Some periods of growth are so confusing that you don’t even recognize that growth is happening. You feel depressed with the process of change with anxiety and all negative energy creeping in. On days when surviving and thriving seems like a chore, unplug and take a step back.
Be Thankful
Practice gratitude- Transformation can be painful. Know that you are not falling apart you are falling into something different with a new capacity to be beautiful so be thankful always for every level.
Say Positive Affirmations
The words you speak to yourself live in your heart, in your mind and in your bones. Speak gently, speak kindly, speak as if the words you are saying will find their home within you, because they will, they are, they do.
Sit up Straight
Abundance is realizing that you can always start new, start fresh, start with new dreams, with new words, with new intentions, with new ecstasies, with new victories and with new stories.
Take a Hot Bath
Indulge in hot baths and wash the day off; and oil massage, soft smells and clothes with soft texture are the best combo after taking a hot bath.
Decluttering your mental space means to remove unnecessary items, and to declutter your mind means to remove unnecessary thoughts from your mind. Thoughts that just add noise and stop you from thinking clearly.
Mental clutter can include worrying about the future, ruminating about the past, keeping a mental to-do list, complaints, and so on.
It refers to times when our mind has too many thoughts which makes it difficult to process and focus. It hinders our productivity, balance and even our mental health. Clutter can affect the anxiety levels and sleep.
6 Ways to Declutter your Mind and Free up Mental Space
Declutter your Physical Environment
Physical clutter leads to mental clutter. The clutter bombards the mind with excessive stimuli, which forces the brain to work over time. As you declutter your physical space you will discover that your mind is also decluttered.
Write it Down
You don’t have to keep everything stored in your brain. Having a planner to write down important information is a good idea to help you remember. This can include appointments, work schedules, school assignments,. and so on.
Keep a Journal
Keeping a journal is similar to previous point, “write it down,” but with more depth. A journal allows you to let go the inner chatter that’s constantly interrupting your thought process when you’re trying to get important things done. Writing down your emotions is a way to express yourself and letting go the pain and hurt that keep bottled up in your mind.
Let go of the Past
Mind clutter is often related to the past. Most people keep a large cabinet of mental drawers stored in the back of their minds. These drawers are filled with mistakes they’ve made, missed opportunities, people they’ve hurt, past grievances, and son on.
Prioritize
Nothing creates as much brain clutter as an endless to-do list. Accept that you can’t do it all, and choose to focus on the things which are most important to you. Make a short list of your top priorities, and make sure that the bulk of your brain space is devoted to the things on that list.
Learn to Meditate
In essence, meditation is learning to focus the mind completely on the present moment. When you learn how to place all your attention on one things-such as your breath-all other thoughts disappear.
I want to talk about how my mental health affects my ability to function at work. I only work Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Of course working three days out of the week doesn’t seem that bad, but it can be exhausting. I feel like its too much. Before going back to work, I start to have a panic attack. Leaving my safe place (my home) and going to a different environment triggers me into panic mode. My job can be overwhelming sometimes, especially during stressful situations. The thoughts of going back to work makes me sick to the stomach. Everything that is going on in my personal life, working part-time and going to school full-time it can be stressful. I get depressed and my anxiety goes through the roof. It affects my ability to focus on customers needs and be able to do my job correctly. When I’m at work I don’t talk as much. I get in deep depression, my mind is somewhere else, like in a dark place…zone out. I tend to lash out at my coworkers and customers. I don’t think its right and its not fair to them because they didn’t do anything wrong. Some times I think its best for me to stay quite. In the mist of a busy day, I have to deal with rude, demanding, unhappy customers.
So, I came up with some coping strategies that helps me to get through my work day:
I talked to my department manager to let her know about what was going on with me mentally and how it affects my ability to work. It was important for me to make sure that she has a clear understanding and be aware about my mental health. Come with a plan to help, me have a stress free working environment.
When I’m feeling overwhelmed or having a panic attack, I ask to take a 15 minute break to calm down.
I always have water with me. To keep me hydrated throughout the day.
Breathing techniques to help me relax. I listen to music or read a book during my lunch break.
