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Tip number 5 – how to stay present in the moment – grounding techniques

Intrusive thoughts is something that I struggle with a lot, and to my knowledge many suffer with this. It’s very difficult to stay present when your thoughts take over, but I want you to know that you are not alone in this. Some of the thoughts that I have had, I thought was unique to me, but after speaking to my therapists I have realized that many suffer with the same exact thoughts.

If you are like me and struggle with intrusive thoughts and staying present, the following might help:

• Breathing slowly while counting
• Tuning into different sounds around you
• Walking barefoot and noticing how the ground feels
• Wrapping yourself in a blanket and noticing how it feels around your body
• Holding an ice cube or splashing cold water on your face
• Touching something with an interesting texture or sniffing something with a strong smell

source – mind.org.uk

One of my personal favorites is listening to music and singing along to it. This helps me the most. But everyone is different, so try and see what works for you.

If you feel that some of these grounding techniques that I have mentioned, does not work for you, there is mindfulness, deep breathing, establishing a routine, journaling, and positive affirmations to name a few. Seeking help from a professional also helps immensely.

These things take time, so be patient with yourself and be kind to yourself. Don’t give up, it will get better.

Until next time, you are important, you matter, you are beautiful and most importantly you are loved.

xx

Tip number 4

“How does exercise help mental health? Exercise causes your brain to release ‘feel good’ chemicals like endorphins and serotonin that help improve your mood. It also improves your fitness, which can help lift your mood. Doing physical activity can also distract you from negative thought patterns” – Health Direct (au)

I can definitely attest to the quote and statement above. All the times that I have felt my best mentally can be linked to the times I was at my best physically.

With that being said – to start is the hardest part (in my opinion). I’m not sure about you but I like to start things on a Monday or the 1st of the month, and I am not sure why. Today is Monday and I really did not want to exercise, I was trying everything and nothing worked until my husband motivated me, how I love that man. I just did 30 minutes on my exercise bike and a 5 minute arm workout that I found on YouTube. And guess what? I feel great! I feel happy and like I really want to do it again. Now, I usually forget about how good exercising makes me feel, so that’s why I’m writing it down, so that when I don’t want too, I can come back to this and remember how happy I was in this very moment.

I would like to be that person to encourage you. Make that first step, even if it’s just walking around your house once or twice, then challenge yourself to do a bit more tomorrow, and so on. Keep track of how you felt after you have exercised, write it down, and be kind to yourself, don’t push yourself too hard. Progress takes time. Give yourself a goal like maybe being able to walk 5km by June this year, it doesn’t matter what it is, no matter how small, a start is all that matters.

Do something fun while exercising, sometimes I watch my favorite show (modern family) or I listen to music. That keeps me distracted and focused on that rather than how much time I have left of my workout.

If you have any tips you would like to share with me, pop me an email, I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Until next time, you are beautiful, you are important, you are wanted and needed, and most importantly you are loved.

xx

Tip number 3. Take your time. Take it step by step. Break it down

Whatever task that you have to complete, don’t look at the big picture, break it down into small parts. Work on each part and reward yourself with something like a break and a good cup of coffee and then work on your next step.

Breaking things into smaller and easier parts is proven to help reduce stress levels which in turn helps with your mood and mental health well being.

Don’t be so hard on yourself – if you have a deadline and worked really hard to achieve it but fell a bit short, it’s okay, don’t beat yourself up, because what comes along with that is procrastination (in most cases). What happens is we focus so much on what we haven’t achieved that we forget about everything that we have achieved. We beat ourselves up and fixate on that one thing, and if you are like me – that can last a few hours or a couple of days. Instead – I would suggest: Taking a break, do something that makes you feel motivated like listening to a song or doing some self care, and maybe write down what you did and what you could have done better and work towards that. Take it step by step, and you will reach your end goal. Be proud of yourself and what you have accomplished. Reward yourself for the milestones that you have reached. Be kind to yourself.

This is all proven to help elevate your mood and in turn help you to complete the task at hand.

