What Type Draws You In?

(image by LaTur copyright May 8, 2009)

Have you ever noticed that there are certain types of people who you instantly feel comfortable with? For me, as strange as this might sound, I am drawn towards people who suffer from mental illness. This is because I grew up in a family where both my sister and my father were mentally ill. My sister was bipolar, and my dad suffered from undiagnosed depression, PTSD, and OCD. Therefore, I feel immediately comfortable with people who share similar disorders. It’s almost like I have a hidden secret radar for meeting them. I enjoy listening to them share their feelings and trying to help them.

Perhaps this is why I was also drawn towards special education in my work as a teacher. I always found the “normal” kids way too boring and wanted to work with those who struggled. I changed career paths halfway through my career to work with kids with learning disabilities and neuro-physical challenges. I was much happier in this capacity and spent fifteen years helping families to build success for child.

I recently moved to a new town and joined several Meetup groups. One of them is a coffee outing for women’s mental health. Myself, I suffer from anxiety, although it is much milder now that I have retired. I take the lowest dose of Cymbalta, which really helps me. I have made two good friends who are bipolar and another who suffers from depression. We enjoy spending time together and they have shared a lot of their personal history with me, which I find fascinating.

My husband has many friends who are alcoholics. This is not too surprising because he grew up around several alcoholic relatives. He is way too forgiving of everyone’s mistakes and has maintained these friendships for years, through all kinds of unfortunate incidents. He is a natural caregiver when his friends fall down, either literally or figuratively.

So, what type of people are you naturally drawn to? Do you notice any part of your family upbringing that makes you feel comfortable with this group? Please subscribe and share a comment below.