Starting again (and again, and again)

Wow, time flies when you are trying to get healthy.  I am continuing to adjust to the NHS system and specifically the differences in psychiatric methodologies.  I have successfully gotten off of a few more meds (both psych and medical ones) and I have completed the first of a group of groups that focus on coping skills for trauma reactions. I am clearer of mind and stronger of body (and because psychiatric meds often have a side effect of weight gain coming off of them means I’m dropping some kilos as well).
I have been gifted a camera by my wonderful husband (we share but I am the one who uses it the most right now) and am more seriously pursuing the hobby of photography (I may even make it as far as the art of photography one day).  I continue to attend art studio when I can and have quite a few projects that are waiting for the kiln or waiting to be glazed.
I am repeatedly told how much better I look and act compared to when we arrived and shortly after.  I feel better and I’ll take any good days I get.  The war is not over but there is currently a cease fire within my mind that is allowing me to focus on the physical side of things a little more.  I am continuing to research my diagnoses and the treatments I have undergone and I think I better understand why I feel and react the ways I do.
I have joined the realm of social media again and through it have reconnected with some of the people who were/are so important to me and my continuing to be here.  Sometimes it’s a struggle to look back and see vague shadows of memories and be reminded of what I have lost, but it is also a chance to see if those shadows can come back into the light a little and if sparks of memory exist where I think most has been lost.  Even though it has been a couple (or more) years since I have spoken with these people and I am most definitely not the same person they knew, they have welcomed me back with virtual hugs and in many cases we are picking up where we left off.  How amazing is that?  I felt so alone for so long because the memories were gone and I didn’t understand what people were talking about and all I really needed to do was be honest and let friendship bridge the gaps.  It’s something I won’t let myself forget again.
So, as to this page, I am going to try and pick up somewhere close to where I left off and relate my experiences of being a foreigner in a wonderfully welcoming land.  I also will probably share some of my photography (at least the pieces I’m most proud of).  I’m going to be realistic and set the goal of one post per week to start and see where things go (I’m a lot more chatty these days so more may be possible).
Please let me know if there is anything you’d like me to talk about, or explain better.  Give me feedback on my photos, my writing, or on my opinions (especially if they rub you the wrong way) anything is fair game.
Cheers!