Remember the quote “Rome was not built in a day” and be kind to yourself. Set smaller goals. Reward yourself. These are all things that I have tried when I felt despondent or like I can’t achieve what’s next. This has helped me and I hope it will help you too. Until next time, you are important, you are valued, you are beautiful and most importantly you are loved.

xx

(tip number 2)

It’s been really hot over these past few days, well lets be honest its beeeeen hot for a while! I’ve noticed that when the temperature is warmer, my mood is affected. I’m irritable, and stressed out, and I can’t seem to sleep in this heat. I’m sure many can agree with this. I did some research and the weather can definitely affect your mood and stress levels.

From what I read – the cooler you can make your environment, especially while you are sleeping, the better you mood will become and your stress levels will decrease.

What I’ve been doing to keep cool at night is putting my feet in some cold water or laying in a cold bath. I also sleep with a fan in my room and some cold water by my side to stay hydrated. Sometimes I keep a cloth with me and place it on my forehead and that seems to keep me cool. I also try and keep my windows open once it starts to cool down and then I close them before I go to bed, that way the air is a bit cooler in my room. All these things has helped to keep me calmer and less stressed. When doing these things I wake up in a good mood and I feel refreshed.

I would suggest trying these things to see if it works for you too.

I started this series of tips because I wanted to share some things that has helped me with my mental health journey. Some things that work for me might not work for you, but it could be worth a try.

My aim is to break the stigma that is attached to mental health by sharing my experiences with it, and what has helped me over the years. I want to make a difference and to let others know that they are not alone in what they are experiencing and feeling.

I hope you enjoyed today’s tip. Until next time, you are important, you matter, you are wanted, you are beautiful and most importantly you are loved.

xx

Shout out to my sister in-law for inspiring this.

Journal as often as you can – Journaling is a great way of expressing how you are feeling. Whether you journal once or five times a day, it is proven to help with your mental health. Why? because tracking your emotions and what triggers them will give you more insight into what works for you and what doesn’t. By becoming aware of what situations to avoid and what makes you happy will put you on a better path with your mind.

Take some time out to write down things that you love about yourself, what inspires you, and anything positive that comes to mind. That way, when a bad day comes around you have something positive to look back on.

Journaling is something I have tried in the past, and to be honest, on the days that I did it, I felt better. It’s like a weight has been lifted off of your chest and you can breathe again. Journaling is private, it’s your innermost thoughts, it’s a letter to yourself, it’s honestly a great help.

I encourage you to journal today and tomorrow, take it from there and see how you feel. Pop me an email, I’d love to hear your thoughts on how and if journaling has helped you on your mental health journey.

tip number 2 – woah woah you have to come back tomorrow if you want the next tip!

I hope you’ve had an amazing Friday, and that you’ve kept cool on this unbelievably hot day. I hope something made you smile today, or even better – made you laugh out loud with no worries or fear of what anyone else thinks.

Until next time, you are important, you matter, you are beautiful, you are needed, you are wanted, and most importantly you are loved.

xx

I read this quote and it’s exactly what I needed. Sometimes you compare yourself to others and think that you are running behind, but you aren’t. We are all on our own journey, and what we do before we reach the finish line is what counts. Age does not matter, it’s just a number.

I’m almost 30 and I don’t know what my future holds for me, but right now I have a dream. A dream to reach others and let them know that they are not alone and that things will get better. I have a dream to make a difference, to impact lives positively and to spread happiness. I have a dream of wanting to be known as a girl who made a change, who stood up for what she believed in and didn’t apologise for it. I have so many dreams, and I’m not too old to have them, in fact I think I am at the perfect age for this. Getting older has given me some confidence, made me less worried about what others think, and I have found comfort in that. Yes I have my bad days – but hey who doesn’t. My bad days does not define me. What I want, who I want to be, the changes I want to make – that defines me.

