Treatment for Bipolar Disorder Made All the Difference
I think there is a great importance in representation and inclusion in order to break the stigma of coming forth with mental health concerns. There needs to be people to say “it's okay to get help.” They need to see someone that looks like them or is in the same community as them in order to see that it's okay, and that the person got the help that they needed. I'm usually a private person and I usually don't disclose a lot about myself. I stepped out on faith a little bit.
Wayne, U.S. Coast Guard. Wore the uniform from 2000 to 2015. So it was an interesting time frame. Being black, gay is not, back then, it wasn't really accepted in the community. There were a lot of things to overcome, I would just put it that way. I joined the Coast Guard because I was looking to go to college, and didn't have the funds to do so. I loved it. The best part about it was the high caliber of people that I was able to interact with. The highlight to the whole Coast Guard experience was working at the White House. It was President Obama's first term, and I was selected to be a White House social aid. A Social Aid’s main objective to make sure everyone has the best time of their life at the White House. It was an experience of a lifetime.
There were many situations where I had to hold my tongue. I would say that you can make all the gay jokes you wanted to. There were situations where I felt if I didn't speak up, I was being complicit in what was going on. So I'm not in any more. I retired in 2015. From what I hear, it's gotten better in some regards. You know, you keep pressing forward.
Fall of 2014, I was diagnosed Bipolar One. While I wasn't, like, shocked by it, I was disappointed in what it meant about not being in the Coast Guard because the Coast Guard was my bread and butter. Feelings of 'what do I do now?’ There were feelings of ‘Am I going to get good health care?’ Before treatment, there were long periods of mania like, you can't sleep, you just want to work, work, work, whatever you decide to put your energy towards. Other end of that spectrum is depression. Days upon days of not giving a **** I'm just going to be honest with you. You, neglect others and then you kind of neglect taking care of yourself. And I tell everyone I would rather have medicated Wayne than unmedicated Wayne.
I really like the psychologists and therapists who went through that CBT, DBT process with me. They also helped me to become a more confident person and I would highly recommend it to other people, especially Veterans who are struggling with their mental health. The VA has an obligation to provide exceptional care to the service members. I can honestly say that my continued experience at the San Francisco VA Medical Center is exceptional and unmatched. So I decided because of that I was going to stay in the Bay Area.
What I do admire about things from the Academy is the sailing aspect, being out on the water. Not only is it fun and relaxing, and getting to know people on a level that you may not otherwise been in a situation to get to know someone. Relationship with family members have definitely improved. There's a lot more support from the family because of being honest about mental health. I'm glad I have friends and a support system who talked me off that ledge. Your mental health is very important. Go in and seek out the help that you need.
