Different Stages of my Health Journey Shown Through my Physical Appearance (Photos)

Seeing some of you are rather new to my journey, here’s an extremely brief summary matched to photos. My body has fluctuated much more frequently than is shown here, but you get the idea. Amongst many side effects, some much much worse than weight gain, med changes have notoriously caused me (sometimes extreme) weight gain. From age 17 to 18 I actually gained 80lbs in 6 months due to meds. In my early to mid-20’s, although my alcoholism was at an all time high, I walked a lot and didn’t eat much so I was quite thin. Weight is obviously not the best indicator of health.

Please know that I am not anti-meds. If something is helping you then please continue to take it. This is my journey. It is unique to me. I don’t know the future, so time will tell how the med removal unfolds in the long run. All I know is that there are things I must do to take care of myself. For many, taking meds is a part of taking care of one’s self and that’s totally okay. ❤️ Meds have certainly helped at times throughout my life and I’m grateful for that. I’m not opposed to going back on them should I need to.

My journey to come off psych meds stems from me entering psychiatry at age 15 when I was actively using drugs and alcohol as well as experiencing homelessness, psychosis, depression, and suicidal ideation. My life is extremely different now so I want to know where my natural brain chemistry is at without psych meds, drugs or alcohol in my system.