include the following things:
• Pounding heart or chest pain which can feel like a heart attack
• Sweating, trembling, shaking which can make it feel like parkinson's disease
• Shortness of breath, sensation of choking as you are low on energy
• Nausea or abdominal pain which can be anywhere in the body
• Dizziness or lightheadedness
• Feeling unreal or disconnected...

Bipolar disorder is quite simple to understand. It is extreme mood swings a person may face.The first main common one is depression, the one that I face. The following list is the symptoms that depression may face:
<em>feeling sad and hopeless
lacking energy making you not want to do basic things such as getting out of bed or eating
difficulty concentrating and remembering things
loss of interest in everyday activities
feelings of emptiness or worthlessness...

OCD is where you have a sort of addiction to bad thoughts. These can include suicide. Or simple things such as a fear of being burgled and checking the doors and windows are locked. They are not a good habit to get into but the right help and support then they can be cured. These are some of the symptoms:
<em>cleaning and hand washing
checking – such as checking doors are locked as security can feel like comfort
counting as that is a way that can help to take the mind...

This is in my view the best thing out there. No matter what you are going through in my view it’s the most beneficial thing as you can say whatever you want.

In my personal experience, I have benefited so much from what I have learned so much from it and I have talked about so much that has helped me come to terms with my situation.

I have written previously about everything that I have gone through; counselors will listen to you and give advice. They’re accessible...

Friendship is vital during your mental illness. Your friends should be able to talk to you and treat you like the way that you are meant to. Respect is one of the most important parts to your recovery.

Adam is one of my best friends. We met at school and we always speak to each other. We speak nearly every day at some point and we talk about whatever we both feel is right. For me it is the biggest help that is possible for me. He knows what I can cope with and how to deal with me...

Family support is just as important as friends support. The most important people that need to know are your parents or the people that you live with. They need to be the people that make the changes to help support you. Saying to your parents however is harder than you would think but you don’t have to face it alone. I for one didn’t. Say to one of your closest friends first that you know will trust you than ask for their advice and get them to help you say. In my case, my friend that I chose...

There are many techniques that are available to use for you and finding the right one for you is vital. You can have more than one if you need it but it’s vital it is you that picks it as otherwise you will not get better.

I have a lot of suggestions that I think will help you but there are others out there:

• Plan a party – this can be very useful for those who have a lot of friends who help and want to take your mind off the mental illness. Be careful what you pick...

Telling work or school is a brave move in my view to make. It can come with a lot of consequences for you and may have issues. Before you tell your work or school think about the job itself. Some jobs you could be asked to leave for safety reasons if you say but the positives can mean you get time off if your employer is nice. By law they will have to make changes to suit you and ensure that you can work in a safe environment. Remember who you say is up to you.

If you want to you...

Music can really help. Listening to your favourite music is one of the biggest pieces of advice that I can give. Everyone should be able to have some on a phone or iPod etc…

Live music in my view is one of the best because the crowd can cheer you on and you can sing along ( not in public ) and as out of tune as you like. No one cares as long as you are ok and you are having fun.

You can always have music on quietly when out and it is safe to do so as that can sometimes...