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This may be controversial but if you read between the lines of most of the biographies of the saints mystics you’ll see that many or most suffered from mental illness.

I’ve always thought of this as someone referring to St. Paul was talking about in 2 Cor. 12:7-10

> a thorn in the flesh was given to me, an angel of Satan, to beat me, to keep me from being too elated. Three times I begged the Lord about this, that it might leave me, but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses, in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me. Therefore, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and constraints, for the sake of Christ; for when I am weak, then I am strong.

The bigger our cross the bigger our graces to be holy.

It’s good to let your sisters talents and virtues inspire you but don’t let that tempt you to imitate her... vices (I don’t mean to be judgmental)

Beyond that Id suggest reading The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown

It is a powerful read and I use its wisdom constantly in my ministry

Here's a handy 90-day reading plan, which takes you through the narrative books of the Bible. It's a good place to start when reading scripture, giving you a good look at the story of Scripture.

Aquinas is the premier Catholic thinker. I wouldn't recommend you start reading Aquinas unless you have firm grounding in Aristotelian philosophy. But that's not to say you can't learn about Aquinas' thought. You might find books like A Summa of the Summa, Aquinas: A Beginner's Guide, or The Dumb Ox useful introductory texts to his works. After you're comfortable reading him, you can jump in to some primary texts.

You can absolutely study theology and/or canon law formally. Just be aware that there aren't to many jobs you'll be able to get with a theology degree under your belt. Your options would be pretty much just professor, priest, or religion teacher.

Edit: Also, if you haven't done so already, read the Catechism or the Compendium of the Catechism.

I have a Catholic Youth Study bible (I'm 37). Amazon link I have an older edition then the one I linked but it is probably about the same. I like it because it breaks things down to how teenagers can related to them in their life, so I know I can figure it out. It also has lots of footnotes, pictures, and the basic prayers. I do find some of the footnotes a little confusing or there might be a verse I wish had a footnote but doesn't. For the most part I think it is great for a first bible to get used the flow of reading.

Annulment law is among the most detailed and complicated. I recommend the book Annulment, the Wedding That Was: How the Church Can Declare a Marriage Null to anyone looking for a faith and in-depth explanation of the meaning & process of annulment.

The aptly-named Catholic Study Bible contains a very accessible translation, and good footnotes that explain historical context and some doctrinal points. There are a few questionable comments, but not so many that I wouldn't recommend it to you. It's on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/Catholic-Study-Bible-Donald-Senior/dp/0195297768

We cannot support someone’s decision to commit suicide. We can debate the role and effectiveness of government in intervening to prevent it though. I am referring to suicide in general here.

I am guessing what you are really asking about, though, is physician assisted suicide, where a doctor would either administer a lethal dose of some drug at the patient’s request, or would provide the means for the patient to administer the drug themselves under supervision/direction.

The Church’s position would be that this is a grave evil and a violation of the sanctity of human life. It should be outlawed. That is, a physician should not be able to directly end the life of a patient or to help the patient end their own life.

That said, the Church recognizes a person’s right to end treatment and allow a natural death to occur. This in the case of a life-preserving treatment which has become extraordinarily burdensome (the treatment is burdensome, not the life itself).

But then you get into conversations about ordinary versus extraordinary care, and each case must be handled individually. It gets complicated and there are people who specialize in bioethics for this reason.

The point is, the direct, intentional ending of a life is prohibited. What is permitted is to let nature take its course and to ease pain.

Caveat: this is my understanding of Church teaching. I have taken an introductory level course in Catholic bioethics at the local seminary, but this in no way makes me an expert.

The National Catholic Bioethics Center will have much better and more authoritative information. They also have a hotline for urgent medical questions to help those in ministry to the sick and dying, or for family members making decisions for their loved ones.

Books we read in that course:

Handbook on Critical Life Issues

Biomedicine and Beatitude: An Introduction to Catholic Bioethics

Caveat #2: note the use of words like “direct” and “intentional” in my response. Really, there’s a lot to consider in end of life and bioethical issues. The principle of double effect comes into play. It gets really messy. Talk to experts if you want to go deeper.