I am walking along an outdoor path. Ahead, I see the path splits into two. The path on the left enters a dense forest, the one on the right enters a series of hills and valleys. I choose to follow the path to the hills and valleys. Far away I see a door. I am not sure what is on the other side of this door, but I am curious to know. As I am walking up the steep hills, I become hot, tired and my legs starts to burn. I come across fallen trees blocking my path and huge rocks forcing me to climb over. I want to give up, but I must get to that door. I finally make it and what reads on the door, “Exit Comfort Zone” and a list of goals I want to work on. This journey taught me there are more opportunities out there for me if I step out of my comfort zone. I will not grow if keep that door close.
I’m not sure where to start. Speaking from my personal experience, this year has been difficult. The most challenging thing I had to endure was the Covid-19 virus. When it first came around, I was scared for myself, family, friends, and my coworkers. Across the world people lost their loved ones due to this virus. It broke my heart watching the news of how many cases we had, people who passed away and what nurses and doctors had to go through to take care of their patients. People were buying everything in the stores, left little to nothing on the shelves. It got to the point that most stores were not selling the stuff that we needed, such as Lysol spray/wipes, paper towels, tissue paper, hand soap and hand sanitizer. I was lucky if I found some on Amazon or in stores. I had to adjust to the changes of switching to virtual classes at my college, going on lockdown (not able to travel, having a curfew). Being away from home, couldn’t to hug my family was hard for me. It made me more depressed to not able to see them. Thinking about all the challenges and obstacles, I’m glad I made it through this year. I’m ready for what 2021 has in store for me.
On October 1, 2018 is when I decided to be sober. I want to share my journey of being sober and why I made this decision.
I used alcohol as a coping strategy for my depression and anxiety disorder and my social anxiety. Drinking became my best friend when I felt like I didn’t have anybody else. My to-go drink was Vodka with cranberry juice and lime. Sounds good right? It was and I felt like I was on top of the world with alcohol in my system. What I mean by that is drinking helped me to block out my depression thoughts. It numbed me so I wouldn’t feel unhappy and lonely. I didn’t want to feel what was bothering me when I’m out with my friends or with a group of unknown people. Drinking was my way to cope with my anxiety. I did that every time I would go out and I was known as the alcoholic of the group. It didn’t bother me. That may sound weird, but I loved it because I was getting noticed and people wanted to hang out with me. Things started to change on my 30th birthday. I rather not go into detail, but I woke up the next morning feeling horrible and I couldn’t remember anything from the night before. I looked at myself in the mirror trying to figure out what happened. I texted my friend apologizing to her for all the bad things I said and did. She laughed and said “That’s okay.” That is when I realized it was time for me to stop drinking. I threw away all the alcohol in my house and got some counseling to help me cope better with my depression and anxiety without drinking. I been TWO YEARS SOBER. It has been a long difficult journey. I do still have my cravings of alcohol when I’m not feeling mentally okay, but I’m so grateful to have the love and support from my friends and family to get through this. I will continue to be sober and stronger.
My depression has been draining me mentally. Its been hard for me to function at school and at work. I find it difficult to do easy task. Like taking a shower, cooking , doing homework and cleaning. When I’m in deep depression, I want to be alone instead of being around people. I have been so emotional and try my best to fake it so people wouldn’t ask questions. I feel like a toxic mess and unwanted, but that is not true. I’m stronger than my depression. Its okay to not be okay. Its important to take care of myself and be kind to my mind.
My mental health has declined so much. I’m crying a lot more, it turns into anger and built up frustration. I started to notice some changes in my mood. Something is off with me. I’m not the same person I was a few months ago. I thought it would be best to take a break from my personal social media accounts. Its time for me to take a step back and focus more on myself. I realize that its okay to press the pause button and think about what I need mentally and emotionally to get my mental health back on track.
Sometimes I feel like I’m not enough. Sometimes I feel like I’m too much. I’ve always had this feeling thay I’m too toxic for people. My anxiety and depression makes me feel and think people don’t want to be around me because I’m too emotional or I’m a burden to them. What do I do? I end up pushing them away because I start to believe what that voice is saying is true.
Hello everyone, welcome back to my blog. I hope everyone is doing well. I haven’t posted anything on here in months. I been busy since the semester started back in August and also working. I wanted to share with you guys about how I been with my mental health. To be honest its been its been an emotional roller coaster. My depression and anxiety has gotten worse. Trying to balance school, work and my personal life, its been difficult for me. These couple of weeks was challenging. I’ve had multiple mental breakdowns that has caused me to shutdown and want to be alone. I’m trying my best to get through this battle, but its so hard. I just need to push the pause button to figure out what I need to do to get myself together mentally.
The Road to Recovery 