Chapter One
Say It With Me: I CAN! Allowing Ourselves the Space to Be and Letting GO…
Welcome, ladies, gentlemen, and everyone in-between to “The Mental Break-Down”.
I have been on a mental health journey for most of my adult life. Unfortunately, I think for most of us, taking care of our mental health is cast aside. You’re expected to put up with what is thrown at you. The adversity is supposed to make you a better person. “Whatever kills you makes you stronger”. Etc, etc. To that, I say a big F*** YOU.
Here, in this space, I’d like us to take a moment and embrace our emotions and thoughts. Ignoring them is not the answer. Being overwhelmed by them is not the answer. By facing who we are and how we feel, we are giving ourselves the permission to be who we are. If you do not like what you see, you can now examine the areas of your life that you feel need to be fixed
Now, take what I say with a grain of salt: I am by no means a therapist, psychologist, what-have-you. I have no degree in mental health. HOWEVER, in my opinion, sometimes the answer is the one that we subconsciously (or consciously) ignore. We know the answer. We know how we should be treating others and ourselves. The issue is when we make the decision to go against that voice in our heads. Maybe because it’s easier or maybe because we think this is what we really want. We tell ourselves excuses. We try to make it sound right. If I say it, it must be so, yes?
Let’s be honest with ourselves. We cannot expect perfection. We cannot expect to have the answers always. What we can do is accept that we are human. We are flawed, imperfect. We fight, we envy, we procrastinate.
Forgive yourself.
Look in the mirror and say, “Hey, we’re not where we want to be, but we’re going to get there”. Once we begin that journey within ourselves, our light will ignite and warm those around us. Let’s do that together, ok? You can be yourself here.
And with that brief introduction to our format, I will leave you a song. Music is our souls spoken aloud, and I’d like us to enjoy it together. So, each article will end with a song I love or think is relevant to the topic or just makes you feel good.
Until, next time, love yourself as much as I love you.
-Jo