A few years ago I would never have started a blog, a YouTube channel, aTikTok and Instagram account. I’m thankful that I waited, everything happens when it should and on time and I’m going to try and keep that in mind, when days are dark and clarity doesn’t seem to exist in my mind.

Write down your thoughts, express yourself and remind yourself that good days are not far away. Things will get better, and don’t put a timeline on it. You are never too old for a new goal, or new dream.

Until next time, you are important, you are valued, you matter, you are beautiful and most importantly you are loved.

xx

If you suffer from binge eating disorder – or any eating disorder for that matter, you will know how hard it is to stay on track with eating properly and in a healthy manner. Yesterday was not my best day.

Initially the day started out good, I was productive and did everything on my to-do list, including some at home workouts, and I was going strong, I was eating well… Until I had some curry. If you know me, you will know that I absolutely love curry! Anyway I had some, and then some more, and then a little more. Before I knew it I had more than double what I was supposed to have. I felt sick, sick to my stomach, so sick that I only managed to get out of bed by 1 this afternoon. Now usually this will set me back a month or a week if I’m lucky. I would go on a bingeing spree all because of one day. I can’t do that this time around. I told myself that I really want to get healthy this year, with my mental and physical health. I cannot let one day set me back. I need to focus, I need to get this right. I can’t beat myself up for one day, and I won’t.

Today is a new day, today I will only eat when I am hungry. I saw somewhere that if you feel you need to eat, have an apple and if you are still hungry then eat, but most of the time that won’t be the case (this is mainly with binge eating disorder) Now, don’t get me wrong, don’t skip a meal for an apple, I am talking about the times inbetween. If you are like me, that’s where I struggle, and late at night too, well when I say late I mean 7pm LOL! Guys the age is setting in, well… If I am being completely honest I’ve beeeeeen feeling this age for a while! hahaha

Anyway, enough of the rant.

If you have a bad day when it comes to food, it’s okay, try the next day (see what I did there) Don’t let one day set you off from your goals, and I am writing this to myself as well. Let’s be kind to ourselves, let’s love ourselves, put ourselves first and focus on ourselves.

Smile, tomorrow will be better

Until next time, you matter, you are important, you deserve everything your heart desires, you are needed, and most importantly… remember, you are loved!

xx

It’s currently 01:35 am and I am still up. If you know me personally then you will know that I usually sleep between 20:00 pm – 22:00 pm and no later. So what is different about this evening? I was sitting up and making some changes to the blog’s appearance and customizing the look of my YouTube channel, as well as making a small intro video. This is what I am truly passionate about, I can feel it. I want to make a change, I want to inspire and help others, this is my purpose.

I’ve gone from wanting to be a vet, a forensics expert, an occupational therapist, a nurse, a bookkeeper, an HR manager (to name a few) to not knowing what I want to do with my life. Nothing has excited me like this in a very long time. This probably won’t be my day job but it will be my true passion. Man I feel good knowing that. I feel so happy and content in this very moment.

Whoever you are, I hope you find what excites you, what gets you up in the morning, what makes you smile, what makes you feel like you have purpose. Please don’t give up. Some people know what they want from the get go, and if you are like me it will take some time, and that’s okay. Whatever makes you happy, that’s all that matters.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. If I can make one person smile, if I can make one person feel like they are not alone in feeling what they are feeling, then I’ve made a difference and I’ve done what I set out to do.

Thank you for supporting me, thank you for reading, and I truly hope this has made some difference in your life. This blog post is a bit short but I might write one later again. Don’t hold me to it though! LOL

Anyway, sweet dreams, I hope you will wake up feeling refreshed and like you can take on anything – because I know you can. Until next time – You are important, you matter, you are needed and wanted and most importantly you are loved!

xx

I’d like to share something that I think many can relate too. Ever told yourself that you are going to start something on Monday? or the first of the month? And then just don’t get around to doing it? Then you just don’t do it at all? And wait for the next Monday or the next first of the month? Yeah me too. But why is that? Well I can’t answer for everyone but my reason is simply that my OCD brain works that way. I am trying to fight it though, I am trying real hard.

