I don’t know why, but I feel the need to write something down. And then to share it. So I guess you my dear reader are invited to take a journey into the stream of consciousness that is this piece…
Read MoreThere is something spiritual about cutting hair. A release, a letting go, a transformation, a potential for change. Yes, cutting my beard is a simple act, but it symbolic of a decision, to reaffirm myself and to choose to live…
Read More“I don’t watch porn, that shit rots your brain.”
These words were casually said to me by a friend of mine. We were discussing different ways that we ‘Guard Our Mental State’. Basically talking about mental health and the things that we do to ensure that we stay in a stable place …
When the symptoms of a mental affliction begin to arise, it is important to take action to address the problem as soon as possible. This way the severity, duration and impact of the affliction will be minimised. Unfortunately given the nature of mental illness, it is often very difficult, if not impossible to even realise that action is needed, or to develop the motivation to do so….
Read MorePart of me still cringes at posts like this. It goes against so much cultural stigma and childhood conditioning, ‘Stop crying and harden the f*ck up already son’.
The thing is, I have known far too many people who have ended their own lives, self-harmed or turned to drugs.
I’ve suffered in this way myself.
Yet, despite knowing how healing it is to talk and let go of pent-up emotions, particularly rage, embarrassment, confusion and self-worth issues, it is hard for me to do so.
Read MoreYou can’t be as good a parent, sibling, friend, employee, boss, or anything else if you are emotionally drained, compromised, or suffering from a mental affliction.
The better you are, the better you can help others.
Read MoreYour mind and body are completely interconnected.
It is difficult to remain in a sound mind when you are feeling lethargic, sick, bloated, tired, run-down, or in pain.
You literally are what you eat.
Read MoreSomewhere along the line I lost contact with myself. Trauma froze me in time. This made me withdraw from people.
Connection now scares me.
Being thus frozen, my way of looking at the world, from a relationship perspective also froze. At the time of the freeze I was young. At that age, socialising is often facilitated by the adults for the child, it’s rarely done directly.
Read MoreIf you share your mental illness with someone, you are asking them to imagine a condition they can only read about and can’t experience.
Really you are asking them to change the lens that they view the world by. To overlay upon their reality, one of your condition. They have to put that lens over every situation that they have ever lived through, every action both minor and major, every interpersonal interaction, as well as over their hopes and plans for the future.
"It was like releasing water through a dam. It felt like if I didn’t cut, that my mind would crack, with devastating results ..."
Read MoreA traumatic past left me with anxiety and depression issues as well as a significant amount of pent up rage. With no guidance of how to deal with it, I turned to punching a bag for relief. Luckily for me it started to work, and I fell in love with martial arts.
Eventually I came across BJJ and I was hooked - the social atmosphere, constant learning, physicality and the practicality in a self defence situation all combined to be one of the best treatments for my mental health issues...
It is 4am as I write this, I am slightly inebriated and my brain is buzzing. I have been up all night writing and I am still going. I can’t stop.
I must keep writing. When I get on a roll I can’t help it. Something comes over me and I must get it out. It is an affliction. This has happened before and will happen again...
Read MoreIn the months leading up the birth of my first child, I noticed something strange occurring. Almost everyone that I told the news to had the same reaction. First, they congratulated me, then they proceeded to tell me endless stories of the horrors of childbirth and fatherhood.
They would share tales of sleepless nights, never ending inconsolable crying and the mountains upon mountains of poo that regularly explodes out of nappies.
All of this combined in my mind to create a storm of anxious rumination. As the pregnancy progressed, my mental health steadily declined. I would bounce between dissociation and anxiety with a dash of regret thrown in there.
This is the post that I wish was available to me during that time.
Read MoreReflecting on my experiences with anxiety leaves me with a one sentence, anxiety killing mantra:
“Anxiety is a liar and it’s taking up too much of my life”.
I want to prove it to you. Consider the following questions:
- When has it ever been as bad as you thought it was going to be?
-How many times have you worried about something that just has never occurred?
-How many anxious thoughts do you have about one thing - could each possible outcome come true?
-How many times were you anxious before an event, only to be completely fine during the event?
"People often excuse a behaviour if there are extenuating circumstances.
We tend to forgive, downplay or simply ignore it, because we realise that the person doing the behaviour is going through something significant and therefore are ‘not themselves’ at the moment..."
Read More"It is very hard to un-hear something. Once you have been exposed to an idea, it is impossible to remove the stain of that idea out of your consciousness.
You can try and counter it, to disprove it, to ignore it or to fill your mind with other thoughts. Regardless, once it is in, it is there forever. Whether or not you asked to have that piece of information is irrelevant..."
Read MoreJust less than a year ago, I experienced an assault that dramatically changed who I was and how my brain functioned. It has been a slow decline down through depression, anxiety and isolation. The end game with that assault was too domination and control me.
Read More"Suicide is the leading cause of death for young men. So if you know a young male aged 15-25, chances are that they have contemplated it at some stage.
Make sure you are there for them and that they know it..."
Read More"I don't know where to start other then by saying that writing saved my life, and I wanted to share that with you..."
Read More"People should look after themselves first. Now this is not a selfish idea either mind you, I believe that it is to the benefit of society as a whole, as well as in the best interests of the individual that would be the recipient of the sacrifice. Because if you don’t look after yourself, and you fall, how will that person get the help they need...?"
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