Profile: Theresa Duggan, Courage to Come Back Award winner
Posted April 6, 2010 6:48 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – She has lived a life of extremes from crippling mental illness to helping others work through their own issues. Today we continue our series of “Courage to Come Back” profiles with a look at award winner Theresa Duggan.
“Tragic things will happen and then these amazing things will happen.”
Three years of being sexually abused by a neighbour drove her to attempt suicide at the age of 12. “When I went to sleep that night I was just praying that I wouldn’t wake up in the morning and when I did I was so disappointed.”
Theresa Duggan would become so gripped with bipolar disorder, she wouldn’t brush her teeth for years, let alone leave her house or change her clothes. Things finally started turning around 12 years ago when she was properly diagnosed.
Today the 48-year-old supports others with mental illness through her work at Gastown Vocational Service. She’s the only worker who has felt their pain firsthand. “My role is a little bit different than anyone else there because I can relate to the clients in a different way and so I often build trust fairly quickly.”
