I’m a social but studious 20-year-old studying health sciences in Toronto. I’m the oldest of 3 siblings. I was a competitive figure skater and I loved to coach other kids. I was 9 when I was first formally diagnosed with anxiety. I think I had anxiety much earlier, but I was too young to understand what I was experiencing. My first admission to hospital was in grade 12. I hadn’t been sleeping. I ditched all my classes, was very impulsive and would do things like run to the CN Tower from midtown and back in the middle of the day. But I also had severe depression with suicidal ideation. It’s a dangerous combination when you have the impulsiveness to act on your thoughts. My family was nervous to leave me alone. My mom slept in bed with me at night. I eventually went to the emergency department and it was a long wait. I was told I couldn’t be admitted because I had gone to the wrong hospital. I was under 18 and they didn’t have adolescent care. But they also said I did not need admission and was safe to go home with some adjustments to my medication. I tried to manage at home but ended up in a different emergency department 2 days later, from which I was admitted to hospital. My discharge diagnosis was a mixed episode of hypomania and depression caused by antidepressants.
NSTL
