Margaret Trudeau Quotes

Alright, so I'm a manic depressive. What do you want from me?

I have Tourettes and Aspergers, but Tourrets and Aspergers don't have me. You know, I'm doing what I can to suppress it and I don't let it take advantage of me. It's not who I am. You know, I'm James Durbin. Like I said in the beginning, I am here to show America who I am, and it is what it is.

Having a mental illness does not mean you're weak or can't handle life. You can have a mental illness and deal with it and still be a powerful, confident woman.

Many people are worried about my mental health. But as I've said many times, we're stronger than we think we are.

I suffer a lot with mental health and stuff, so I had to find something that was going to make me OK with who I was and also give me some peace and happiness with being alive. So yeah, I've worked hard on myself.

When I harnessed its seemingly uncontrollable might, I realized bipolar disorder's powers could be used for good. My diagnosis didn't have to be an affliction. It could simply be the gift of extraordinary emotions.

In my life I've gone through a lot of really hard times. I went through depression and had so many challenges that I overcame. And I overcame because I just decided to be happy.

I'm not the kind of person who likes to shout out my personal issues from the rooftops, but with my bipolar becoming public, I hope fellow sufferers will know it's completely controllable. I hope I can help remove any stigma attached to it, and that those who don't have it under control will seek help with all that is available to treat it.

If my revelation of having bipolar II has encouraged one person to seek help, then it is worth it. There is no need to suffer silently and there is no shame in seeking help.

Don't accept that you are in crisis just because everyone says you are.

Occupying my mind with complex problems has been my best and most powerful and most reliable defense against my mental illness.

I can't always control my body the way I want to, and I can't control when I feel good or when I don't. I can control how clear my mind is. And I can control how willing I am to step up if somebody needs me.

I kind of have a happy magnet. I can't stand being depressed, so I work my ass off to get out of it as soon as possible.

Sadness is a super important thing not to be ashamed about but to include in our lives. One of the bigger problems with sadness or depression is there's so much shame around it. If you have it you're a failure. You are felt as being very unattractive.

The smartest thing I did was to stop going online. I'm the sort of person who will just look for the negative - Michael really can't understand it, but that's just the way I am. And with my bipolar thing, that's poison. So I just stopped. Cold turkey. And it's so liberating.

I briefly did therapy, but after a while, I realised it is just like a farmer complaining about the weather. You can't fix the weather - you just have to get on with it.

For many years when I was younger, I let negative things that people said about me affect my life. What I've learned is that it's really important to find the right support network, focus on the positive things in your life and quiet that negative voice in your head.

I don't have the best self esteem; mine wavers month to month, but I know how to pick myself up.

Unfortunately, I think depression and anxiety are really hard to live with. And what people don't need is to feel bad about themselves because they decide to go on medication.

I don't look at myself as suffering.

My recovery from manic depression has been an evolution, not a sudden miracle.

Dealing with chronic anxiety has taught me to better understand the nuances of mental illness and the very individual nature of it.

Self-compassion is how we recover.

Dealing with depression effectively is a mark not of weakness, but of strength.

Almost everyone I know is battling something, whether it's allergies or depression. Whatever it is, it makes you feel less than who you are. I believe part of life's challenge is to work through that.