BIG BRASS BULLDOG !!!

How collecting changed my life

HOWDY folks I hope your all well and safe where ever you are, I thought that after getting some positive comments about what I’m doing I’d be a little bit braver than my other blogs and talk a bit about my mental health and the collection combined as the two are in twinned now and from one came the other.

I Would prefer to stick more closely to the collection whilst chatting about this but will let you in as to the way life is for some folks like me.

My Young family was hit hard after my first diagnosis, I had been mugged just previously to myself and Debbie having our little girl and the birth was two months early, all the stress had got me referred to see a physiatrist and I was told I had a condition / disorder called emotional unstable personality disorder ( A condition where emotions that can normally be subdued in most people naturally would mean medication for me to help regulate this).

I have felt as normal as I can be over the past three or four years with time playing a big part in the healing/management process.

So now I have that out of the way I can chat about the good things connected with my illness and the collection.

Firstly and most importantly for me is the social aspect behind having the collection.

As a sufferer and used to being antisocial (the quiet type) I tend to spend a lot of time on my own as many with mental health issues tend to do, so when I started the collection doors started opening for me to be able to get social interaction with folks from the outside world without having to leave my home.

I went from knowing no one really to now having a great group of friends from all over the world.

I know artists world class show judges contacts collectors ex sports stars journalists and list goes on I could name them all otherwise I’d be here just name dropping when that’s not the point.

Secondly for me is the collection itself and that’s a massive distraction for me, when your researching helping re arranging cleaning etc you forget your ill in a sense and the feeling of purpose and responsibly takes over.

People have asked if I’ve traveled the world to obtain the pieces I have!!!

Would you believe me if I told you I did all this from one room and just by using the skills that seemed to of just magically appeared when I first started out my obsession, could be seen looking back when I ended up with a shopping addiction on eBay and got banned by the wife as I was spending money we really could not afford.

I learned to moderate and save for the pieces I wanted and meeting a couple of collection liquidators I soon had other sources in which to start obtaining pieces from and that kept Debbie happy as my spending was more than halved with trusted payment plans put in place.

What I have now astonishes me to this day and I can only say it’s testament to the love I have for our only daughter and the fact I want her life to be much better than the one I started out with, the other point I wanted to make is the attention I’m now receiving and my life is slowly taking a different turning with different demographics taking an interest in the venture I created and the fact I’m so open about my mental health.

I did all this whilst going through my woes I’ve been doing this when ill and while doing therapy courses and boring tedious physiatrist appointments and not once have I hidden the fact that I have certain issues in life I mean don’t we all.

I want my collection and everything that comes with it to inspire others I don’t care that I wear my heart on my sleeve and yes some of this information is personal but I do not see many others stepping forward to explain how it is for us and what we as suffers can do to help ourselves and not be so reliant on society, (please note there are many different disorders where it’s imperative that some do need total reliance and are understandably dependant for their help by society).

I do not care for those that are either nieve or old fashioned about mental health stigma, And my website is there to advocate not the plight of stigma on this subject but to empower those that are suffering to say your not alone even though it may feel like it and like me you can change things for the better.

Let’s finish by saying it doesn’t have to be a collection you start it could be anything your passionate about and for those with addictive personalities, I will point out that collecting is a healthy addiction and can not only bring joy but future investment you may of normally spent on something worthless and that doesn’t last, so if your feeling useless depressed or worse (firstly get real support and help ) and remember there is life beyond how you feel now and you can achieve anything you want even if it means jumping over a few obstacles first.

Anyone wanting to chat privately about anything I’ve stated please feel free to contact me (no trolls please as I get bored easy) I’m happy to listen and impart any wisdom I may have on either mental health issues helping to find your passions (took me 30 years) or as always help with your collections.

Till next time folks happy collecting…

[supsystic-gallery id=208]