Disclaimer: I am not a healthcare provider, and everything I write on my blog or relating social media sites comes from my personal experience. The content on Liv Forever is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your mental health professional or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding your condition.
A part of good mental health practices is understanding yourself enough to know what works for you, and what doesn’t. Mental Health is a topic that I want to talk about a lot on Liv Forever. I hope that some of my knowledge and past experiences can help to guide someone else.
I knew that I would need to address this on my blog and feel that sooner rather than later is the best policy. Back in 2015, I was hospitalized for suicidal ideation and I voluntarily committed myself. Ever since that period in my life, I have stayed focused on what my needs are mentally and emotionally. What are the things I need to do or work on to maintain an overall positive well-being. What types of therapies work best for me?
In the hospital, during one of our group therapy sessions, they asked us to list signs / symbols that mean we are declining and need to work harder to help ourselves. What gets us into our more depressive phases and what can we do to get ourselves back out of those phases? Most importantly, how do we recognize that within ourselves.
For the past three years, I have worked extremely hard to know myself in this way. Before, I would sky rocket into a depressive phase and had no idea it was coming. Now, I recognize a lot of the signs or habits of mine that allow me to realize what is coming and not necessarily how to stop it, but how to slow it down and deal with it. You should never suppress or ignore your feelings and emotions, but familiarize yourself on how to manage them.
One of the most frustrating things about my blog and business is that I have always known I would need to take breaks throughout. It is disappointing to me to not be able to stay at the same speed as other bloggers and business owners. I feel that I am generally a pretty confident person, but there are small things that test that confidence and this is one of them. I have learned that it is okay for me to take breaks. The reason it is okay is because that is just how I work best.
I have the type of personality where I think I can do it all. I load a bunch of tasks and responsibilities on myself to the point where I crash and burn and can’t get any of those tasks completed. It makes me feel like I failed terribly, but in actuality I just didn’t strategize well enough for my personality type and what helps me to succeed. I’ve spent way too much time in the dark to overwork myself when I know it isn’t healthy for me, and I can only continue to produce good, quality content if I am at my healthiest mental state.
I also have narcolepsy. The average person’s knowledge of narcoleptic symptoms are of someone collapsing while in the middle of talking, or worse, driving. Most Americans do not realize that people in your everyday life have a less intense version of narcolepsy which can mean a couple of different things. I have EDS (Excessive Daytime Sleepiness) which basically means that I can sleep any time, any day, any where. Unfortunately, this will be one of the main reasonings behind my unannounced breaks, as it affects every aspect of my life, not just the times when I’m sleeping. I wouldn’t wish this disorder on anyone. And I write none of this for sympathy, but to continue to show people that you can always do what you love, no matter what is holding you back. No matter if it causes you to take breaks or require special accommodations. Always do what you love.
So, while it may not be ideal to work in different paces as a blogger, it is how I can be the best version of myself, and I wouldn’t want to be anything less because this is my dream.
