Hume Moreland Leader
Edition 1 - HOVWED 02 JAN 2008, Page 003
Shock and healing
By Laura Banks banksl@leadernewspapers.com.au
IN 2001, Diahann Lombardozzi faced the biggest obstacle of her life. This year she has turned her being diagnosed with bipolar disorder into a documentary, winning an international award in the process.
"I thought I had a story to tell and I wanted it to be a positive story so people can hear the lighter side of the illness"
Mrs Lombardozzi said.
"I entered into the American-based Facing Up contest to get my story out there and enable people to draw hope"
Mrs Lombardozzi's winning entry, Hypothesis, follows her journey into the depths of bipolar in 2001 and the process of recovery. It was filmed by her cousin Jean-Luc Syndikas.
"Bipolar has been a wake-up call for me'', the architect and mother-of-two said. "It has taught me that I had to do something about the way I was living. Before I was living a very stressful and chaotic life I've slowed down now and I have learnt to manage my stress. In 2001 I was very unwell, I suffered quite severely with bipolar. I ended up in the Broadmeadows Hospital for five weeks it took heavy medication to get me back on track''.
Mrs Lombardozzi said she returned to hospital three times in the first three years but was now managing her condition and had not returned since. "The footage in the documentary is very raw,'' she said. "It was captured when I was in the depths of bipolar and that's what makes it so important.''
The Coburg resident said a lot of people chose not to disclose their disorder but that she believed this only stigmatised the illness.
"By disclosing the disorder people can understand you'' she said. "They have a sort of empathy for you and with this, the stigma will eventually dissolve.''
The 38-year-old, who spent the first 12 years of her life growing up in Glenroy, is heavily involved as a consumer adviser with North Western Mental Health Services and works closely with Multicultural Mental Health Australia. Mrs Lombardozzi said she planned to enter the documentary in the Australian HOPE awards, spreading her message to an even larger audience.
Her documentary can be viewed at www.facingus.org/media/30/video
For more information on mental illness, visit www.mmha.org.au
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Friday, January 11, 2008
DBSA - FACING US COMPETITION - 1ST PLACE
Here is the link to our winning film listed on the DBSA website for the 'Facing Us' competition.
https://www.facingus.org/media/30/video
https://www.facingus.org/media/30/video
Thursday, January 10, 2008
ARTICLES
MENTAL HEALTH AUSTRALIA
http://www.mmha.org.au/information/news-items/an-international-winning-story-on-bipolar-recovery/
KNBC - ARTICLE ON DBSA
http://www.knbc.com/mentalhealth/14827566/detail.html
http://www.mmha.org.au/information/news-items/an-international-winning-story-on-bipolar-recovery/
KNBC - ARTICLE ON DBSA
http://www.knbc.com/mentalhealth/14827566/detail.html
FACING BIPOLAR
Forward by Diahann Lombardozzi
I have accepted that I have Bipolar and I acknowlede it as being a part of me.
I choose not to refer to it as an illness, but rather as a condition. I no longer fight it by being in denial, instead I choose to work with it by disclosing, actively searching for information which surrounds it and participating in groups which involve a consumer input and perspective.
It is important for the condition to not control me, but rather me be in a position of power to take control over it. That sense of control is a big part of keeping it together. Once you have gained that power you can then function with the clarity and chemical balance of mind that you need in order to achieve quality life even though you are still technically bipolar.
I was first diagnosed with bipolar in June 2001. Only months prior to my breakdown, I experienced the death of my grandfather and the cancer diagnosis of my mother. Shortly afterwards I noticed myself becoming very bitter, hostile, resentful and confused. Once my breakdown took place those negative emotions suddenly escaped me as I emerged into a manic phase where I felt the opposite emotions such as love, compassion and peace. This feeling was very enlightening and excillerating as it involved all my senses being revived. Everything I perceived was so much more stimulating and connected and I’d go as far as to say, insightful. However, although I felt very well, I was actually quickly becoming extremely unwell.
Shortly after my diagnosis, I found myself in a mental home with very sick people around me, but even then I failed to recognise that I was just as unwell as any of them. A few months later, I recovered from my mania only to experience depression right at the time 9/ 11 took place. The collapse of the towers seemed to project a notion that my life had collapsed. The year 2001 is a year I will never forget as it was dark, negative and very devastating to my life and the lives of so many others and from this year on many wars have been fought including my own.
I’ll never forget driving in my neighbourhood one morning, observing the pedestrians that passed. My perception of people was one which made them appear, less fortunate, miserable, disabled, and weathered. And yet I couldn’t see that my own image was at the time one of instability, fragility, vulnerability and out of touch with reality. I felt the urge to help others and yet I was helpless – I could’t even help myself.