I skipped a day. When I started this blog I challenged myself to write everyday for a year. What now? Well I am going to continue either way, yes I skipped a day and that’s okay. Usually my OCD would be taking over and I would throw in the towel completely but I can’t do that this time around. I’d rather skip a day than come on here and write about something that just does not resonate with me that day. It’s going to be hard though, because I know that one day will bother me, but I can’t let the rest of the year slip by just because I missed one day. I think i’ll try and start with a smaller goal. I’ll challenge myself to complete everything on my to-do list for today and take it from there, and once I can do that i’ll challenge myself to a week, and then maybe a month.

My Mommy gave me some really good advice, I can’t remember exactly how it goes but it’s something like “just focus on the next second, then the next minute, then the next hour” and so on. Break down what you would like to do into the smallest version and work your way up. You can’t expect to run a marathon without taking it step by step right?

The point I am trying to make is, it’s good to set goals and to set them with a timeline, but don’t beat yourself up when it’s not completely perfect or on time. What matters is that you are trying. Do as much as you can, in the amount of time that you can, and then try again the next day. None of us is perfect so don’t try for that. A quote just came to mind “reach for the moon so that you can land upon the stars” So yes set out goals, don’t make them too hard though, but if you land upon the stars that is great! and I am proud of you!

Until next time, be kind to yourself, smile, laugh, be yourself, remember you are important, you matter, and most importantly you are loved.

xx

I’m having such a weird morning. My husband, dog, and I were up until after 4am watching a series on Netflix. I think we all woke up on the wrong side of the bed. Nyx (my dog) has been so clingy and sleepy all morning, Jéan (my husband) was asking where his phone was when he was clearly watching a YouTube video on it, I called the doctor and couldn’t even speak properly. It’s like words and their meaning left my brain. LOL it was kinda funny. (I didn’t even know the word for Whatsapp)

Let me introduce my family properly – Jéan is my husband. Nyx is my 1 year old Rottie. Kai is my 8 year old female ginger cat. Cosmo is my 3 year old male tuxedo cat, and Tigger is my 3 year old male ginger cat. And we all lived happily ever after – okay I don’t know why I typed that. I am doing this thing today where I am not deleting anything, I am going to type and post whatever comes to mind. Brace yourselves because I am quite funny! LOL (cringe)

Okay so now I’m blank, I was laying in bed having all these random thoughts and was like okay I’m going to write it all down, and now I can’t think of one thing.

Okay I thought of one thing. I was thinking how am I going to relate this post to something inspirational? and I got it. Embrace the weird! Be yourself. Have you ever spoke about something and lost your train of thought? Have you ever felt misunderstood and like no one gets your humor? Have you ever had like weird thoughts like who invented languages? When I was little I thought that when you “spay” an animal you would put a spade in them and close them up! I used to ask where does your nails grow from, and your hair? Why does water have a taste yet have no taste at all? Oh this is a good one, sometimes I will put my arm in the air and just like have it there, and like why did I do that? Then I will think “okay drop the arm” and it won’t drop until it does. Like I understand how the brain works – or I think I do, but isn’t it weird how it works? Am I even making sense? Anyway I am having such a delayed reaction to what I want to say.

Okay – Love yourself, quirks and all. Love yourself even when you have random thoughts like I just did. Don’t ever apologise for being you. Don’t try and be like anyone else, be you, be unapologetically you. Who cares what anyone thinks. Love yourself. Be kind to yourself.

I have absolutely no idea what is going on in my head today, and that’s okay. Yes this blog is intended to be about mental health, and animals at times, but it’s also to let you know that you are NOT alone. We all have our days where we question things, where we are a little weird, where we feel lost and when we just have no direction. What I am trying to say is, it’s okay. I get you, you are not alone. Anyway I hope you made it this far into the post. Until next time, you are beautiful, you are important, you are needed and …… embrace the weird! oh and most importantly YOU ARE LOVED!

xx