Road to mental wellness Archives - The Road To Mental Wellness

Where’s My glasses

Where’s my glasses? Where is my mind?
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Life’s all about those little moments, isn’t it? Well, yes of course it is. Sadly though, it’s also about those panicle moments that alter our life’s course forever. Some of these moments can be both good and bad, both, have a huge impact on the way we conduct ourselves moving forward.

Take PTSD for an example, is a debilitating mental health condition that may require years of recovery, if recovery is possible at all. For me, there’s no denying that my traumatic experiences have formed my current predicament. So much so in fact, that I have no idea what the future has in store for me.

With that said, I can’t focus too far down the road to mental wellness; rather, I must learn to navigate my way through the world again one mindful moment at a time. Personally, I suck at this right now, my tolerance for the wider world just isn’t there. There’s no denying the struggle is because I am disabled by my post-traumatic symptoms. I disassociate a lot and for the best part of my days, I don’t feel like I’m me, rather, I am a passive observer of my own life? This, along with the hyper startle response, I find almost impossible to overcome; but despite this, I fight on.

Full list of PTSD symptoms.

The symptoms I mention above are some of the most noticeable. I mean, jumping out of your skin over half a day is really, really noticeable. However, there are stealthier symptoms of PTSD.

Want to hear the stories of those on a similar journey? Listen to Men Are Nuts podcast.

A great example of this is how trauma impacts your memory; I have just recently noticed a correlation between the time my symptoms appeared and the loss of ability to find things. My family can tell you, I’m constantly saying, “Where are my glasses?”

This was never a thing for me, at least not to the degree it is today. Its as though once I put things down, my mind no longer cares about their existence; thereby leaving me with no recollection whatsoever of where I had put things. When I say no recollection, I mean, none!

Poor memory and PTSD.

How PTSD impacts your memory — Where’s my glasses.

The Road To Mental Wellness is made possible in part by readers like you… thank you for your support.

This is naturally turns me into a nomad, wander the house looking for, mostly my spectacles but it can also be my keys, wallet and now, my face mask.

So, if you find yourself asking, “Where’s my glasses,” and you have PTSD, it could very well be the neurological loveless of memory impairment. Don’t have glasses? I wonder where you put your keys last night before you went to bed?

Checkout the book I helped to write:

Lemonade Stand: Vol. III

Created by Josh Rivedal and Kathleen Myre, Lemonade Stand: Vol. III is a compilation of 20 stories from those who have served in the emergency services and the military. In it, the authors talk about their battles with PTSD, a debilitating and for many, a life-long mental illness. So, if you are from the military or emergency service’s, perhaps this book can help you combat the feelings of isolation and fear that frequently comes with post-traumatic stress disorder. Sometimes, just knowing that there are others out there, just like you, can provide you with the strength and courage to speak up and or get the help you need. The intention of this book is to help with that…. You’re not alone.

Also, Lemonade Stand: Vol III was written to help combat the stigma that often accompanies mental illness, best of all, it attempts to give all you served their countries and communities a voice… Which is amazing!

If you are struggling please go here for help: Crisis Services Canada

Checkout our Mental Health Resources Page.

Contact me on my Facebook page: The Road To Mental Wellness

September 18, 2020September 18, 2020

Jonathan ArenburgLeave a comment

You can’t ignore PTSD

You can’t ignore PTSD
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In our society, we tend to think that we are failures if life takes us off our planned path. But are we really failures? I’d like to make the argument that when life takes us off course, we can forge a new way forward.

When I was a firefighter, I pushed myself well beyond my mental abilities; thinking I could just shake off the traumatic events I witnessed and get back on the rig for the next call.

I suppose this myth I was telling my self worked for a while, or, so I had thought. Turns out, that I was not coping at all; I was, in fact, doing more and more damage.

Knowing your mental limits

When the time came that my mental strength was all but exhausted, I felt defeated; like I had failed. After all, none of my colleagues seem to be having this issue. On the day I resigned, I felt like a complete and utter failure. To add to this perceived failure, was this head to toe feeling of weakness and shame.

A double whammy

Who knew that pushing through my mental pain would be such a bad idea? I really wish I had known at the time; it may have saved the rest of my life from coming unravelled. However, my reality has been forged by the fact that I didn’t know.

Due to my decisions to keep fighting on with no regard for my mental health, I lost; my feelings of failure were compounded by the fact that I had recognized my illness too late. Perhaps its more accurate to say that I pushed it down and packed my trauma so tight that it finally snapped.

Whichever was the case, the mental pain my fire service days had leached into every facet of my life. This sad reality I faced would include my work life too.

Like what you are reading? Try Path To Mental Healing.

