A resident who battled mental health disorders most of her life has turned the corner and is relishing the challenge of counselling people in similar situations.

Since Katrina Rubaine was a teenager she has had to deal with family related issues, which compounded her uphill battle with schizophrenia, a mental health condition where one may see, hear or believe things that are not real.

Today, Ms Rubaine has turned her life around after tackling her problems head-on.

The upbeat 49-year-old admitted that having her children placed in state care had been a reality check.

“When my children were taken away from me, that broke me because my children are my everything, despite what was happening to me.

“I never went anywhere; everything was my children.”

She then started using drugs “to forget the problems”, but another wake-up call came with the loss of a close friend who died of a drug overdose.

She explained: “When my friend died, I looked myself in the mirror and said, ‘You could be next’ — and I realised that I needed to do something about it.”

Ms Rubaine works as a volunteer with Dignity House, a rehabilitation facility in Pembroke that helps people with mental health disorders.

Nicholas Darceuil, who runs the facility with his wife, Kim, said Ms Rubaine was a “living testimony” that people can overcome and control their mental health challenges.

He said: “The challenge is how to let someone understand that they have a mental illness and that they need help.

“Our programme at Dignity House is twofold — we address mental health challenges and substance abuse.”

Ms Rubaine said her troubles started about age 14 when she was admitted to the Mid-Atlantic Wellness Institute.

“I had schizophrenia and I didn’t know because when I became stressed I heard voices. I was back and forth to MWI like a revolving door.”

She said within a two-year period, she had 46 admissions.

“I would hear about 15 voices and I would be around people and they would be asking me who I’m talking to,” she said.

Ms Rubaine sought care at the Women’s Treatment Centre and, although she did not believe she experienced hallucinations, she was shocked when she saw a recording in which she was having a conversation with herself.

“They showed me the recording and I said, ‘That’s not me, I don’t do that’. I laughed because I was unaware of what was going on.”

Ms Rubaine said no one in her family seemed to understand what was happening and she was later expelled from school as her condition worsened. She then started using an illegal substance.

“My mother saw me talking to myself and I knew something was going on with me because I would lose track of time when I hear these voices.”

She later moved in with her grandmother because of an issue with her father, which compounded her problems.

Ms Rubaine was 18 when she gave birth to the first of four children.

Over the years, she fought her battles silently as she worked and raised her children while their father, who was also an addict, would leave the family on their own for weeks.

A few years ago, her son, who suffered from cerebral palsy, died while being treated for the condition.

Three months ago, she enrolled in a rehabilitative programme at Dignity House that changed her life.

She explained: “I haven’t heard the voices since and I know what to do when I’m in a crisis, when I’m depressed.”

She alleged that she suffered years of abuse from her partner, a situation that she hid from friends and family members.

Ms Rubaine, who is now a grandmother, said she cared deeply for her children.

“I loved engaging with my children and letting them know that I am there for them, no matter what,” she said.

“I wanted that perfect family but I kept getting hit and I wasn’t telling anybody.

“It was a lot but I’m happy where I am now because God has a plan for me.”

Ms Rubaine’s advice for people who are experiencing mental health issues is to pray, to be committed to having a peace of mind and seek help.

She said: “I believe recovery is possible, healing is possible and being rehabilitated is possible, but you have to put in the work.”

She is determined to become a counsellor and has taken several courses on mental health to achieve her goal.

“It helps me to be a stronger person because I’ve been through it,” she said. “It’s not something I learnt from the books; it’s from experience.”

She added: “Mental health has a strong stigma but you have to be committed and you have to tell yourself enough is enough.”