It was the day you woke up asking God, “What’s wrong with me?” It was the moment the thoughts were overwhelming so you crawled into bed and cried yourself to sleep. It was the morning you spent trying to figure out why the panic was there at the same time you had to calm yourself. It was the day you googled “what is wrong with me?” It was the journal entry that made you realize even talking about the shame would leave you feeling shameful, so you decided to keep it to yourself. It was the thought “someone has it worse than me, I should be grateful” playing on repeat. Maybe it was the day that made you feel like even leaving bed was too much to ask. Those moments, those heavy days, they’re really hard. I know, I’ve been there. It feels like you’re lifting the weight of your entire life, feeling the decades stack upon each other as the future grows darker. You think to yourself, “I can’t keep going like this. If the rest is going to be this hard, I can’t keep going like this. I need help.” I wish I could make you see how…
“I would have dumped you if you ever said that to me.” Those were the exact words I said when asked, “what would you have done if I ever said to you the things you say to yourself?” My response echoed in my head as my Husband continued to prove his point. “I would have dumped him,” I thought. “If he said any of the things I say to myself, I would have dumped him”. It was the next question I asked myself that felt like a personal breakthrough. “If I would have ended the relationship with him for treating me like this, why do I allow myself to treat me like this? Why do I allow these thoughts to play on repeat, and believe them like an absolute? I would never say these things to a friend and I would not allow them to be said to me. So, why, why do I treat myself worse than any other relationship I hold dear? Ouch. That one hurt. It was a breakthrough as I’d never taken a look at it that way, but it never feels good to know that the most painful relationship I really have… is with myself….
Life moves fast. Days fly by, seasons change, and sometimes we don’t stop to notice. We focus on big events – the life-changers – the Instagrammed dream vacations, the Facebook-announced promotions, weddings, and mid-parade dance parties to ‘Twist and Shout.’ These deserve to be celebrated, of course, but there’s also so much to be enjoyed when you look at the little things. I’ve found the little things to be really helpful when dealing with my depression. Just like those tiny victories, the simple pleasures are small. They might not impress anyone else, and that’s ok. When I feel the cloud of gloom and doom settle over me and feel myself nicked by the double-edged sword of past rumination and future anxiety, I take stock of my favorite things – the little, easy, simple things – and it’s that much easier to beat back those grey clouds. My simple pleasures include daisies, old books, warm wool socks, driving with the windows down, a book that lays easily in your hand, snuggling with my kid, a perfect little black dress, dance parties, sitting with someone who makes you laugh until you ache, and macarons. Things like basking in the sun, splashing in…
For the Hard Days
It was the day you woke up asking God, “What’s wrong with me?” It was the moment the thoughts were overwhelming so you crawled into bed and cried yourself to sleep. It was the morning you spent trying to figure out why the panic was there at the same time you had to calm yourself. It was the day you googled “what is wrong with me?” It was the journal entry that made you realize even talking about the shame would leave you feeling shameful, so you decided to keep it to yourself. It was the thought “someone has it worse than me, I should be grateful” playing on repeat. Maybe it was the day that made you feel like even leaving bed was too much to ask. Those moments, those heavy days, they’re really hard. I know, I’ve been there. It feels like you’re lifting the weight of your entire life, feeling the decades stack upon each other as the future grows darker. You think to yourself, “I can’t keep going like this. If the rest is going to be this hard, I can’t keep going like this. I need help.” I wish I could make you see how…
Breaking Up is the Hardest Part
“I would have dumped you if you ever said that to me.” Those were the exact words I said when asked, “what would you have done if I ever said to you the things you say to yourself?” My response echoed in my head as my Husband continued to prove his point. “I would have dumped him,” I thought. “If he said any of the things I say to myself, I would have dumped him”. It was the next question I asked myself that felt like a personal breakthrough. “If I would have ended the relationship with him for treating me like this, why do I allow myself to treat me like this? Why do I allow these thoughts to play on repeat, and believe them like an absolute? I would never say these things to a friend and I would not allow them to be said to me. So, why, why do I treat myself worse than any other relationship I hold dear? Ouch. That one hurt. It was a breakthrough as I’d never taken a look at it that way, but it never feels good to know that the most painful relationship I really have… is with myself….
It’s the Little Things
Life moves fast. Days fly by, seasons change, and sometimes we don’t stop to notice. We focus on big events – the life-changers – the Instagrammed dream vacations, the Facebook-announced promotions, weddings, and mid-parade dance parties to ‘Twist and Shout.’ These deserve to be celebrated, of course, but there’s also so much to be enjoyed when you look at the little things. I’ve found the little things to be really helpful when dealing with my depression. Just like those tiny victories, the simple pleasures are small. They might not impress anyone else, and that’s ok. When I feel the cloud of gloom and doom settle over me and feel myself nicked by the double-edged sword of past rumination and future anxiety, I take stock of my favorite things – the little, easy, simple things – and it’s that much easier to beat back those grey clouds. My simple pleasures include daisies, old books, warm wool socks, driving with the windows down, a book that lays easily in your hand, snuggling with my kid, a perfect little black dress, dance parties, sitting with someone who makes you laugh until you ache, and macarons. Things like basking in the sun, splashing in…