Mental Health Awareness
Mental health is not this thing about just bucking up or getting over it. It’s a huge pandemic in our society today, one that truly needs to have more awareness and acceptance. It’s a real thing and instead of invalidating people or telling people how to handle it lets instead find ways of being supportive to those around us that may suffer from a mental illness. So let’s start gaining an insight into the aspects of mental illness.
Mental health disorders are conditions that affect your mood, thinking and behavior. They can vary in intensity from less severe to more. Some of these disorders include but aren’t limited to depression, anxiety, BPD, schizophrenia, eating disorders, PTSD, OCD, ADHD, Bipolar and addictive behaviors. (There are a few others as well.) What this month of May is for is to help bring awareness to mental illness and create more ways for people to find and seek help if they truly need it.
Today mental health disorders are far more common than you think. For instance I suffer from anxiety, depression, and complex PTSD. When I was younger I tried to commit suicide when I was 18. I was on medication that made everything so much more worst and only intensified what I was going through. Dealing with a dysfunctional family and then moving to a group home then a new family was traumatic and back then I didn’t know how to feel or what I was feeling. I disassociated a lot and was easily triggered. So because of this I just wanted to escape and so I overdosed on my own depression medication.
I was so unaware, so disassociated back then it didn’t even dawn on me the magnitude of what I had done. I went through life on autopilot, just existing. It wasn’t until my late twenties that I began to work on my traumas, my past and coming to term and accepting things. I sought help and found a wonderful therapist who helped me and allowed me to heal. It wasn’t always pretty or easy but I did it and worked on it. Because I was able to find help and do the work and take responsibility for my own healing I was able to start living. I found peace with what was and am now in the best place of my life.
Because of what I went through I started the blog Dare to Habit to show others it is possible that hell doesn’t have to be your daily existence. You can find a way out and work towards a brighter future. Last year when I started the blog I was super depressed, anxious and even suicidal at times. The depression was creating such a deep dark place in me I didn’t know if I would get out and me writing was the best thing I did for it. Having Covid hit was the biggest combat with my mental illness I had in a very long time and there were times I was scared for my life, not because of the virus but because my mental health was declining.
But slowly things got better. I had so much support last year that it helped pull me away from that edge and without it I don’t know where I would of been. Mental illness is not a joke. It is the hardest thing you can face. Even today I am 100x better than I was last year but there are days I still get struck by my anxiety or my depression. In those days I take time for my self care and my mental health. Having gone through therapy it allowed me to find ways to fight back and stabilize instead of sinking down further and further. And for that I am truly grateful because many never get that chance.
That is why it is so important to be kind. You never know what someone is dealing with mentally. Telling someone to get over it or just be happy only makes them feel worst, like there is something wrong with them for not being able to. When someone is talking about their emotions the best thing you can do is just listen. Don’t listen to talk, or give them advice, just hear them. That will make them feel heard, supported and validated. As much as you would love to give your input it may only make things worst or it could be taken the wrong way. Listening to listen is your best weapon, so use those ears.
If you or someone you know is suffering and needs help there are hotlines:
Nami: https://www.nami.org/About-Mental-Illness/Mental-Health-Conditions
800-950-nami
Or text
“nami” to 741741
Did you know that:
1 in 5 U.S adults experience mental illness each year
1 in 20 U.S. adults experience serious mental illness each year
1 in 6 U.S youth aged 6-17 experience a mental health disorder each year
50% of all lifetime mental illness begins by age 14 and 75% by age 24.
So spread awareness, donate to a cause. And if you are caretaker to someone who is suffering make sure you find help for yourself. Those who have to care for others suffering from mental health disorders usually put their needs last and are in need of a safe place as well. Spread love and support in the world and lets bring more light to those in the dark. Let’s make it okay to talk about mental illness and our emotions. Let’s make it a priority to do self checkins and to therapy and allow it to be a great thing for everyone, not just those mentally ill. Because we all go through our own battles, let’s learn to use our voices together and make the world a safe place for all. Let’s support those who are suffering and help their voices to be heard so they don’t feel like they are alone and have no other options.
Today was a 10. Lots of work done for Dare to Habit today.