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For years, I roamed the earth knowing that I haD SOMETHING PLAYING IN THE BACKGROUND; HOWEVER, i WAS ONLY WILLING TO CONFRONT IT AFTER THE TRAIN WENT OFF THE TRACK.
Let’s face it, we all have a past, and we all have hang-ups that we simply don’t confront. While this may be true, there are many of us who remain mostly unaware of the things that cause us conflict. Sadly, I was the latter of the two. Fortunately, though, I came alive at thirty-five.
As I am sure is true for many of you, my latest episode of being off work isn’t my first. In fact, I have been off for mental health-related difficulties twice before.
It was under those circumstances that I began the process of deep self-evaluation. What was it that landed me off work? To find an answer, it would mean that I would have to be honest with myself and put the work in. From my point of view, when you’re unsure how to make that happen, you turn to the professionals.
How do I know if I have a mental illness
On the positive side, my counselling background made this leg of my journey very easy. For those of you who are seeking answers for your own interior turmoil, think of it this way: when something isn’t working right, we know that we have to call in the pros – plumber, mechanic etc. Well, when faced with issues of a psychological nature, a trained mental-health professional is the go-to for all things psycho-emotional related.
Fortunately for me, my knowledge gave me the courage to seek the help I needed – a good thing too, because while I was aware that something wasn’t quite right, I knew that whatever it was, it was getting worse. This fact was made especially evident the first time I went off.
Why did I wait so long?
As is true with most things requiring maintenance, I let my not-so-fully operational brain go until I was left with little choice but to fix it. And, as with most things, there’s a higher price to pay for “toughing it out.” I foolishly thought that I could manage the havoc inside. Boy, was I wrong.
Want to listen to others dealing with similar pain? Checkout A New Dawn Podcast.
In my case, I let my anxiety disorder fester to the degree that I found myself off work. In other words, I waited too long. Since then, I have worked hard on correcting the problem; I’ve been doing so since I was in my mid-thirties. In fact, I often say I came alive at thirty-five.
I believe that you can too…
You read that right, I waited thirty-five years to try and fix me; I suppose one could say that’s sad, however, I will be eternally grateful that I started when I did. I have learned that perspective also impacts our wellness.
Not only do we need to enlist the help from our doctors and psychologists, but we also have to put in work. For me, this means a holistic approach. changing my diet, getting regular sleep and exercise. Since then, I live by the philosophy of “better late than never.”
I am happy that I did include all of these things as I throttled down the road to mental wellness because they worked! As I implemented them I started to notice a better, more calm self.
Want proof? Here is where I would link a study that you could access to lend credibility to what I am saying but, instead, I will challenge you to try all of these life-savers for yourself. I will however give you this:
How to safely start an excerse routine.
So, in short, as long as you are alive, you have the capacity to create opportunity, and thus, a chance to get make yourself whole again. Ultimately, the best advice I can give anyone with a mental-health condition is to do it in baby steps, Everything you do gets you closer to a better you. While it may be true that mental illness doesn’t necessarily allow for a constant routine, I still had great success in getting to a better place.
I believe that you can too… I came alive at thirty-five, so regardless of your age, I am living proof that it can be done.
In crisis? Call 1.833.456.4566 | Text 45645 (Crisis Services Canada) Crisis Services Canada
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