Making my living as a health care worker was not an easy one to say the least. I had witnessed some pretty traumatic incidents there too. While this was my was also my reality, the cornerstone for my PTSD without question, stemmed from the fire service.

Regardless, I had mentally bled out for far too long and before I knew it, my mistaken resilience crumbled under the weight of my mental illness. Only a few short years after calling it quits as a volunteer firefighter, I would find myself making an exit from my workplace as well; proving that you can’t ignore PTSD, it will indeed, get you in the end.

Is failure such a bad thing?

While I thought for years after I left the service that I had failed at everything I loved; I’m happy to say that I was wrong. Failure is just a conduit for success so long as you keep moving forward. Doing what I have to do, has been slowly leading me down the road to mental wellness and as a result, I have discovered new passions along the way.

man standing on rock during sunset — Photo by Mathew Thomas on Pexels.com

When every aspect of my life went off the rails, I turned to writing in a desperate attempt to sort out what was going on inside my head. Consequently, a new passion was ignited; a love for writing.

You can’t ignore PTSD, this is true but if you are manning up, shoving it down or in just plain old denial, please know that when PTSD becomes too much, there is life after the military or emergency services. Failure is an option as long as you understand this: PTSD or any mental illness is not something you choose to have and secondly; as humans, we are gifted with the ability to discover other passions. So in that regard, no matter what we go through in life, we can always find something that gives us our love for life back.

Keep moving forward.

Lemonade Stand Vol. III is a collection of 20 authors who have PTSD because of their military and or emergency services background. They bravely tell their stories in hopes that will help end stigma within the services and within mental health in general. Its other objective is to give people who are afraid to speak a voice.

When I read the stories from the other authors, it was like I was reading the story of my own struggles. I quickly realized that this book will not only help those with PTSD but may very well provide their spouses and families with insight into their loved one’s mental illness.

Pre order today at https://theroadtomentalwellness.com/blog__trashed/lemonade-stand-iii/

Checkout the book I helped to write

If you are struggling please go here for help: Crisis Services Canada

Want help fund my book? donate: GOFundMe – The Road To Mental Wellness – The book

Contact me on my Facebook page: facebook.com/TRTMW

July 12, 2020July 28, 2020

Jonathan Arenburg1 Comment

We must resist ourselves

If we are to win the battle against mental illness, we must resist ourselves – John Arenburg.
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Can I do this? Can I move on from this painful episode of my life? Or am I destined to be trapped in this ocean forever?

These questions constantly plague my mind; almost as frequently as my PTSD. While this may be true, I’d like to think that I’m doing okay, unfortunately, the consistency I need to defeat this beast simply isn’t there. Perhaps one of the roadblocks I am experiencing is my resistance to support.

Sure, I have goals and dreams, ambition and work ethic but essentially, like that of someone trapped at sea, I can only tread water so long until I tire and float backwards, to where I began.

my main weapon against my own tyranny is love.

I suppose that for someone living with a mental health condition, this particular battle comes standard. with all that said, it doesn’t make it any less exhausting. Yet, despite being tired, I have learned long ago that I am the only one that can save myself; for when I am drowning, it is up to me to reach out and find the help I need.

We must resist ourselves — we must resist ourselves

Of course, having a healthy dose of stubbornness goes a long way to ensure one’s survival. Like that of stubbornness, there are many more reasons that keep pushing me towards the shore. And while the length of my battle may defeat me at times, l shall stay the course and I shall survive, nay, I will do better than that, I will thrive.

The Depression Files Podcast Have a listen to others as they tell their mental health stories

How you ask? Well, quite literally, my main weapon against my own tyranny is love; love for thy self and love for all those who see me through

This my friends is a sure way to drown

While we may want to run and hide, lick our wounds in secret, we will not survive alone. In fact, isolation can lead to a worsened mental health condition; or for some, the outcome can be dire.

Human connection and it’s impact on us

Truthfully, or at least from my point of view, we should be doing the opposite; resisting the perceived need to withdraw and hug it out with those who are in our corners.

The Road To Mental Wellness is made possible in part by readers like you… thank you for your support.

Don’t you feel like sometimes you have a bit of self-sabotage going on? I know I sure do. On one hand, we feel like we are navigating these rough seas all on our own and on the other; we are ignoring those in the rescue boats all around us and those who are tossing us, life preservers. This my friends is a sure way to drown; something we have all been working so hard to prevent.

At the end of the day, we must resist ourselves, that temptation to go it on our own. While you may not feel worthy, I know you are and you mean so much to those who love you. Please, stop resisting the help that in reality, has a much better chance of getting you down the road to mental wellness.