Coping Pre-Covid
When I came to Sanctuary Centers I was a wreck. I couldn’t deal with myself, let alone a global pandemic.
I didn’t know anything about mental illness. In my life, in my inner circle, I never even heard anyone talk about mental health. Not once. People didn’t even like to say “mental illness,” like it was an offensive thing to talk about.
I felt dehumanized, like I was only a diagnosis. I was alone on an island. No one knew how I felt, so I started isolating from everyone. I cut out all my family and friends.
I desperately wanted to be well, but I didn’t have skills to deal with my condition…
Coming Home
In June 2007, I finally made it to Sanctuary Centers.
Coming to Sanctuary House inpatient program and being around other people who could talk about mental illness had a huge effect on me. Meeting others going through the same thing, and working on our symptoms together made all the different. It helped my see myself as a human dealing with a diagnosis.
The tangible skills I learned at Sanctuary Centers were even more important than the shift in perception. They got me into a DBT group right away. It was a great diagnosis and the perfect set of skills to help work on my mental health challenges.
I learned skills that are so important to me—especially when confined in self-isolation. I worked on my socialization skills by making friends, relearned to express myself by talking to therapists, and managed my anxiety by developing coping mechanisms and practicing them. If I wasn’t able to reach out to my friends, to express thoughts and concerns, and to rely on my productive coping mechanisms to get me through these dark days, I do not know what I’d do.
I developed these life skills at Sanctuary Centers’ over a decade ago, but I still use them every single day.
Coping with Covid
Sanctuary Centers helped me transition back into an independent life, to find health care and even housing. To this day, I have been practicing DBT for 11 years. Every day, I am grateful for the skills I learned at Sanctuary.
These skills have not just helped me regain my life, they’ve helped me stay centered during Covid. With the isolation. The fear and anxiety bearing down on me. With the extra precautions making every chore that much more difficult.
It’s brought many challenges into my life, but I now have the tools to deal with them. It’s made me feel alright about going back to basics. Cooking and reading. Resting and being along.
These days I’m happy to be working!
Instead of spiraling into anxiety and depression in the face of Covid, I use the techniques taught to me at Sanctuary. I work on being in the moment as much as possible, not having anxiety about things I can’t control. I still experience anxiety, but I’m able to manage it through practicing mindfulness—a skill I learned at Sanctuary. Now, I focus on the tiny victories. I focus on gratitude, and feel so grateful for the life I have now.
Just like when I was living at Sanctuary, I now have the time, and structure, to heal… to make myself better. I miss the helpful environment and the safe space. I miss the friends I made.
The program makes sure you’re never left out in the cold. Since living at Sanctuary House, I’ve never felt alone. Even in isolation.
And I have my life back.
—Dawne, Sanctuary Centers class of 2009