When I think back to my state of mind at height of my mania, I associate my behaviour as being the result of my time clock. The people around me would notice that my mind was racy and so were my actions. Lack of sleep couldn’t even slow me down. I believed that there was a lot for me to accomplish and I had no time to waste. My energy levels kept rising in accordance with my mood. Nothing was impossible at this point and I was the one to prove it.
It wasn’t until I made this documentary that I realised exactly how understanding and caring my daughters are, regarding my mental health issues. At the young ages of 9 and 11, they have grown so much from their personal experiences with me which demonstrates that they have consideration and responsibily for others.
This was evident at a time when I would spend large sum’s of money on inappropriate purchases.
It saddens me to think that we are not alone in the journey. It took me a long time to realise that my husband, children parents and other family members often did well not to show the hardship they went through, despite they had suffered the most.
In producing the Documentary I have chosen to use myself as a case study for further researh into bipolar. I also plan to raise awareness and deliver a message of hope to other consumers, carers and the general public so that they are better informed and prepared to address the issues surrounding any type of mental condition,such as the stigma associated with it. Most importantly I would like to deliver a message of hope.
If you can work on yourself with councelling, exercise, relaxation techniques, healthy diet, vitamins and mineral, natural therapy, humour and above all maintain an optomistic attitude with the focus on getting well, you can reclaim your life. I choose to see the whole experience as being one of my biggest challenges and I am determined to make it worth it.
Diahann Lombardozzi
I have accepted that I have Bipolar and I acknowlede it as being a part of me.
I choose not to refer to it as an illness, but rather as a condition. I no longer fight it by being in denial, instead I choose to work with it by disclosing, actively searching for information which surrounds it and participating in groups which involve a consumer input and perspective.
It is important for the condition to not control me, but rather me be in a position of power to take control over it. That sense of control is a big part of keeping it together. Once you have gained that power you can then function with the clarity and chemical balance of mind that you need in order to achieve quality life even though you are still technically bipolar.
I was first diagnosed with bipolar in June 2001. Only months prior to my breakdown, I experienced the death of my grandfather and the cancer diagnosis of my mother. Shortly afterwards I noticed myself becoming very bitter, hostile, resentful and confused. Once my breakdown took place those negative emotions suddenly escaped me as I emerged into a manic phase where I felt the opposite emotions such as love, compassion and peace. This feeling was very enlightening and excillerating as it involved all my senses being revived. Everything I perceived was so much more stimulating and connected and I’d go as far as to say, insightful. However, although I felt very well, I was actually quickly becoming extremely unwell.
Shortly after my diagnosis, I found myself in a mental home with very sick people around me, but even then I failed to recognise that I was just as unwell as any of them. A few months later, I recovered from my mania only to experience depression right at the time 9/ 11 took place. The collapse of the towers seemed to project a notion that my life had collapsed. The year 2001 is a year I will never forget as it was dark, negative and very devastating to my life and the lives of so many others and from this year on many wars have been fought including my own.
I’ll never forget driving in my neighbourhood one morning, observing the pedestrians that passed. My perception of people was one which made them appear, less fortunate, miserable, disabled, and weathered. And yet I couldn’t see that my own image was at the time one of instability, fragility, vulnerability and out of touch with reality. I felt the urge to help others and yet I was helpless – I could’t even help myself.
When I think back to my state of mind at height of my mania, I associate my behaviour as being the result of my time clock. The people around me would notice that my mind was racy and so were my actions. Lack of sleep couldn’t even slow me down. I believed that there was a lot for me to accomplish and I had no time to waste. My energy levels kept rising in accordance with my mood. Nothing was impossible at this point and I was the one to prove it.
It wasn’t until I made this documentary that I realised exactly how understanding and caring my daughters are, regarding my mental health issues. At the young ages of 9 and 11, they have grown so much from their personal experiences with me which demonstrates that they have consideration and responsibily for others.
This was evident at a time when I would spend large sum’s of money on inappropriate purchases.
It saddens me to think that we are not alone in the journey. It took me a long time to realise that my husband, children parents and other family members often did well not to show the hardship they went through, despite they had suffered the most.
In producing the Documentary I have chosen to use myself as a case study for further researh into bipolar. I also plan to raise awareness and deliver a message of hope to other consumers, carers and the general public so that they are better informed and prepared to address the issues surrounding any type of mental condition,such as the stigma associated with it. Most importantly I would like to deliver a message of hope.
If you can work on yourself with councelling, exercise, relaxation techniques, healthy diet, vitamins and mineral, natural therapy, humour and above all maintain an optomistic attitude with the focus on getting well, you can reclaim your life. I choose to see the whole experience as being one of my biggest challenges and I am determined to make it worth it.
Diahann Lombardozzi
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