For a long time, Patricia Bermudez kept the mental illnesses that haunted her a secret. Worried that others would call her crazy or think of her differently, a single mention of anxiety was terrifying. It wasn't until three years after her grandmother's passing and her diagnosis of bipolar disorder II, panic disorder, sleep disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) that she mustered the courage to talk about it. Why? She didn't want to be afraid of who she was and what she battled. Instead, she faced her fears and accepted her experience.

"I knew I was on my way to recovery after fully accepting that I would never be the same -- and that was OK. I stopped being afraid of my diagnosis and all the stigma associated with being bipolar. I still struggle daily, but I am no longer afraid of the unknown. I embrace it," she says. Thanks to group therapy, art and meditation, she now manages her diagnosis and continues to push through the dark times to find the light.

Image via Patricia Bermudez

Though postpartum depression is getting more screen time, thanks to the bravery of celebrity moms who've suffered from the condition, like Chrissy Teigen, Amanda Peet and more, many women still struggle in silence. For Crystal Clancy, a marriage and family therapist, an overwhelming feeling of sadness hit her when she gave birth to her second child, a daughter. And though she was professionally trained to help others get through their own diagnosis, for months she was in denial of what was happening in her own mind.

Six months into her daughter's life, she came to terms with the full extent of her postpartum symptoms. She realized she no longer wanted to miss those special moments with her child. "I was getting ready to go back to work, and the thought of sending her to daycare was very difficult. I found myself looking forward to seeing her and enjoying interactions with her," she explains. "In hindsight, it's still sad to me that I really missed out on the first six months of her life. I don't even have a picture of myself holding her as a baby. Not even in the hospital."

To help other women who have difficulty in those first stages of motherhood, Crystal now works as the co-coordinator of the Postpartum Support International group's Minnesota chapter.

Image via Crystal Clancy

At the age of 37, writer Stephanie Schroeder was diagnosed with bipolar disorder following two suicide attempts and a psychotic break. However, it wasn't until her third psychotic break landed her in a locked hospital ward that the breakthrough started to take form. Unfortunately, the hospital where Stephanie was being treated released her and didn't follow up on the psychotherapy and psychiatric services promised to her because her income was too high to qualify for outpatient care. The reality was her work was freelance, she was unemployed and barely getting by. Her anger toward the healthcare system that failed her fueled and jumpstarted her recovery, inspiring her to become a mental health advocate.

"I decided not to be a victim of the mental health care system and instead became a supercharged mental health advocate for myself, and, eventually, for others. That's when I knew I could be okay. And I also knew not only would I survive, but I would thrive," she says.

Today, she encourages others through her writing, and at the age of 53, has learned not to be so hard on herself and take each day as it comes.

Image via Stephanie Schroeder

When you make the choice to seek help, the first direction most talk therapy goes in is backwards. Specifically, to your childhood and young adulthood, helping you to understand why you might believe the things that you do, based on how you were raised and the experiences you had in your youth. And even if you were raised by wonderful parents, learning to separate what you were taught from what you believe in your gut can be a difficult process. Through her recovery process from bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety and posttraumatic stress disorder, Debbie Jacobs says she learned how to reprogram herself and alleviate negative thinking, which, she notes, is the "root of anxiety and depression."

"Using positive affirmations and reprogramming my subconscious mind help changed my thoughts from negative to positive. This mindset work helped me to overcome depression, anxiety and PSTD. This was the process of learning how to control my thoughts and choose the thoughts I think. I no longer allow thoughts that don't serve me to ruminate through my mind," she says. "My thoughts love, support and encourage me, and if they don't, they are not welcome in my mind. My commitment to my recovery and happiness is to be vigilant of my thoughts and to use effective coping skills that best serve my well-being and happiness."

Image via Debbie Jacobs

It wasn't until an incredibly scary experience that author Allison Williford finally had a name for what was going on in her mind. She attempted suicide and was put into the hospital, where she was officially diagnosed with type 1 bipolar disorder. "Being able to finally put a name to the total chaos that had been going on in my mind gave me the power to fight it," she explains. "I see the day of my suicide attempt, August 19, 2008, like the chasm between the former chaos and my road to recovery."

What's helped the most to manage her illness and live a happy life? Though she's been through two additional hospitalizations since 2008, she's now able to ask for what she needs, a shift that's helped her accept and work through her darker days. Additionally, Allison received electroconvulsive shock therapy, a controversial practice that, for some, is the golden ticket to feeling better. Since Allison's experience with medicine started to destroy her thyroid and shut down her kidney, ETC therapy has been what she calls the "mainstay" in keeping her healthy, along with some "kickass" psychiatrists.

Image via Allison Williford