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But in order to process hardships we have to acknowledge them and can’t live our lives comparing everything to other people. If I act like my situation isn’t stressful, then I am doing myself a disservice. I have to acknowledge my stress and anxiety so that I can process it and start to reframe my thinking.
Mental illness can ruin a lot of things.
It can make finding or keeping a job hard. It can make starting new relationships, whether platonic or romantic really scary. It can end friendships and break hearts. It can make functioning without alcohol or drugs seem impossible. It can make getting out of bed a daunting task. It can make food the enemy and excessive exercise a savior. It can keep someone caught up in thoughts that swirl around and never stop, using all her energy. It can end lives prematurely.
Mental illness can ruin a lot of things.
But it can also make a lot of things special.
I always think taking care of one’s mental health is important, not just during a pandemic. That looks different for everyone and can range from medication to running daily to eating a specific diet or regular therapy sessions. I think people should use “sick” days at work for mental health breaks and should feel empowered to talk about mental illness. Now, in this uncertain time of quarantine, social distancing and daily fear of contracting a deadly illness, I think taking care of your mental health is more important than ever!
I wanted to share what I am doing to look after my mental health and practice self care in the hopes it might help someone else!
I’ve gotten to a point where if not for my great colleagues I’d dread going into the office each day. It’s not because I hate my job! I actually like what I do and enjoy it but the flawed metrics and standards the employees are held to are incredibly deflating and discouraging. My job is making my anxiety spike waaaay more than it should. So here is how I’ve been coping with anxiety in the workplace.
Autumn of 2013 isn’t a time I talk about much. It was when my mental health was the worst it had ever been. I was anxious all the time and the only way I could think of to cope was to lose weight. A lot of weight. While I showed social media that I did it the right way by exercising often and eating healthier I really did not do it the right way. I couldn’t control my mind so I obsessed over my looks.
There is no reason for me to be anxious. I get it. I agree.
But sometimes it just happens.
Mental illness comes back out of nowhere.
I very clearly love social media. Anyone who is friends with me on Snapchat knows that I take a lot of pride in streaks and what Emojis are next to my friend’s name. I regularly post photos on Instagram and share funny things with friends through the messages feature. However, over the past five months I’ve started to appreciate the art of keeping things private. Or if not “private” at least not plastered everywhere for the whole world to see.
I decided it is time to consciously be more positive and appreciative of what I have so what better way to do that than through writing, right?
How do people say no?
No, I cannot work that extra shift.
No, I do not want to go out and drink all night.
My brain is tired.
I have been out of sorts for a little over a week. Anxious. Worried. Grumpy. Sad. There were many things factoring into it while at the same time nothing was a factor. I’ve said it before but sometimes I just get off for a while without any real warning or reason.
To combat that, I forced myself to have a Self Care Night last week.
If you follow me on any social media, especially Snapchat, you are aware that I have a cat. His name is Camden and he is incredibly cute. From companionship to helping my mental health, there are many reasons why I love being a cat owner.
I wish that everyone had the fortune of taking a month off work to travel. Or even a week. And it wouldn’t have to be some huge trip to Australia like I had. It could be to a city that is just a few hours away by car. I just wish that everyone could get away from the “real world” for a short while. Take a mental health vacation.
Everyone has bad days. It is human nature. Nothing is perfect. Well, maybe not everyone has bad days. I believe some people are good at having a bad moment or multiple bad moments in a day and still going to bed thinking they had a good day, or a decent day, or just a day but not a bad one.
